dreadful

cultivation

coexist

incompatible

bound

preserved

challenges

expansion

differentiate

Efficient K. comparison L. chord M. negligible N. invariably O. incredibly Farming ___1___ interferes with the habitats of plants and animals. However, this does not necessarily mean that agriculture and biodiversity are ___2___. In fact, quite the opposite is true. The sustainable cultivation of plants for food and feed actually enables us to preserve biodiversity. By 2007, there were more than twice as many people living on the planet as there were in 1961. Over the same period, the total amount of available arable land grew by just 10 percent. In ___3___ with population growth, the ___4___ of arable land was small. And there are limits to further expansion. A large proportion of the earth’s surface-like deserts-is not suitable for ___5___, and other areas are utilized by humans for roads and buildings. Some land that is rich in biodiversity needs to be ___6___ and thus should not be converted into arable land. The tropical rain forests, for example, have the highest species density in the world, and changing this land for crop cultivation would be ___7___ to these species’ habitats and, indeed, existence. By 2050, global demand for food will have risen by 70 percent. But the expansion of land available for cultivation has its limits. This is one of the greatest ___8___ facing agriculture today: How do we balance the increased demand for food with the need to maintain biological diversity, now and in the future? ___9___ and sane use of land will be key to preserving natural animal and plant habitats. To achieve this aim will depend to a considerable extent on the use of modern agricultural methods. If these methods are successfully applied, we believe that agriculture and biodiversity can ___10___ in harmony.