Trakya is located in the Northwest part of Turkey and has totally 2.476.000 ha area. This region has 1.225.000 ha dry and 160.000 ha irrigated agricultural land. Cultivated main crops are wheat, sunflower and, rice. Unfortunately, besides industrial development which caused to some serious pollution problems in Trakya’s agricultural land and natural water sources, also the stubble burning, excess using of fertilizer, pesticide, and herbicide are polluting factors in intensive agricultural production. The protecting environmental pollution and land productivity, all the agricultural researchers in the world study to develop new agricultural systems no causing to pollution. For this purpose, contrary to the conventional systems developed new alternative systems such as organic agriculture and sustainable agriculture contain harmless effects to soil organism and ecosystem.

Specially, in environmentally sound sustainable agricultural systems should be carried out and increased applicability by the farmers in agricultural production for the foreseeable future in the Trakya. Therefore, in the frame of principles of sustainable agriculture, scientific research and practices should be considered genotype, environment, growing techniques that would be acceptable and appropriate to farmers. Sustainability in agriculture is a moving target and can differ to year, economical needs, climate, and region. Necessary adjustments can be made in agricultural production for sustainability. Precautions in sustainable farming systems should be economically viable, environmentally sound, socially acceptable, and politically supportable. Therefore in sustainable agriculture high yielding varieties tolerant to disease, pest, heat, drought should be used. Also these varieties should be high nitrogen use efficiency, low nitrogen/ drought tolerant characters. For sustainable intensification of agriculture requires strategic fertilizer use, protect the stubble burning for increasing organic matter, reduced tillage, appropriate crop rotation, integrated pest and weed management. Consequently, to supply a stable development in agricultural production in Trakya region should be taken into account of sustainable agricultural principles. Any component of a farming system can become the limiting factor to sustainability should be evaluated in a new research paradigm based on genotype x environment x management x people.

Key words: Sustainable agriculture, ecosystem, organic agriculture, soil productivity