IoT applications in agriculture have brought a lot of innovation to agriculture at a time when population growth is straining the planet’s resources. The use of IoT in this sector is growing rapidly – the IoT in the agriculture market is worth $12.5 billion in 2021 and is expected to reach $28.56 billion by 2030.IoT sensors and networks can support farming in a variety of ways, from keeping chickens healthy to GPS mapping and crop management to improve yields. The Internet of Things can help farmers monitor water usage in real-time and protect precious water resources, while supply chain asset tracking can ensure that food produced on the farm reaches consumers' tables efficiently. Модуль связи CAN2.0Data provided by IoT devices can also help farmers practice so-called "precision agriculture," a technique that allows farmers to minimize the use of chemicals such as pesticides and fertilizers. This practice can have very real consequences for the health of the planet.Precision Climate-Friendly AgriculturePrecision agriculture utilizes data from IoT devices deployed in the field to help make targeted decisions about managing crops and maintaining facilities/machinery. Farmers use a combination of sensors, data analytics tools, and dashboards in their fields to gather insights about what their crops need to thrive. This can help farmers increase productivity and return on investment, while also helping to create more climate-friendly farms."Modern agriculture is part of the climate solution, and the fuel savings due to precision farming alone is equivalent to taking nearly 200,000 cars off the road each year," said Kellie Bray, CropLife America (CLA) Office Director.Data collected through IoT sensors can ensure that farmers provide the right amount of pesticides/herbicides to ensure good crop yields without overusing these chemicals. This not only benefits the sustainability of the crops grown in the fields but also the ecosystem surrounding the farm.How Precision Agriculture Can Help Reduce Herbicide RunoffA recent industry study showed that precision agriculture reduced herbicide use in the United States by 30 million pounds or 9 percent of the estimated total. The same study found that wider adoption of technological solutions could eliminate an additional 48 million pounds of herbicides or an additional 15 percent.Traditionally, farmers sprayed consistent amounts of herbicides and fertilizers on their fields, a strategy that often resulted in the overuse of these chemicals. A recent report estimated that this approach resulted in 40 percent of fields being over-fertilized. Precision agriculture allows farmers to deploy variable-rate technology that uses IoT sensors or pre-programmed maps to spray the right amount of herbicide for specific parts of the crop.When a farm uses more herbicide than needed, it seeps through the soil into groundwater or into rivers. This can negatively impact fish and invertebrates in these ecosystems.Andrew Gonzalez, Liber Ero Chair of Conservation Biology at McGill University, said: "We observed significant biodiversity loss in glyphosate-contaminated communities, which can have profound effects on the normal functioning of ecosystems and reduce their ability to adapt to new pollutants. or stressors. This is particularly concerning as many ecosystems grapple with the growing threat of pollution and climate change."More than 2 billion people live in countries with insufficient freshwater resources, and humans are polluting rivers and lakes faster than natural purification processes can renew these resources. This is one reason why the role of IoT in limiting the impact of agriculture on groundwater is so important.Connectivity challengeEven if farmers are determined to protect their local ecosystems through sustainable and smart farming, they may face the challenge of building an effective working IoT network. The USDA estimates that only half of U.S. farms currently use a broadband connection, and 70 percent of them use a cellular data plan to access the Internet.This digital divide that separates rural communities from urban ones can make it difficult for farmers to transmit the vast amounts of data their IoT devices collect. This data is critical to making decisions about operating cleaner, more sustainable farms. TCP-шлюз modbusThere are also practical physical barriers to connectivity on farms. For example, farming in plains can be done on wide, flat fields, but farms with rows of trees, hills, or terraces may suffer from poor signal source reception. Plants also contain water, which reflects, refracts, and interrupts the connectivity between fields and orchards.In the age of COVID-19, increased rural demand for telemedicine and remote work has further constrained bandwidth, making it impossible for farmers to implement these technology upgrades.Despite the challenges, the opportunities to improve agricultural sustainability with the help of IoT solutions are real.