A novel agroecosystem: Beef production in abandoned farmland as a multifunctional alternative to rewilding

Hall, Stephen J. G.

doi:10.1016/j.agsy.2018.08.009

Cited by 16 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 69 publications

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“…And this often removes that land from the hands of local farmers (Fairbairn et al, 2021). Studies from around the world suggest that marginal lands can be used for bioenergy crops (Helliwell, 2018;Koide et al, 2018), livestock production (Hall, 2018), or removed from cultivation for restoration and conservation (Merckx and Pereira, 2015). These uses can simplify or diversify farming systems, depending on how they are implemented and by whom.…”

Section: Simplifying Pathway Trends: Extracting Value From Marginalizmentioning

confidence: 99%

Narrow and Brittle or Broad and Nimble? Comparing Adaptive Capacity in Simplifying and Diversifying Farming Systems

Petersen-Rockney

Baur

Guzman

et al. 2021

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

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Humanity faces a triple threat of climate change, biodiversity loss, and global food insecurity. In response, increasing the general adaptive capacity of farming systems is essential. We identify two divergent strategies for building adaptive capacity. Simplifying processes seek to narrowly maximize production by shifting the basis of agricultural production toward centralized control of socially and ecologically homogenized systems. Diversifying processes cultivate social-ecological complexity in order to provide multiple ecosystem services, maintain management flexibility, and promote coordinated adaptation across levels. Through five primarily United States focused cases of distinct agricultural challenges—foodborne pathogens, drought, marginal lands, labor availability, and land access and tenure—we compare simplifying and diversifying responses to assess how these pathways differentially enhance or degrade the adaptive capacity of farming systems in the context of the triple threat. These cases show that diversifying processes can weave a form of broad and nimble adaptive capacity that is fundamentally distinct from the narrow and brittle adaptive capacity produced through simplification. We find that while there are structural limitations and tradeoffs to diversifying processes, adaptive capacity can be facilitated by empowering people and enhancing ecosystem functionality to proactively distribute resources and knowledge where needed and to nimbly respond to changing circumstances. Our cases suggest that, in order to garner the most adaptive benefits from diversification, farming systems should balance the pursuit of multiple goals, which in turn requires an inclusive process for active dialogue and negotiation among diverse perspectives. Instead of locking farming systems into pernicious cycles that reproduce social and ecological externalities, diversification processes can enable nimble responses to a broad spectrum of possible stressors and shocks, while also promoting social equity and ecological sustainability.

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Section: Simplifying Pathway Trends: Extracting Value From Marginalizmentioning

confidence: 99%

Narrow and Brittle or Broad and Nimble? Comparing Adaptive Capacity in Simplifying and Diversifying Farming Systems

Petersen-Rockney

Baur

Guzman

et al. 2021

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Multiple changes in the environment, including climate change, fluctuating numbers of invasive species and large, browsing ungulates add to the contingency of ecosystem development, resulting in difficulties for projecting future forest conditions, or they could also lead to maintenance of a novel ecosystem (Frelich and Reich , Frelich et al. , Hall , Stanturf et al. ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Imprints of management history on hemiboreal forest ecosystems in the Baltic States

et al. 2018

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In the Baltic States region, anthropogenic disturbances at different temporal and spatial scales mostly determine dynamics and development phases of forest ecosystems. We reviewed the state and condition of hemiboreal forests of the Baltic States region and analyzed species composition of recently established and permanent forest (PF). Agricultural deforestation and spontaneous or artificial conversion back to forest is a scenario leading to ecosystems designated as recent forest (RF, age up to two hundred years). Permanent forest (PF) was defined as areas with no records of agricultural activity during the last 200 yr, including mostly forests managed by traditional even‐aged (clear‐cut) silviculture and salvage after natural disturbances. We hypothesized that RF would have distinctive composition, with higher dominance by hardwoods (e.g., aspen and birch), compared to PF. Ordination revealed divergence in the RF stands; about half had the hypothesized composition distinct from PF, with a tight cluster of stands in the part of the ordination space with high hardwood dominance, while the remaining RF stands were scattered throughout the ordination space occupied by PF with highly variable species composition. Planting of conifers, variability in site quality, and variability in spatial proximity to PF with relatively natural ecosystem legacies likely explained the variable compositions of this latter group of RF. We positioned the observations of RF in a classic quantification of site type conditions (based on Estonian forest vegetation survey previously carried out by Lõhmus), which indicated that RF was more likely to occur on areas of higher soil fertility (in ordination space). Climatic and anthropogenic changes to RF create complex dynamic trends that are difficult to project into the future. Further research in tracing land use changes (using pollen analysis and documented evidence) should be utilized to refine the conceptual framework of ecosystem legacy and memory. Occurrence and frequency of deforestation and its characteristics as a novel disturbance regime are of particular interest.

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“…On Swona (Hall & Moore, 1986), 113 ha are occupied by 15-20 totally unmanaged cattle which numbered 17 in January 2017 (C. Annal, personal communication), a biomass of 40-88 kg/ha. Generally, in Europe, in extensive husbandry with winter feeding, cattle biomass is very variable (100-500 kg/ha; Hall, 2018). Generally, in Europe, in extensive husbandry with winter feeding, cattle biomass is very variable (100-500 kg/ha; Hall, 2018).…”

Section: Chilling Ham Park and The Chilling Ham C At Tlementioning

confidence: 99%

“…The sole winter forage supply is cast-up seaweed whose abundance varies from year to year. Generally, in Europe, in extensive husbandry with winter feeding, cattle biomass is very variable (100-500 kg/ha; Hall, 2018).…”

Section: Chilling Ham Park and The Chilling Ham C At Tlementioning

confidence: 99%

The use of cattle Bos taurus for restoring and maintaining holarctic landscapes: Conclusions from a long‐term study (1946–2017) in northern England

Hall

Bunce

2019

Ecology and Evolution

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Cattle Bos taurus can perform valuable ecological functions in the maintenance of high nature value (HNV) pastoral systems. They have also attracted attention as potentially filling the ecological niches of megaherbivores, notably the extinct aurochs Bos primigenius, in rewilding initiatives. Native cattle breeds are recognized under the 1992 Rio Convention as components of biodiversity. They are used in HNV settings, but their conservation as breeds has rarely been an important consideration for their management in these contexts. The Chillingham herd has been kept under minimal management in Chillingham Park (northern England) for several centuries. Chillingham Park is not a rewilding scenario, but the long‐term study of the cattle can be informative for the design of rewilding schemes that involve cattle as megaherbivores. The pastures of the park are species‐rich seminatural grasslands. To 2004, pasture management was influenced by the need to provide herbage for a flock of sheep that was under separate ownership, as well as for the cattle. Surveys of the vegetation conducted in 1979 and 2006–2008 showed a decline of plant species richness (species per 100 m2 quadrat) from 33.8 in 1979 to 22.6 in 2006–2008. This was acceptable as the conservation priority has always been the cattle herd. With removal of the sheep from 2004, it became possible to include recovery of plant diversity as a management goal. In 2017, the cattle numbered 111 (64 in 1979). Plant species richness in 2017 had increased to 26.3 species per quadrat. It has therefore been possible at Chillingham both to conserve the cattle herd and to improve plant diversity. While providing basic information of relevance to the management of cattle in free‐ranging situations, this study also suggests a general principle, that the management of pastoral landscapes by native breeds of cattle, can deliver multiple conservation benefits.

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A novel agroecosystem: Beef production in abandoned farmland as a multifunctional alternative to rewilding

Cited by 16 publications

References 69 publications

Narrow and Brittle or Broad and Nimble? Comparing Adaptive Capacity in Simplifying and Diversifying Farming Systems

Narrow and Brittle or Broad and Nimble? Comparing Adaptive Capacity in Simplifying and Diversifying Farming Systems

Imprints of management history on hemiboreal forest ecosystems in the Baltic States

The use of cattle Bos taurus for restoring and maintaining holarctic landscapes: Conclusions from a long‐term study (1946–2017) in northern England

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