Does the Census of Agriculture ask any questions that could be used to assess farmings impact on the environment?
The Census of Agriculture identifies and measures farming practices that may relate to changing environmental concerns. The 2006 questionnaire features a greatly expanded manure section that asks whether manure was used or produced on an operation, the form in which it was applied to the land (solid, composted, liquid) and how it was applied (incorporated, not incorporated, injected or by irrigation) as well as whether the land was in crops, hay or pasture, or other use. Census of Agriculture data are also used to assess the effects or threats of droughts, flooding, insect infestations, erosion damage, soil degradation (loss of soil nutrients), as well as patterns of herbicide, insecticide and fertilizer use, and adoption of sustainable land management practices such as conservation tillage, strip-cropping, etc.
