Management opportunities for boosting productivity of cool-temperate dairy farms under climate change

Phelan, D; Harrison, Matthew T.; Kemmerer, Ernst P.; Parsons, David

doi:10.1016/j.agsy.2015.05.005

Cited by 47 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…Not all management options examined in this study improved both emissions intensity and profitability compared with baseline levels, but both levels of higher soil fertility and confinement feeding when pasture biomass was below 2000 kg/ha conformed to this relationship. Across climate zones and enterprises, increasing soil fertility resulted in the greatest profitability, because increasing soil nutrient status improved net primary production and resulted in more home-grown animal feed, similar to results found in other analyses of southern feedbase systems (Phelan et al 2014;Phelan et al 2015a). Greater pasture biomass improved ground cover, reduced risk of soil erosion by animal traffic and facilitated higher stocking rates.…”

Section: Soil Fertility and Confinement Feeding Of Animals During Sumsupporting

confidence: 72%

Sheep greenhouse gas emission intensities under different management practices, climate zones and enterprise types

2016

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Greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from broadacre sheep farms constitute ~16% of Australia’s total livestock emissions. To study the diversity of Australian sheep farming enterprises a combination of modelling packages was used to calculate GHG emissions from three sheep enterprises (Merino ewe production for wool and meat, Merino-cross ewes with an emphasis on lamb production, and Merino wethers for fine wool production) at 28 sites across eight climate zones in southern Australia. GHG emissions per ha, per dry sheep equivalents and emissions intensity (EI) per tonne of clean wool or liveweight sold under different pasture management or animal breeding options (that had been previously determined in interviews with farmers) were assessed relative to baseline farms in each zone (‘Nil’ option). Increasing soil phosphorus fertility or sowing 40% of the farm area to lucerne resulted in the smallest and largest changes in GHG/dry sheep equivalents, respectively (–66%, 113%), though both of these options had little influence on EI for either clean wool or liveweight sold. Breeding ewes with greater body size or genotypes with higher fleece weight resulted in 11% and 9% reductions, respectively, in EI. Enterprises specialising in lamb production (crossbred ewes) had 89% lower EI than enterprises specialising in fine wool production (Merino wethers). Thus, sheep producers aiming for lower EI could focus more on liveweight turnoff than wool production. Emissions intensities were typically highest in cool temperate regions with high rainfall and lowest in semiarid and arid regions with low aboveground net primary productivity. Overall, animal breeding options reduced EI more than feedbase interventions.

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Section: Soil Fertility and Confinement Feeding Of Animals During Sumsupporting

confidence: 72%

Sheep greenhouse gas emission intensities under different management practices, climate zones and enterprise types

2016

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“…Tasmania has a suitable/optimal environment due to its rich water resources, growing irrigation investments and absence of major animal diseases, together with a mild temperate climate, fertile soils, reliable rainfall and plenty of sunshine, making it the ideal location for dairy farming. All of these ensure excellent growing conditions for lush pastures (grass and clover) that support the production of premium quality products, particularly livestock [44,45]. For example, Tasmanian milk production has increased by around 38% over the past 10 years, almost double to 1.5 billion litres per year to meet the increasing national and international demands.…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Major dairy regions are well suited to perennial ryegrass and white clover with good quality and even feed-supply all year round. The selected combination of five representative dairy farms in this study was motivated by the need to mimic the diversity of the management practice of the dairy industry in Tasmania [44].…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Estimating Pasture Biomass Using Sentinel-2 Imagery and Machine Learning

et al. 2021

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Effective dairy farm management requires the regular estimation and prediction of pasture biomass. This study explored the suitability of high spatio-temporal resolution Sentinel-2 imagery and the applicability of advanced machine learning techniques for estimating aboveground biomass at the paddock level in five dairy farms across northern Tasmania, Australia. A sequential neural network model was developed by integrating Sentinel-2 time-series data, weekly field biomass observations and daily climate variables from 2017 to 2018. Linear least-squares regression was employed for evaluating the results for model calibration and validation. Optimal model performance was realised with an R2 of ≈0.6, a root-mean-square error (RMSE) of ≈356 kg dry matter (DM)/ha and a mean absolute error (MAE) of 262 kg DM/ha. These performance markers indicated the results were within the variability of the pasture biomass measured in the field, and therefore represent a relatively high prediction accuracy. Sensitivity analysis further revealed what impact each farm’s in situ measurement, pasture management and grazing practices have on the model’s predictions. The study demonstrated the potential benefits and feasibility of improving biomass estimation in a cheap and rapid manner over traditional field measurement and commonly used remote-sensing methods. The proposed approach will help farmers and policymakers to estimate the amount of pasture present for optimising grazing management and improving decision-making regarding dairy farming.

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“…In Australia, this stocking rate is considered ideal. (Phelan, Harrison, Parsons, & Kemmerer, 2015) However, for our G2 farm, the stocking rate was 2 cow/acre which is far higher than the normal standard setting Australian dairy farm. This large stocking rate may put the pasture under stress and decrease the storage and consumption capacity of the N and P in the cow waste.…”

Section: 4mentioning

confidence: 66%

Environmental Impacts to Surface Water from Confined and Grass-Based Dairy Farms

Li¹,

Zhu²

2021

Preprint

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There is little research on the effects of confined dairy farms and grass-based dairy farms on the surrounding surface water environment. This study was conducted through sampling and analysis of seven dairy farms in the Northern Hemisphere, especially between 38-degree to 45-degree north latitude. The correlation between the effect of confined dairy farms and grass-based dairy farms on the surrounding surface water (mainly Phosphorus runoff and Nitrogen precipitation) and pasture scale and waste management were obtained.

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Management opportunities for boosting productivity of cool-temperate dairy farms under climate change

Cited by 47 publications

References 34 publications

Sheep greenhouse gas emission intensities under different management practices, climate zones and enterprise types

Sheep greenhouse gas emission intensities under different management practices, climate zones and enterprise types

Estimating Pasture Biomass Using Sentinel-2 Imagery and Machine Learning

Environmental Impacts to Surface Water from Confined and Grass-Based Dairy Farms

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