Urban agriculture only provides small environmental benefits in northeastern US
Wednesday, June 21, 2017 - 07:22
in Earth & Climate
"Buy local" sounds like a great environmental slogan, epitomized for city dwellers by urban agriculture. But when it comes to growing fruits and vegetables in vacant lots and on rooftops in cities, is the practice really better for the planet than conventional farming? A new analysis of urban agriculture in the northeastern U.S., reported in ACS' journal Environmental Science & Technology, has found that the regional "green" benefits consumers expect could be meager at best.