THRESHOLD RANGELAND CONDITION FOR RANGELAND RESTORATION INVESTMENTS AND THE FINANCIAL EQUIVALENT OF LIVEWEIGHT LOSSES DUE TO RANGELAND DEGRADATION

This study estimated the financial losses associated with lower milk yields in the relatively poor rangeland conditions of the Erzurum Province in Turkey and the factors contributing to the lower milk yields associated with the state of the rangelands, the type of grazing livestock and the demographics of the farmers. The study was conducted in 11 villages in Erzurum Province in 2006 and 2007. The following variables were considered in the study: year, number of milking days in grazing season, age and level of education of the farmers, cattle breed, supplementary feeding during the grazing period, lactation number of the cows, rangeland condition, stocking rate of the rangelands, altitude, the proportion of small ruminants in the herd and the percentage of bare ground of the rangelands. According to the least-squares regression analysis, altitude, stocking rate, the number of milking days in the grazing season and the percentage of bare ground had negative effects on milk yield, whereas all other factors significantly increased milk yield. It was estimated that a 10% deterioration in rangeland condition would result in a reduction in daily milk yield of 1.23 kg per cow, 62 kg ha–1 of rangelands and 1255 kg per farm in a 120-day grazing period. It was also found that the use of concentrate supplements during the grazing season was not cost-effective.

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An economic framework for the evaluation of rangeland restoration projects.

The Rangeland Journal ◽

10.1071/rj9900040 ◽

1990 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

pp. 40 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

ND Macleod ◽

BG Johnston

Keyword(s):

Economic Value ◽

Economic Implications ◽

Benefit Cost Analysis ◽

Study Approach ◽

Rangeland Degradation ◽

Economic Framework ◽

Rangeland Restoration ◽

Formal Procedure ◽

Benefit Cost

Statements concerning rangeland degradation and restoration issues are often supported by technically oriented evaluations, with limited consideration of the economic implications of resource conservation or rehabilitation. In the few cases where an attempt has been made to incorporate economic elements into analyses, some shortcomings have been evident in the methodology adopted. This has sometimes produced misleading results, and has made comparisons of different restoration technologies difficult. This paper examines several issues that are important in obtaining an economic perspective on the restoration of degraded rangelands. The formal procedure of benefit-cost analysis is presented as a rational framework for the economic evaluation of such activities. The framework is applied, via a case study approach, to examine the private economic value of several technologies for rangeland restoration. However, because the analysis is based on limited data, the conclusion is indicative rather than definitive. Issues relevant to the extension of the analysis to encompass social evaluations of rangeland restoration management are canvassed.

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Assessment of Rangeland Degradation in New Mexico Using Time Series Segmentation and Residual Trend Analysis (TSS-RESTREND)

Remote Sensing ◽

10.3390/rs13091618 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (9) ◽

pp. 1618

Author(s):

Melakeneh G. Gedefaw ◽

Hatim M. E. Geli ◽

Temesgen Alemayehu Abera

Keyword(s):

Time Series ◽

New Mexico ◽

Trend Analysis ◽

Vegetation Index ◽

Normalized Difference Vegetation Index ◽

Rangeland Management ◽

Environmental Benefits ◽

Drought Severity ◽

Assessment Framework ◽

Rangeland Degradation

Rangelands provide significant socioeconomic and environmental benefits to humans. However, climate variability and anthropogenic drivers can negatively impact rangeland productivity. The main goal of this study was to investigate structural and productivity changes in rangeland ecosystems in New Mexico (NM), in the southwestern United States of America during the 1984–2015 period. This goal was achieved by applying the time series segmented residual trend analysis (TSS-RESTREND) method, using datasets of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) from the Global Inventory Modeling and Mapping Studies and precipitation from Parameter elevation Regressions on Independent Slopes Model (PRISM), and developing an assessment framework. The results indicated that about 17.6% and 12.8% of NM experienced a decrease and an increase in productivity, respectively. More than half of the state (55.6%) had insignificant change productivity, 10.8% was classified as indeterminant, and 3.2% was considered as agriculture. A decrease in productivity was observed in 2.2%, 4.5%, and 1.7% of NM’s grassland, shrubland, and ever green forest land cover classes, respectively. Significant decrease in productivity was observed in the northeastern and southeastern quadrants of NM while significant increase was observed in northwestern, southwestern, and a small portion of the southeastern quadrants. The timing of detected breakpoints coincided with some of NM’s drought events as indicated by the self-calibrated Palmar Drought Severity Index as their number increased since 2000s following a similar increase in drought severity. Some breakpoints were concurrent with some fire events. The combination of these two types of disturbances can partly explain the emergence of breakpoints with degradation in productivity. Using the breakpoint assessment framework developed in this study, the observed degradation based on the TSS-RESTREND showed only 55% agreement with the Rangeland Productivity Monitoring Service (RPMS) data. There was an agreement between the TSS-RESTREND and RPMS on the occurrence of significant degradation in productivity over the grasslands and shrublands within the Arizona/NM Tablelands and in the Chihuahua Desert ecoregions, respectively. This assessment of NM’s vegetation productivity is critical to support the decision-making process for rangeland management; address challenges related to the sustainability of forage supply and livestock production; conserve the biodiversity of rangelands ecosystems; and increase their resilience. Future analysis should consider the effects of rising temperatures and drought on rangeland degradation and productivity.

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China's Pastoral Region: Sheep and Wool, Minority Nationalities, Rangeland Degradation and Sustainable Development. By John W. Longworth and Gregory J. Williamson. [Wallingford, Oxon: CAB International, 1993. 350 pp. £45.00, $85.50. ISBN 0–85198–890–3.]

The China Quarterly ◽

10.1017/s0305741000033269 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 141 ◽

pp. 256-257

Author(s):

James B. Reardon-Anderson

Keyword(s):

Sustainable Development ◽

Rangeland Degradation

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Local Perceptions of Livestock Husbandry and Rangeland Degradation in the Highlands of South Africa: Implication for Development Interventions

Journal of Human Ecology ◽

10.1080/09709274.2014.11906760 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 47 (3) ◽

pp. 257-268 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Solomon T. Beyene ◽

L. Mlisa ◽

M. Gxasheka

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

Local Perceptions ◽

Rangeland Degradation ◽

Development Interventions ◽

Livestock Husbandry

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Towards evenly distributed grazing patterns: including social context in sheep management strategies

PeerJ ◽

10.7717/peerj.2152 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 4 ◽

pp. e2152 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Agustina di Virgilio ◽

Juan Manuel Morales

Keyword(s):

Social Context ◽

Management Practices ◽

Spatial Scales ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Domestic Sheep ◽

Conservation Of Resources ◽

Landscape Conservation ◽

Sheep Grazing ◽

Rangeland Degradation ◽

Natural Grasslands

Background.A large proportion of natural grasslands around the world is exposed to overgrazing resulting in land degradation and biodiversity loss. Although there is an increasing effort in the promotion of sustainable livestock management, rangeland degradation still occurs because animals’ foraging behaviour is highly selective at different spatial scales. The assessment of the ecological mechanisms modulating the spatial distribution of grazing and how to control it has critical implications for long term conservation of resources and the sustainability of livestock production. Considering the relevance of social interactions on animals’ space use patterns, our aim was to explore the potential effects of including animals’ social context into management strategies using domestic sheep grazing in rangelands as case study.Methods.We used GPS data from 19 Merino sheep (approximately 10% of the flock) grazing on three different paddocks (with sizes from 80 to 1000 Ha) during a year, to estimate resource selection functions of sheep grazing in flocks of different levels of heterogeneity. We assessed the effects of sheep class (i.e., ewes, wethers, and hoggets), age, body condition and time since release on habitat selection patterns.Results.We found that social rank was reflected on sheep habitat use, where dominant individuals (i.e., reproductive females) used more intensively the most preferred areas and low-ranked (i.e., yearlings) used less preferred areas. Our results showed that when sheep grazed on more heterogeneous flocks, grazing patterns were more evenly distributed at all the paddocks considered in this study. On the other hand, when high-ranked individuals were removed from the flock, low-ranked sheep shifted their selection patterns by increasing the use of the most preferred areas and strongly avoided to use less preferred sites (i.e., a highly selective grazing behaviour).Discussion.Although homogenization and segregation of flocks by classes are common practices to increase flock productivity, we are proposing an alternative that employs behavioural interactions in heterogeneous flocks to generate more evenly distributed grazing patterns. This practice can be combined with other practices such as rotational grazing and guardian dogs (to decrease mortality levels that may be generated by sheep grazing on more risky habitats). This does not imply any modifications of livestock stocking rates and densities or any additional investments for labour and materials. Considering livestock behaviour is critical for the design of sustainable management practices that balance landscape conservation and livestock productivity.

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Assessing rangeland condition and trend.

Field and laboratory methods for grassland and animal production research ◽

10.1079/9780851993515.0227 ◽

2009 ◽

pp. 227-262 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

M. H. Friedel ◽

W. A. Laycock ◽

G. N. Bastin

Keyword(s):

Rangeland Condition

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Exploring appropriate livelihood alternatives for sustainable rangeland management

The Rangeland Journal ◽

10.1071/rj15027 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 37 (4) ◽

pp. 345 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Hojatollah Khedri Gharibvand ◽

Hossein Azadi ◽

Frank Witlox

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Policy Making ◽

Sustainable Livelihoods ◽

Rangeland Management ◽

Future Directions ◽

Policy Makers ◽

Rangeland Degradation ◽

Mitigation And Adaptation ◽

Migration Strategies ◽

And Migration

Rangeland degradation and vulnerability of livelihoods are two major challenges facing pastoralists, rangeland managers and policy-makers in arid and semi-arid areas. There is a need to make holistic informed decisions in order to protect rangelands and sustain livelihoods. Through a comprehensive literature review on rangeland management policies and livelihood strategies of ‘rangeland users’, it is shown how such policies have affected sustainable rangeland management, how strategies to sustain livelihoods have been incomplete and how there has been a lack of a multi-disciplinary approach in acknowledging them. Accordingly, a set of appropriate livelihood alternatives is introduced and, thenceforth, a framework for their evaluation is developed. Supportive strategies for enhancing resilience are discussed as a research and policy-making gap. In this study, the keys to achieve sustainable livelihoods are acknowledged as ‘livelihoods’ resilience’, where livelihoods need to be supported by access to capital, means of coping with the contexts of vulnerability as well as by enhancing policies, institutions and processes. The paper proposes a set of ‘livestock-based livelihoods’ regarding ‘traditional pastoralism’ as well as ‘their mitigation and adaptation’. Moreover, their transformation to ‘commercial pastoralism’, ‘resource-based livelihoods’, ‘alternative livelihoods’ and ‘migration’ strategies is recognised to be employed by rangeland users as useful alternatives in different regions and under future changing conditions including climate change. These strategies embrace thinking on resilience and are supported by strategies that address social and ecological consequences of climate change consisting of mitigation, adaptation and transformation. It is argued that sustainable livelihoods and sustainable rangeland management will be achieved if they are supported by policies that build and facilitate a set of appropriate livelihood alternatives and keep them in a sustainable state rather than being limited to supporting ‘vulnerable livelihoods’. Finally, future directions for analysing and policy-making in selecting the best alternative to achieve sustainable livelihoods are indicated.

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