Organic Agriculture boosts biodiversity.

• Author: Nierenberg, Danielle
• Position: ENVIRONMENTAL Intelligence

Organic farmers can now boast that their farming methods actually protect biodiversity at every level of the food chain, from bacteria and plants to earthworms, beetles, birds, and mammals, according to a recent report from English Nature, a government-funded conservation agency, and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

The researchers reviewed data from 76 studies of farms in the United States, Canada, Europe, and New Zealand and compared biodiversity levels among different groups of organisms present on conventional and organic farms. More than two-thirds of the comparisons revealed that organic farming benefited wildlife more than farms using chemicals and pesticides.

Bats may be one the biggest winners. The researchers found that foraging activity among bats was higher by 84 percent on organic farms and that two species, the greater and lesser horseshoe bats, were found only on organic farms. Birds also benefit from organic agriculture, particularly farming in which both crops and livestock are raised. One species that could make a comeback is the lap-wing, whose populations in the United Kingdom have declined by 80 percent since the 1960s...