Livestock Farming at the Expense of Water Resources?$nThe Water–Energy–Food Nexus in Regions with Intensive Livestock Farming

Livestock Farming at the Expense of Water Resources?$nThe Water–Energy–Food Nexus in Regions with Intensive Livestock Farming
Author: Colette Sophie Vogeler
Publisher:
Total Pages:
Release: 2019
Genre:
ISBN:

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Policymaking in the water–energy–food nexus is characterized by complex ecological, social, and economic interdependencies. Nexus research assumes these interactions to be overseen in the respective resource governance resulting in sectoral perspectives contributing to unsustainable outcomes. In Germany, the political priority given to the formation of an internationally competitive livestock sector by means of intensification, specialization and regional concentration has exerted sustained pressure on water and soil resources. The expansion of bioenergy plants promoted by the renewable energy act has exacerbated the situation. Despite the persistency of the ecological challenges, German policymakers only reacted when the European Commission referred Germany to the European Court of Justice. Current policy eorts to tackle the ecological problems are now provoking disruptions in the agrarian sector in regions with high nitrate concentrations in water resources. By combining the social-ecological systems framework with hypotheses derived from nexus research, we explore the interactions between food, water and energy systems and aim at understanding the unsustainable outcomes. We argue that the non-consideration of the complex interdependencies between the agricultural, the water and the energy system in policymaking and the divergence of policy goals constitute a major cause of unsustainable governance.

Accounting for livestock water productivity: How and why?

Accounting for livestock water productivity: How and why?
Author: ​Drastig, K., Vellenga, L., Qualitz, G., Singh, R., Pfister, S., Boulay, A.-M., Wiedemann, S., Prochnow, A., Chapagain, A., De Camillis, C., Opio, C. & Mottet, A.
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.
Total Pages: 58
Release: 2021-01-22
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 9251321345

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The assessment of water productivity in livestock supply chains has a critical role to play in developing productive and sustainable food production systems worldwide. In particular, the evaluation of water productivity improvement options is key to addressing growing food demand and the projected impacts of climate change under conditions where the availability of land and water resources is increasingly limited. In this report, we review current applications of water productivity analysis in livestock supply chains. To do so, we analysed 50 livestock water productivity studies carried out in various regions of the world from 1993 to the present time. We reviewed the assessment goals, system boundaries, methodological approaches, water flows, modelling tools, databases, livestock species and the main findings in each of the studies. We found that there was no consistency in the methods and approaches used to assess water productivity in livestock production chains. The studies varied widely in terms of their assessment goals, methodology, and the sources of water used for the analysis. The main methodological differences were the inclusion or exclusion of background processes, such as water input and the treatment of precipitation in accounting for water use in livestock production processes. Another key issue was the missing uncertainty assessment, which can be classified as input data uncertainty or model uncertainty, as well as choice uncertainties. The review recommends the further development of guidelines that ensure a consistent and coordinated application of water productivity analysis of livestock production systems world-wide.

Livestock and water interactions in mixed crop-livestock farming systems of Sub-Saharan Africa: interventions for improved productivity

Livestock and water interactions in mixed crop-livestock farming systems of Sub-Saharan Africa: interventions for improved productivity
Author: Descheemaeker, Katrien
Publisher: IWMI
Total Pages: 45
Release: 2009-06-25
Genre: Livestock
ISBN: 9290907029

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Focusing on mixed crop-livestock farming systems of sub-Saharan Africa, this review brings together the available knowledge in the various components of the livestock and water sectors. Through an analysis of livestock-water interactions, promising strategies and interventions to improve Livestock Water Productivity are proposed. In the biophysical domain, the numerous interventions relate to feed, water and animal management. These are interlinked with interventions in the socio-political-economic domain. The paper identifies critical research and development gaps in terms of methodologies for quantifying water productivity and integrating different scales, and also in terms of institutions and policies.

The Livestock-Water Nexus Under Mixed Crop-Livestock Production System

The Livestock-Water Nexus Under Mixed Crop-Livestock Production System
Author: Mekete Bekele
Publisher: LAP Lambert Academic Publishing
Total Pages: 240
Release: 2013
Genre:
ISBN: 9783659434143

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Livestock production is growing and shall continue to grow to match the demand for an ever increasing human population for livestock products and services. Water is one of the limited resources and crucial input for livestock production. Literally the actual need of livestock for water is not well accounted for more than their drinking requirements, which is much less than the actual requirement. On the other hand there is competitive use of water across different users. Under mixed farming systems, integrating livestock production into water resource development has delivered synergistic benefit. Water-efficient agricultural practices are becoming mandatory owing the growing water scarcity. In this regard management of livestock-water interaction in mixed crop livestock systems will contribute to increased water use efficiency for food production and ecosystem services. It would, therefore, be necessary to understand and evaluate the existing livestock and water nexus. This material tried to explore the water productivity determination models. It will be useful particularly for agriculture, natural resource, environmental and livestock science professionals and policy makers.

Livestock's Long Shadow

Livestock's Long Shadow
Author: Henning Steinfeld
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.
Total Pages: 418
Release: 2006
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9789251055717

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"The assessment builds on the work of the Livestock, Environment and Development (LEAD) Initiative"--Pref.

Tackling Climate Change Through Livestock

Tackling Climate Change Through Livestock
Author: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.
Total Pages: 139
Release: 2013
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 925107920X

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Greenhouse gas emissions by the livestock sector could be cut by as much as 30 percent through the wider use of existing best practices and technologies. FAO conducted a detailed analysis of GHG emissions at multiple stages of various livestock supply chains, including the production and transport of animal feed, on-farm energy use, emissions from animal digestion and manure decay, as well as the post-slaughter transport, refrigeration and packaging of animal products. This report represents the most comprehensive estimate made to-date of livestocks contribution to global warming as well as the sectors potential to help tackle the problem. This publication is aimed at professionals in food and agriculture as well as policy makers.

Livestock in a Changing Landscape, Volume 1

Livestock in a Changing Landscape, Volume 1
Author: Henning Steinfeld
Publisher:
Total Pages: 456
Release: 2010-01-29
Genre: Nature
ISBN:

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Livestock in a Changing Landscape is a collaborative effort by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO); International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI); FAO Livestock, Environment and Development Initiative (LEAD); Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment (SCOPE); Swiss College of Agriculture (SHL), Bern University of Applied Sciences; French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD); and Woods Institute for the Environment at Stanford University.--COVER.

Five practical actions towards low-carbon livestock

Five practical actions towards low-carbon livestock
Author: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.
Total Pages: 40
Release: 2019-11-27
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 9251319855

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Livestock provide valuable nutritional benefits as well as supporting livelihoods and the resilience of families and communities. Demand for animal products continues to grow in response to rising population and increasing wealth, especially in low- and middle-income countries. In spite of productivity gains, greenhouse gas emissions from livestock are also increasing. Successful action on climate change through practical action in livestock agrifood systems is an urgent priority, but must not come at the expense of other sustainability objectives, particularly those relating hunger and poverty. Hence there is a need to balance the benefits of animal-source foods and livestock keeping for nutrition, health and livelihoods, with the urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to tackle the climate crisis, which also threatens food security. The following five practical actions can be widely implemented for measurable and rapid impacts on livestock emissions: 1) boosting efficiency of livestock production and resource use; 2) Intensifying recycling efforts and minimizing losses for a circular bioeconomy; 3) capitalizing on nature-based solutions to ramp up carbon offsets; 4) striving for healthy, sustainable diets and accounting for protein alternatives; and 5) developing policy measures to drive change. This brief describes how these can be implemented in integrative and sustainable ways, taking account the diversity of livestock systems and enhancing synergies and managing tradeoffs with other sustainable development objectives. FAO can help by providing developing tools, methodologies and protocols for measuring emissions, and supporting the development and analysis of technical and policy options towards sustainable, low-carbon livestock.

Recoupling the Livestock Nutrient Economy

Recoupling the Livestock Nutrient Economy
Author: Alexander Werenka
Publisher:
Total Pages:
Release: 2019
Genre:
ISBN:

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Intensification of farming operations and increased nutrient application rates have led to higher crop yields and greater food security. At the same time, widespread use of commercial nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) fertilizers and large-scale livestock production have led to unintended environmental consequences, including eutrophication of both coastal and inland waters, threats to drinking water, and increased production of N2O, a potent greenhouse gas. In the past, crop and livestock production were typically more integrated, allowing most livestock to be fed by local crops, and most livestock manure to be applied directly to nearby cropland. Under current intensive agriculture practices, however, there is frequently a spatial decoupling of crops and livestock, leading to hot spots of manure production and a lack of opportunities for cost-efficient and environmentally sensitive disposal. In recent years, there has also been increased interest in the use of both farm and regional-scale bioreactors to convert excess manure to energy, thus exploiting a renewable energy source and increasing the potential to recycle animal waste. In the present work, I develop a spatially distributed optimization approach to identify hotspots of manure production, and, using both economic and environmental criteria, evaluate the economic feasibility of (1) transporting manure for spreading on cropland to meet established nutrient requirements, and (2) constructing biogas reactors to process excess manure in areas where long-range transport is found to be infeasible. This work is focused on manure redistribution, and potential for biogas construction at the continental US scale. In order to identify the spatial disconnect between livestock and crop production, I developed a gridded data set where each cell was 6 km x 6 km and calculated the crop requirements and manure production in each cell. After finding the P requirements in each cell, I found that 530,000 tonnes of phosphorus in manure was located in areas where, if applied, it would be in excess of the local crop requirements. I then examined the feasibility of transporting manure from excess locations (cells) to other locations to use as fertilizer by formulating an optimization problem to maximize the financial benefits of transporting the manure. Savings from transporting manure was calculated as the financial benefit from buying less mineral fertilizer minus the cost of transporting the manure. The solution to this optimization problem shows that transporting manure was able to reduce the excess phosphorus applied to fields by at least 88% with savings of up to $3 billion USD. Finally, I examined the costs and benefits of using the remaining excess manure (after transportation for fertilizer) as fuel to operate biogas plants. For this, I formulated an optimization model to site biogas plants across the continental US such that net profits from the biogas plants were maximized. Biogas net profits were defined as the money made from selling electricity minus the annualized costs for constructing and operating the biogas plants and transporting the manure to the biogas plants. The solution to this problem shows that constructing and operating 387 biogas plants yielded a net profit of $100 million USD and would utilize all of the manure remaining after transportation for fertilizer. This 100% utilization rate of excess manure would have great environmental benefits in terms of removing potential sources of non-point source pollution from farms that would otherwise be available to runoff into waterways.