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The two meanings of "ecology"
“Ecology” refers to two very different things that are often confused: an
attitude towards the environment and an emerging scientific field. This
distinction has important implications for agriculture and for KVL. In the
future, agriculture, whether “conventional” or “ecological,” will be seen as a
form of ecological engineering, and this perspective should bereflected in
our curriculum.
Jacob Weiner
Professor, Botany Section, Department of Ecology
Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University
Any scientist who has studied ecology knows there are two very different
meanings of the word “ecology” as it is used today. Although those of us
who have studied ecology in post-graduate school were taught that ecology
is the area of biology that dealswith the abundance and distribution of
organisms, the word “ecology” in everyday language is more associated with
a series of environmentally-oriented values than it is with an area of scientific
inquiry. To most people, the word “ecology” or “ecological” refers to an
attitude towards environmental issues, and only secondarily, if at all, to a
scientific field. There are probably fewsciences that are so closely identified
with a specific ideology as is the science of ecology. If I am asked in a nonacademic situation what my profession is, I hesitate to say that I am an
ecologist, because people will assume I work for an environmental
organization. If I say that I am a botanist, which is equally true, there is no
such presumption of a particular value system.
This is not tosay that there is no relationship between the science of
ecology and the environmentalist philosophy, but simply that this
relationship is one between two essentially different things. For example,
“agroecology,” the name of a group in the Department of Agricultural
Sciences at KVL, is the area of ecology that concerns itself with agricultural ecosystems. But “ecological agriculture” refersto agricultural practices that
are considered to be more sustainable and environmentally-friendly than
conventional farming practices. But from a scientific point of view, an
agricultural field sprayed with pesticides has ecology, just as a tropical
rainforest has ecology. This is similar to saying that a rat or a cockroach is
as much of an animal as is a whale or a tiger. One can study theecology of
a conventional farm, such as the inputs and outputs of nutrients and energy,- 2
just as one can study the ecology of an “ecological” farm. Indeed, many of
the criticisms that have been raised against conventional farming have been
based on ecological studies of conventional farming systems. But all types
farms, traditional, conventional and “ecological”, are ecological systemsthat
can be studied scientifically. Even a toxic waste dump will have a
community of organisms living on it. Therefore it has ecology. The question
for society is not the presence or absence of “ecology,” but what type of
ecological systems we want to inhabit and use to produce food and other
human needs.
What does this distinction between the science of ecology and
“ecological” valuesmean for KVL? KVL’s mission is research and education
in agriculture. Agriculture is changing very rapidly, especially in Europe.
The science of ecology will be central to agriculture in the coming years.
The ecological context in which agriculture exists, the environmental effects
of agriculture, and the interactions among organisms, both “production”
species and other species, are becomingimportant areas of study. In the
future, agricultural issues such as plant nutrition, pests and diseases, and
even production itself, will be seen as ecological issues. For example, plant
nutrition occurs in the field, in the context of organic matter decomposition,
mineralization, inputs from the atmosphere and from the farmer, and outputs
to the atmosphere, ground water and surface...