This paper presents a dynamic systems model that shows how different land use patterns degrade the value of ecosystem services provided by the Brazilian Amazonia. The model consists of four sectors: (1) deforestation drivers; (2) land use/cover; (3) ecosystem services; and (4) ecosystem valuation. The deforestation drivers sector models the economic and social incentives that small farmers and ...

New Zealand’s grazed pastures receive large quantities of nitrogen (N) inputs from animal excreta and chemical fertilisers. While N promotes pasture growth, surplus N can cause environmental problems by leaching into waterways or by nitrifying and denitrifying to form the greenhouse gas, nitrous oxide (N2O). Various approaches have been attempted to mitigate the economic and environmental impac...

The sugar, starch, and fructan content (collectively referred to as nonstructural carbohydrates [NSC]) of pasture plants is dependent on the environmental conditions under which they have grown. Pasture that is stressed by cold, drought, or lack of nutrients can be 2 to 3 times higher in NSC than pasture that grows quickly in warm weather and is adequately watered and fertilized. Horses at risk...

The nonergot alkaloid-producing endo-phyte, AR542, has been shown to improve the persistence and yield of tall fescue pastures without causing the animal disorders commonly associated with tall fescue toxicosis. A 3-yr grazing study was conducted to compare effects of AR542-infected tall fescue pastures with wild type endophyte-infected (E+) tall fescue pastures on cow-calf performance. Replica...

Ming-Yang Kao and Michael L. Littman Department of Computer Science Duke University, Durham, NC 27708-0129 fkao, [email protected] Abstract We extend the classic on-line search problem known as the cow-path problem to the case in which goal locations are selected according to one of a set of possible known probability distributions. We present a polynomial-time linear-programming algorithm ...

Many dairy cows in the developed world are now housed exclusively indoors with fewer than 5% of the 10 million lactating cows in the United States having access to pasture during the grazing season. Indoor housing systems are designed to meet biological needs for food, water, hygiene, and shelter, but surveys of public and farmer opinion suggest that people think that pasture access is also imp...

Our ability to estimate the changes in carbon (C) pools and fluxes due to forest conversion is hampered by a lack of comparative studies. We measured aboveand belowground C pools and soil respiration flux at four forested and four pasture sites in the southern Appalachian Mountains. Aboveand belowground C pools were significantly larger (P < 0.01, t-test) at forested sites relative to pasture s...

This paper reviews the current use of self-regenerating pasture legumes in the farming systems of southern Europe. Annual legumes are mainly the base for the improvement of low quality native pastures in extensive farming systems. Traditional pasture legumes such as subterranean clovers and annual medics are the base plants of Mediterranean pastures, and are essential for pasture improvement of...

Pasture management can be effective at sequestering soil organic C. We determined the depth distribution of particulate organic C (POC), non-particulate organic C (NPOC), particulate-to-total organic C (POC-to-TOC) ratio, and particulate organic C-to-N (POC-to-N) ratio under pastures near Watkinsville, GA, USA. POC was highly related with total organic C (TOC), but became an increasingly larger...