Milk and Dung Production by Yaks (Poephagus grunniens): Important Products for the Livelihood of the Herders and for Carbon Recycling on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

Degen, A. Allan; El-Meccawi, Shaher; Kam, Michael

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-20591-1_8

Cited by 8 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Animal dung is commonly used for fuel in many developing areas (Habtezion, 2013). This is especially true for Tibetan herders, where a reported 12.6 million yaks graze extensively on the natural grasslands of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (Wiener, 2011) and excrete close to an estimated 800 kg of dry dung per yak per year (Degen et al, 2019). Most Tibetan families use only yak dung for cooking and heating (Figure 1a), as they are unable to purchase fossil fuel because of the relatively high costs.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biochar from pyrolyzed Tibetan Yak dung as a novel additive in ensiling sweet sorghum: An alternate to the hazardous use of Yak dung as a fuel in the home

Bai

Rafiq

et al. 2021

Journal of Hazardous Materials

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Yak dung is used as fuel in Tibetan homes; however, this use is hazardous to health. An alternative use of the dung that would be profitable and offset the loss as a fuel would be very 2 beneficial. Sweet sorghum silage with yak dung biochar as an additive was compared with a control silage with no additives and three silages with different commercial additives, namely Lactobacillus buchneri, Lactobacillus plantarum and Acremonium cellulase. Biochar-treated silage had a significantly greater concentration of water-soluble carbohydrates than the other silages (76 vs 12.4~45.8 g/kg DM) and a greater crude protein content (75.5 vs 61.4 g/kg DM), lactic acid concentration (40.7 vs 27.7 g/kg DM) and gross energy yield (17.8 vs 17.4 MJ/kg) than the control silage. Biochar-treated and control silages did not differ in in vitro digestibility and in total gas (507 vs 511 L/kg DM) and methane production (57.9 vs 57.1 L/kg DM). Biochar inhibited degradation of protein and water-soluble carbohydrates and enhanced lactic acid production, which improved storability of feed. It was concluded that yak dung biochar is an efficient, cost-effective ensiling additive. The profit could offset the loss of dung as fuel and improve the health of Tibetan people.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biochar from pyrolyzed Tibetan Yak dung as a novel additive in ensiling sweet sorghum: An alternate to the hazardous use of Yak dung as a fuel in the home

Bai

Rafiq

et al. 2021

Journal of Hazardous Materials

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“…Traditionally, yak calves ( Poephagus grunniens ) are weaned naturally or artificially at 1.5 to 2 years of age under extensive conditions 14 . Yak cows generally calve once every 2 years, and milk continuously with low yield until weaning, which is at 1 to 1.5 years 15 . Early weaning in yak calves is being attempted to improve yak reproduction rate, however, this management practice has to be introduced with caution because of the high mortality rate of yak calves due to the lack of nutrient intake and the harsh environmental conditions under which they are raised 16 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Astragalus root extract improved average daily gain, immunity, antioxidant status and ruminal microbiota of early weaned yak calves

et al. 2020

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BACKGROUND Early weaning in yak calves is being attempted to improve yak reproduction rate. However, this has to be done with caution because of the high mortality rate of calves due to the lack of nutrients and the harsh environmental conditions. Twenty‐four weaned male yak calves were used in a 60 day feeding trial in which astragalus root extract (ARE) was supplemented. They were assigned randomly to one of four dietary treatments (n = six per treatment) that differed in ARE level: 0 g kg−1 (control), ARE0; 20 g kg−1, ARE20; 50 g kg−1, ARE50; and 80 g kg−1 dry matter intake (DMI), ARE80. RESULTS Final bodyweight and average daily gain (ADG) were significantly higher and the DMI/ADG ratio was significantly lower in calves with ARE supplementation than control (ARE0) calves. Ruminal concentrations of acetate and propionate and serum concentration of superoxide dismutase in ARE80 calves were higher than in the other groups and serum concentration of insulin was higher in ARE80 calves than in ARE20 calves. Serum immunoglobulin G (IgG) and interleukin‐2 (IL‐2) concentrations in ARE‐fed calves were higher than in controls. Serum tumor necrosis factor (TNF‐α) concentration was higher in ARE50 and ARE80 groups than ARE0 calves and serum interleukin‐6 (IL‐6) concentration was higher in ARE80 than in ARE0 calves. Serum immunoglobulin A (IgA), IgG and immunoglobulin M (IgM) concentrations increased with age in ARE‐fed calves. ARE supplementation increased the abundance of fiber degrading bacteria. CONCLUSION ARE at a dosage of 5% to 8% DMI can be supplemented to early weaned yak calves to improve growth performance, antioxidant capacity and immunity. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry

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“…The average Hg concentration of yak dung was 46.6 ± 30.2 μg/kg (Figure a), which was over five times that of wood (9.0 ± 3.8 μg/kg). This result is partly explained by the fact that the Hg content of plant leaves is usually higher than that of plant stems, for leaves act as the major pathway of Hg uptake from air via leaf stomata. ,, Only the woody stem was used for wood combustion in this study, whereas grass leaves served as the major food source for yak with a dry matter digestibility of 55%, resulting in Hg accumulation in the produced dung . The Hg content of wood was within the range of concentrations measured in woody biomass (7.0 ± 6.6 to 12.4 ± 7.7 μg/kg) collected across China, ,, while the Hg concentrations of yak dung and wood were substantially lower than those previously reported for coal (260 ± 160 μg/kg). , …”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 51%

Isotopic Fractionation Characteristics of Speciated Mercury from Local Biomass Combustion in the Tibetan Plateau

Han

Wen

et al. 2023

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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As the Third Pole of the world, the Tibetan Plateau (TP) is sensitive to anthropogenic influences. Biomass combustion is one of the most important anthropogenic sources of mercury (Hg) emissions in the TP. However, due to the lack of knowledge about Hg emission characteristics and activity levels in the plateau, atmospheric Hg emissions from biomass combustion in the TP are under large uncertainties. Here, based on pilot-scale experiments, we found that particle-bound mercury (PBM; mean of 83.1−87.7 ng/m 3 ) occupied 17.93− 49.31% of the total emitted Hg and the PBM δ 202 Hg values (average −1.65‰ to −0.77‰) were significantly higher than those of the corresponding feeding biomass. The Δ 200 Hg values of total gaseous mercury and PBM were more negative (−0.08‰ to −0.05‰) than other anthropogenic emissions, providing unique isotopic fingerprints for this sector. Together with the investigated local activity levels, Hg emissions from biomass combustion reached 402 ± 74 kg/a, which were dozens of times higher than previous estimates. The emissions were characterized by conspicuous spatial heterogeneity, concentrated in the northern and central TP. Specialized Hg emissions and the Hg isotope fingerprint of local biomass combustion can aid in evaluating the influence of this sector on the fragile ecosystems of the TP.

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Milk and Dung Production by Yaks (Poephagus grunniens): Important Products for the Livelihood of the Herders and for Carbon Recycling on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

Cited by 8 publications

References 29 publications

Biochar from pyrolyzed Tibetan Yak dung as a novel additive in ensiling sweet sorghum: An alternate to the hazardous use of Yak dung as a fuel in the home

Biochar from pyrolyzed Tibetan Yak dung as a novel additive in ensiling sweet sorghum: An alternate to the hazardous use of Yak dung as a fuel in the home

Astragalus root extract improved average daily gain, immunity, antioxidant status and ruminal microbiota of early weaned yak calves

Isotopic Fractionation Characteristics of Speciated Mercury from Local Biomass Combustion in the Tibetan Plateau

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