Pathogens in crop production systems irrigated with low-quality water in Bolivia

Abstract In dry areas, the need for irrigation to ensure agricultural production determines the use of all available water sources. However, the water sources used for irrigation are often contaminated by untreated or minimally treated wastewater. Microbial risks from reusing wastewater for vegetable irrigation can be addressed by installing environmental barriers that pathogens must cross to reach humans in the reuse system. Knowledge of pathogen flows inside the system and pathogen removal potential is the first step towards devising a risk management strategy. This study assessed microbe prevalence in farming systems in the Bolivian highlands that use wastewater-polluted sources for irrigation of lettuce. Samples of soil, lettuce and different water sources used in the farming systems were taken during one crop season and concentrations of coliphages, Escherichia coli and helminth eggs were measured. The results showed high spread of these microorganisms throughout the whole system. There was a significant correlation between microbial quality of water and of the harvested produce for several microorganisms. The microbial prevalence in protected shallow wells was found to be significantly lower than in other water sources. These findings can help formulate feasible risk management strategies in contexts where conventional technologies for microbial removal are not possible.

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The management of risk in a dryland environment

Proceedings of the New Zealand Grassland Association ◽

10.33584/jnzg.2011.73.2835 ◽

2011 ◽

pp. 13-21

Author(s):

D.I. Gray ◽

J.I. Reid ◽

D.J. Horne

Keyword(s):

Risk Management ◽

Service Providers ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Subterranean Clover ◽

Farming Systems ◽

Market Risk ◽

Farm Size ◽

Forage Crops ◽

Risk Management Strategies ◽

Upside Risk

A group of 24 Hawke's Bay hill country farmers are working with service providers to improve the resilience of their farming systems. An important step in the process was to undertake an inventory of their risk management strategies. Farmers were interviewed about their farming systems and risk management strategies and the data was analysed using descriptive statistics. There was considerable variation in the strategies adopted by the farmers to cope with a dryland environment. Importantly, these strategies had to cope with three types of drought and also upside risk (better than expected conditions), and so flexibility was critical. Infra-structure was important in managing a dryland environment. Farmers chose between increased scale (increasing farm size) and geographic dispersion (owning a second property in another location) through to intensification (investing in subdivision, drainage, capital fertiliser, new pasture species). The study identified that there may be scope for further investment in infra-structural elements such as drainage, deeper rooting alternative pasture species and water harvesting, along with improved management of subterranean clover to improve flexibility. Many of the farmers used forage crops and idling capacity (reduced stocking rate) to improve flexibility; others argued that maintaining pasture quality and managing upside risk was a better strategy in a dryland environment. Supplementary feed was an important strategy for some farmers, but its use was limited by contour and machinery constraints. A surprisingly large proportion of farmers run breeding cows, a policy that is much less flexible than trading stock. However, several farmers had improved their flexibility by running a high proportion of trading cattle and buffer mobs of ewe hoggets and trade lambs. To manage market risk, the majority of farmers are selling a large proportion of their lambs prime. Similarly, cattle are either sold prime or store onto the grass market when prices are at a premium. However, market risk associated with the purchase of supplements and grazing was poorly managed.

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Risk Management Strategies to Reduce Net Income Variability for Farmers

Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics ◽

10.1017/s0081305200017131 ◽

1985 ◽

Vol 17 (1) ◽

pp. 117-130 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Hamid Falatoonzadeh ◽

J. Richard Conner ◽

Rulon D. Pope

Keyword(s):

Risk Management ◽

Crop Production ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Farm Income ◽

Net Income ◽

Combination Strategy ◽

Management Tools ◽

Risk Management Strategies ◽

Price Risks ◽

The Many

AbstractThe most useful and practical strategy available for reducing variability of net farm income is ascertained. Of the many risk management tools presently available, five of the most commonly used are simultaneously incorporated in an empirically tested model. Quadratic programming provides the basis for decisionmaking in risk management wherein expected utility is assumed to be a function of the mean and variance of net income. Results demonstrate that farmers can reduce production and price risks when a combination strategy including a diversified crop production plan and participation in the futures market and the Federal Crop Insurance Program (FCIP) is implemented.

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Socio-ecological factors determine crop performance in agricultural systems

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-020-60927-1 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Libère Nkurunziza ◽

Christine A. Watson ◽

Ingrid Öborn ◽

Henrik G. Smith ◽

Göran Bergkvist ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Crop Production ◽

Production Systems ◽

Spring Barley ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Ecological Factors ◽

Farming Systems ◽

Agricultural System ◽

Ecological Zones ◽

Crop Performance ◽

Latent Structures

AbstractAgricultural production systems are affected by complex interactions between social and ecological factors, which are often hard to integrate in a common analytical framework. We evaluated differences in crop production among farms by integrating components of several related research disciplines in a single socio-ecological analysis. Specifically, we evaluated spring barley (Hordeum vulgare, L.) performance on 34 farms (organic and conventional) in two agro-ecological zones to unravel the importance of ecological, crop and management factors in the performance of a standard crop. We used Projections to Latent Structures (PLS), a simple but robust analytical tool widely utilized in research disciplines dealing with complex systems (e.g. social sciences and chemometrics), but infrequently in agricultural sciences. We show that barley performance on organic farms was affected by previous management, landscape structure, and soil quality, in contrast to conventional farms where external inputs were the main factors affecting biomass and grain yield. This indicates that more complex management strategies are required in organic than in conventional farming systems. We conclude that the PLS method combining socio-ecological and biophysical factors provides improved understanding of the various interacting factors determining crop performance and can help identify where improvements in the agricultural system are most likely to be effective.

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Risk Management Strategies in Humid Production Regions: A Comparison of Supplemental Irrigation and Crop Insurance

Agricultural and Resource Economics Review ◽

10.1017/s1068280500005797 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 33 (2) ◽

pp. 220-232 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

Timothy J. Dalton ◽

Gregory A. Porter ◽

Noah G. Winslow

Keyword(s):

Risk Management ◽

Crop Production ◽

Crop Insurance ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Economic Feasibility ◽

Supplemental Irrigation ◽

Production Risk ◽

Enterprise Risk ◽

Risk Management Strategies ◽

Management Responsibility

Recent federal agricultural programs have accelerated the devolution of enterprise risk management responsibility from the state to individual producers. Using a biophysical simulation model, the risk management benefits of federal crop insurance and supplemental irrigation are derived and compared to uninsured rainfed crop production in an expected utility framework. Federal crop insurance programs are inefficient at reducing producer exposure to weather-related production risk in humid regions, and the risk management benefits from supplemental irrigation are found to be scale and technology dependent. Environmental policies that regulate resource development will increase the investment cost of irrigation alternatives and reduce economic feasibility.

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Assessment of the Risk Management Strategies among Arable Crop Farmers in Owerri West Local Government Area of Imo State, Nigeria

Asian Journal of Agricultural Extension Economics & Sociology ◽

10.9734/ajaees/2019/v33i330175 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 1-10

Author(s):

O. B. Ibeagwa ◽

N. C. Ehirim ◽

G. N. Ben-Chendo ◽

I. I. Ukoha ◽

E. C. Osuji ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Risk Management ◽

Local Government ◽

Crop Production ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Household Size ◽

Local Government Area ◽

Farm Size ◽

Imo State ◽

Arable Crop ◽

Risk Management Strategies

The increased incidences of farming risks have been a challenge among smallholder farmers in Nigeria. This study set out to assess risk management strategies among arable crop farmers in Owerri West Local Government Area of Imo State, Nigeria. The proportion of risk in arable crop production and the factors that influence risk in arable crop production in the study area were specifically estimated. Primary data used for the study were collected with the aid of well-structured questionnaire from eighty-four farmers in the study area. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The result revealed that majority of the arable crop farmers (52.4%) were females. The average age and household size were 54 years and 5 persons respectively. Educational level, age, farming experience, farm size, household size and farm income were the factors influencing the estimated output of the farmers due to the prevalence of risk in arable crop production. The study recommended the continuous education of arable crop farmers in the area so as to increase their capacity to deal with risk on their farms.

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Helping supervisees learn ethically based risk management strategies

PsycEXTRA Dataset ◽

10.1037/e500672008-001 ◽

2008 ◽

Author(s):

Samuel Knapp

Keyword(s):

Risk Management ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Risk Management Strategies

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The Effects of Decision Aid Orientation on Risk Factor Identification and Audit Test Planning

Auditing A Journal of Practice & Theory ◽

10.2308/aud.2002.21.2.39 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 21 (2) ◽

pp. 39-56 ◽

Cited By ~ 29

Author(s):

Jean C. Bedard ◽

Lynford E. Graham

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Risk Management ◽

Decision Aid ◽

Decision Aids ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Risk Identification ◽

Matched Pair ◽

Audit Planning ◽

Audit Firms ◽

Risk Management Strategies

In auditing, risk management involves identifying client facts or issues that may affect engagement risk, and planning evidence-gathering strategies accordingly. The purpose of this paper is to examine whether auditors' identification of risk factors and planning of audit tests is affected by decision aid orientation, i.e., a “negative” focus wherein client risk and its consequences are emphasized, or a “positive” focus where such factors are not emphasized. Specifically, we expect that auditors will identify more risk factors using a negatively oriented risk identification decision aid, but only when engagement risk is relatively high. We address this issue in the context of auditors' knowledge of actual clients, manipulating decision aid orientation as negative or positive in a matched-pair design. Results show that auditors using the negative decision aid orientation identify more risk factors than do those using a positive orientation, for their higher-risk clients. We also find that decisions to apply substantive tests are more directly linked to specific risk factors identified than to direct risk assessments. Further, our results show that auditors with repeat engagement experience with the client identify more risk factors. The findings of this study imply that audit firms may improve their risk management strategies through simple changes in the design of decision aids used to support audit planning.

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Evaluation of Physical Risk during Necropsy and Morgue Activities as Risk Management Strategy

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18168266 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (16) ◽

pp. 8266

Author(s):

Zoe Del Fante ◽

Nicola Di Fazio ◽

Adriano Papale ◽

Paola Tomao ◽

Fabio Del Duca ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Risk Management ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Risk Management Strategy ◽

Work Related ◽

Activity Measurements ◽

Risk Management Strategies ◽

Physical Risk ◽

Critical Issues ◽

Load Handling

Physical risk assessments allow us to understand work-related critical issues, thus representing a useful tool in risk management strategies. In particular, our study focuses on the identification of already known and emerging physical risks related to necropsy and morgue activities, as well as crime scene investigations. The aim of our study is, therefore, to identify objective elements in order to quantify exposure to such risk factors among healthcare professionals and working personnel. For the research of potentially at-risk activities, data from the Morgue of Policlinico Umberto I Hospital in Rome were used. The scientific literature has been reviewed in order to assess the risks associated with morgue activity. Measurements were performed on previously scheduled days, in collaboration with the activities of different research units. The identified areas of risk were: microclimate; exposure to noise and vibrations; postural and biomechanical aspects of necropsy activities. The obtained results make it possible to detect interindividual variability in exposure to many of the aforementioned risk factors. In particular, the assessment of microclimate did not show significant results. On the contrary, exposure to vibrations and biomechanical aspects of load handling have shown potential risk profiles. For this reason, both profiles have been identified as possible action targets for risk management strategies.

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Community seed network in an era of climate change: dynamics of maize diversity in Yucatán, Mexico

Agriculture and Human Values ◽

10.1007/s10460-021-10249-3 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Marianna Fenzi ◽

Paul Rogé ◽

Angel Cruz-Estrada ◽

John Tuxill ◽

Devra Jarvis

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Crop Production ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Farming Systems ◽

Seed Systems ◽

Farming Community ◽

Climate Resilience ◽

Maize Diversity ◽

Climatic Period ◽

Small Holder Farmers

AbstractLocal seed systems remain the fundamental source of seeds for many crops in developing countries. Climate resilience for small holder farmers continues to depend largely on locally available seeds of traditional crop varieties. High rainfall events can have as significant an impact on crop production as increased temperatures and drought. This article analyzes the dynamics of maize diversity over 3 years in a farming community of Yucatán state, Mexico, where elevated levels of precipitation forced farmers in 2012 to reduce maize diversity in their plots. We study how farmers maintained their agroecosystem resilience through seed networks, examining the drivers influencing maize diversity and seed provisioning in the year preceding and following the 2012 climatic disturbance (2011–2013). We found that, under these challenging circumstances, farmers focused their efforts on their most reliable landraces, disregarding hybrids. We show that farmers were able to recover and restore the diversity usually cultivated in the community in the year following the critical climate event. The maize dynamic assessed in this study demonstrates the importance of community level conservation of crop diversity. Understanding farmer management strategies of agrobiodiversity, especially during a challenging climatic period, is necessary to promote a more tailored response to climate change in traditional farming systems.

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