Reflections on the Role of Ethics in Agriculture

This volume is an update to Weed Science- A Plea for Thought-Revisited published by Springer in 2012. More than a decade after the first edition, ethical discussion on the use of pesticides for weed management is largely absent. Startingly, weed science and agriculture have continued on the same path and are still dominated by capital chemical and energy intensive practices, including the paralysis of pesticides. This second edition expands upon the first, using recent data to confirm the dominance of herbicides. The revision includes chapters which emphasize the role of ethics in agriculture and the reasons it should, but has not yet become part of agricultural education. This includes suggestions on how education in agricultural ethics should be shifting and whose responsibility it is. The revised version also includes a discussion on the role of genetically modified crops and the consequences of using these crops-both positive and negative.

Scientists have developed a wealth of knowledge they bring to the surface of their disciplinary silos. Yet there needs to be greater discussion on the necessity and risks of agricultural science and technology. This revised version provides a rigorous examination of weed science’s goals and ethics and challenges the way we manage weeds and agriculture.