Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
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Assessing the biophysical, economic, and institutional potential of support-
ing pastoralists' access to global carbon markets requires a concerted effort.
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Healthy grasslands, livestock, and associated livelihoods constitute a win-
win option for addressing climate change in fragile dryland areas where
pastoralism remains the most rational strategy for maintaining the well-
being of communities.
Delivery of new practices or modification of systems to enhance sustainabil-
ity depends on integrating knowledge, altering attitudes toward rational use of
resources, and improving institutional support for the capability of those managing
the land. Tefera and Sterk (2010) determined that farmers in an Ethiopian watershed
were aware of erosion problems and of how the soil loss from steep slopes related to
a decline in soil fertility. However, the level of investment in soil and water conserva-
tion was related to wealth status of farmers, land tenure, and access to information.
High labor demand, lack of short-term benefits from conservation measures, and
access to free grazing also reduced adoption rates of the soil and water conservation
practices.
Land degradation in the Ethiopian highlands is considered to be one of the major
problems threatening agricultural development and food security. Amsalu et al.
(2007) described substantial deforestation, introduction of plantations, and expan-
sion of grazing land during a period when population density was rapidly increasing
in the Ethiopian highlands. Farmers gradually changed from annual cropping to
tree planting and livestock production to cope with the problems of soil degrada-
tion, water scarcity, and smaller farm size. Income diversification through the sale of
wood and cattle dung is becoming a major livelihood strategy, with little attention to
continued loss of soil fertility through soil erosion and removal of dung.
Many areas of policy are required to meet the needs of pastoralists and address
the pressing concerns related to grassland agriculture. For example, the World
Organization for Animal Health's One Health Initiative (OIE 2013) is a global part-
nership to address human, animal, and environmental health globally by facilitating
and promoting national programs to prevent high public health and animal impact
diseases at the human-animal interface. Market and policy incentives that encourage
agricultural intensification, such as bioenergy, can contribute to biodiversity decline
and habitat fragmentation if they encourage a large-scale conversion of native and
seminatural ecosystems. Questad et al. (2011) identified opportunities in the United
States where changes to existing management practices could benefit both conserva-
tion and bioenergy production, including increased use of hay management or other
biomass collection on native grassland remnants and improving the Conservation
Reserve Program by adding more native species to seed mixes, and incorporating a
periodic biomass collection.
The Great Basin of the western United States is characterized by low annual
precipitation, diverse desert plant communities, and local economies that depend
on the products and services produced by these lands (e.g., livestock grazing, rec-
reation, and mining). The ecological and economic stability of the Great Basin is
increasingly at risk because of the expansion of fire-prone invasive species and
increase in wildfires. If restoration in the Great Basin ecosystems is not successful,
