A multivariate analysis for evaluating the environmental and economical aspects of agroecosystem sustainability in central Italy

Felice, Vincenzo Di; Mancinelli, Roberto; Proulx, Raphaël; Campiglia, Enio

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2011.12.015

Cited by 20 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…In fact, the growing world population and the high demand for food require the search for a lower input for equal production levels rather than a simple reduction of input per surface unit; in other words, a higher efficiency per unit produced is needed (Godfray et al, 2010;Gregory and George, 2011;Pulina et al, 2011). In this historical moment (considering the international economic crisis and environmental emergency), especially for mountains and marginal areas, the challenge of low-input farms seems to be closely linked to multi-functional agriculture Di Felice et al, 2012) and attempts to achieve the goal of being both low input and high efficiency Tilman et al, 2011).…”

Section: The Need To Assess the Ecosystem Services Offeredmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental Sustainability of Alpine Livestock Farms

Battaglini

Bovolenta

Gusmeroli³

et al. 2014

Italian Journal of Animal Science

117

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The 2006 FAO report concerning the environmental impact of the livestock sector has generated scientific debate, especially considering the context of global warming and the need to provide animal products to a growing world population. However, this sector differs widely in terms of environmental context, production targets, degree of intensification and cultural role. The traditional breeding systems in the Alps were largely based on the use of meadows and pastures and produced not only milk and meat but also other fundamental positive externalities and ecosystem services, such as conservation of genetic resources, water flow regulation, pollination, climate regulation, landscape maintenance, recreation and ecotourism and cultural heritage. In recent decades, the mountain livestock, mainly represented by dairy cattle, has been affected by a dramatic reduction of farms, a strong increase of animals per farm, an increase in indoor production systems, more extensive use of specialised non-indigenous cattle breeds and the increasing use of extra-farm concentrates instead of meadows and pastures for fodder. This paper firstly describes the livestock sector in the Italian Alps and analyses the most important factors affecting their sustainability. Secondly, it discusses the need to assess the ecosystem services offered by forage-based livestock systems in mountains with particular attention to greenhouse gas emission and its mitigation by carbon sequestration. In conclusion, comparison between the different elements of the environmental sustainability of mountain livestock systems must be based on a comprehensive overview of the relationships among animal husbandry, environment and socio-economic context.

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Section: The Need To Assess the Ecosystem Services Offeredmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental Sustainability of Alpine Livestock Farms

Battaglini

Bovolenta

Gusmeroli³

et al. 2014

Italian Journal of Animal Science

117

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“…The input/output model of agroecosystem analysis has already been adopted in previous studies concerning ASIs 12 , 14 , 29 – 33 . By analyzing a farm system as a process that transforms inputs into outputs in terms of energy, money, material and/or information, it is possible to calculate indicators of transformation efficiency and thus assess and judge the functioning of the agroecosystem.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rurality and agroecosystem sustainability: a case study at farm-field level in Terceira Island (Portugal) and in Viterbo Province (Italy)

Felice

Batista

Mancinelli

et al. 2013

Renew. Agric. Food Syst.

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Defining the balance between socio-economical and bio-physical aspects in order to promote sustainable development in agriculture is a fundamental challenge for researchers. The aim of this study is to assist in constructing a science of sustainability in agriculture and to assess sustainability in various types of agroecosystem managements characterized by different agricultural and rural developments. This study evaluates sustainability on Terceira Island (Portugal) and in the Province of Viterbo (Italy) by using selected agroecosystem sustainability indicators capable of achieving an energetic and monetary input/output analysis. Overall, results showed two rural and agricultural realities that outline two different responses to world market demand, which are partly due to specific rural histories. In terms of energy supply, Terceira and Viterbo dairy farms use the same amount of input but in monetary terms the level of input is more than double in Viterbo (€1651 ha−1 versus €616 ha−1) which is due to the lower cost of direct energy (e.g., fuel) on the island. The use of direct energy input (fuel, electricity and lubricants) on the farms in Viterbo decreases in mixed farm systems and is at its minimum on dairy farms. On the other hand, the use of indirect energy input (fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, seeds and feedstuffs) is greater on Terceira farms compared with those in Viterbo (0.76 versus 0.60, respectively). Generally speaking, the crops grown on Terceira are not diversified and this has caused environmental issues on the island due to the milk production that is mainly exported. In Europe, more intellectual and financial resources for measuring and monitoring sustainability conditions in agriculture are necessary, in order to appropriately inform decision makers at both institutional and individual level.

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“…Di Felice et al (2012) asserted that the relationship between cropping diversity and agroecosystem sustainability was connected with the presence of mixed farming (i.e., containing both animal and crop husbandry), or the lack thereof, without association with organic or conventional agricultural practices. They also stated that the economic performance of organic farming was similar to that derived from conventional farming systems.…”

Section: Uni-and Multivariate Statistical Methods For Analyzing Agroementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Most farmers that manage agroecosystems usually have the twin goals of obtaining high crop yields (profitability) and maintaining farmland and landscape biodiversity (sustainability) (Dalgaard et al 2006;Di Felice et al 2012), which represents a complex problem (Di Felice et al 2012). Overall, the dynamics of nutrients and pest management in agroecosystems, such as organic farming systems, is governed by several complex biological and ecological processes.…”

Section: Agroecology and Agroecosystemsmentioning

confidence: 99%