The most important changes of the agricultural environment due to man's activities are deforestation and transformations of water conditions (especially acceleration of water runoff from catchments and incremental lowering of levels of groundwater). Another factor which determines the state of the environment is the contamination of soil and water by chemical substances, industrial and municipal wastes.The changes that occur in the structure of soils and organic matter content also contribute to environmental degradation.

During the 45 years following World War II, government policies did not support private farming. Agriculture was treated as a "servant" branch of the economy, which was supposed to support the development of the raw materials and power-generating industries. This certainly did not promote harmonious development of agriculture. To compensate for neglect and agrotechnical errors, a common practice for the farmers was excessive use of artificial fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides in order to achieve the highest production yields possible. No one took into consideration the adverse effects such actions had on the biological environment and the quality of food products.

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