Ruminating on the science of carbon ranching

Reinhart, Kurt O.; Worogo, Hilaire Sorébou Sanni; Rinella, Matthew J.

doi:10.1111/1365-2664.14100

Cited by 13 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 50 publications

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“…And, at comparable abundances, both assemblages gain soil-C (Fig. 2) at approximately 1‰ to reiterate the role for grazing ecosystems in nature-based climate solutions (Naidu and Bagchi 2021;Willemen et al 2020;Reinhart, Sanni Worogo, and Rinella 2021). But livestock do not emerge as perfect substitutes since they achieve only about three-fourths of the soil-C stock, compared to the native herbivores (Fig.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…2). But it has remained unclear whether this service can be maintained when natural ecosystems are repurposed for livestock production (Reinhart et al 2021). And if so, then to what extent?…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Previous studies from around the world have emphasized that grazing by large mammalian herbivores leads to net soil-C storage (Conant and Paustian 2002, Witt et al 2011, Abdalla et al 2018, Derner et al 2019, Liu et al 2020), and grazing ecosystems should be integral to nature-based climate solutions (Smith 2014, Cromsigt et al 2018, Willemen et al 2020, Bossio et al 2020, Roy and Bagchi 2021). In parallel, studies have also identified the limitations of nature-based climate solutions derived from soil, because soil-C tends to accrue at very slow rates but can be lost quite rapidly (Smith 2014, Reinhart et al 2021). Therefore, preserving existing soil-C stocks is seen as an important and necessary step toward mitigating land-atmosphere feedbacks alongside more ambitious targets of gaining soil-C (Smith 2014, Naidu and Bagchi 2021).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Analyses of key traits, such as body size, dietchoice, and fermentation type, hypothesize that livestock can be approximate surrogates for native herbivores, i.e., nearest neighbors in trait-space (Malhi et al 2016;Lundgren et al 2020;Schowanek et al 2021). However, empirical evidence on ecosystem functions and services is needed before these ideas can be implemented toward ecosystem management, and such evidence is lacking (Reinhart, Sanni Worogo, and Rinella 2021).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Unlike intensive livestock production systems that are often associated with various forms of environmental degradation, traditional pastoral production systems where both livestock and native herbivores occur in multiple-use landscapes use (Sayer et al 2013;Western et al 2020;Asner et al 2004;Veblen et al 2016;du Toit, Kock, and Deutsch 2009) can be testbeds to assess whether livestock are good substitutes, or not. While this functional premise does not expect livestock to be perfect replacements for the displaced native herbivores (Sitters et al 2020;Bagchi and Ritchie 2010b), it is important to estimate the degree to which their ecological roles are matched to identify gaps and shortfalls as well as the scope for improved livestock production systems (Sayer et al 2013;Delabre et al 2021;Western et al 2020;Reinhart, Sanni Worogo, and Rinella 2021).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Functional substitutability of native herbivores by livestock for soil carbon depends on microbial decomposers

Roy¹,

Bagchi²

2022

Preprint

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The functional influence of native mammalian herbivores on ecosystem functions is declining as they get gradually replaced by domestic livestock who have become the predominant herbivores across the world. Alongside rewilding, restoration, and conservation, it is now important to address whether livestock can maintain erstwhile functions of the native herbivores they have displaced across the world's grasslands, savannas, and steppes. If yes, this has implications for the future of biodiversity, ecosystem functions and services, food-security, and other social and environmental dimensions. We test competing alternative hypotheses with a replicated, long-term, landscape-level experiment to ask whether livestock in the Trans-Himalayan ecosystem can match decadal-scale soil-C sequestration in soils under native herbivores. Over decadal time-scale (2006-16) livestock were imperfect substitutes since they could only attain three-fourths of the total soil-C stocks under native herbivores. Structural equation models supported the hypotheses that livestock alter soil microbial communities towards lower fungal abundance, which is detrimental for microbial carbon use efficiency (CUE) and for soil-C storage. This lag between livestock and native herbivores can be addressed through microbial restoration and rewilding of soil. Therefore, the idea of functional substitutability must be leveraged alongside microbial rewilding to restore and conserve ecosystem functions. Together they can reconcile conflicting demands from food-security and ecosystem services, and should become an integral part of nature-based climate solutions.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Functional substitutability of native herbivores by livestock for soil carbon depends on microbial decomposers

Roy¹,

Bagchi²

2022

Preprint

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Rangeland afforestation is not a natural climate solution

Briske,

Vetter,

Coetsee

et al. 2024

Frontiers in Ecol & Environ

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Large‐scale tree planting on global rangelands is promoted as a natural climate solution (NCS), but there is little scientific evidence to support this narrative. The presumed benefits of rangeland afforestation originate from five major misconceptions: (1) conflation between reforestation and afforestation, (2) overestimation of carbon (C) sequestration potential, (3) insufficient recognition of rangeland ecosystem services, (4) potential for adverse ecological outcomes, and (5) neocolonial tendencies of afforestation programs. Rangeland afforestation possesses minimal potential for additional C storage, but it has high potential to reduce vital rangeland ecosystem services that benefit rangeland residents and non‐residents alike. Conservation of existing C—most of which is stored belowground, where it is less vulnerable to loss—may prove to be the most appropriate NCS for extensively managed rangelands. Stewardship strategies promoting rangeland multifunctionality will not only contribute to climate‐change mitigation but also support biodiversity conservation and sustainable production of high‐protein foods for marginalized populations.

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Soil organic carbon stocks and belowground biomass in patches in heterogeneous grassland

Komainda,

Mohn,

Kajzrová

et al. 2023

Grassland Research

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BackgroundSelective grazing creates stable patches of contrasting sward height, thereby providing different growth conditions for the grass sward above and below ground and potentially affecting soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks. We hypothesized that the presence of patches leads to greater spatial variability in belowground biomass (BGB) and SOC stocks than occurs between pastures managed under different stocking intensities.MethodsA long‐term grazing experiment consisting of three stocking intensities was used for this study. We studied BGB, SOC, and soil total nitrogen (Ntot) stocks in the 0–15 cm soil depth. Shannon diversity of plant species, soil bulk density, soil phosphorus, potassium, and magnesium contents were considered.ResultsThere were no significant effects of patch or stocking intensity on BGB, SOC, and Ntot stocks. Short patches had a greater Shannon diversity than tall patches (p < 0.05) and plant‐available nutrients in soil correlated positively with sward height (p < 0.05).ConclusionsWe conclude from the current results and previous studies that higher plant species diversity with lower soil nutrient contents in short‐patch areas and higher nutrient contents together with light competition in tall‐patch areas might balance each other out with respect to BGB and SOC stocks.

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Ruminating on the science of carbon ranching

Cited by 13 publications

References 50 publications

Functional substitutability of native herbivores by livestock for soil carbon depends on microbial decomposers

Functional substitutability of native herbivores by livestock for soil carbon depends on microbial decomposers

Rangeland afforestation is not a natural climate solution

Soil organic carbon stocks and belowground biomass in patches in heterogeneous grassland

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