Will Carbon Find a Home on the Range? A Monte Carlo Simulation

Rangeland Carbon Sequestration, Agribusiness, Agricultural and Food Policy, Land Economics/Use,

Long Term Comparison of Alternative Range Livestock Management Strategies Across Extended Droughts and Cyclical Prices

Variable precipitation, more importantly drought, impacts profitability for livestock management. Financial outcomes from management decisions related to forage shortages can be exacerbated by price variability. This research examines alternative management strategies to determine the potential profitability and riskiness over a long-term horizon and across various drought event scenarios. Results indicate that late calving can be a promising strategy, but it also can result in higher variability in profits as compared to some of the other strategies analyzed. Retaining ownership of steer calves over the winter, with the option to sell if forage supplies become scarce, outperforms both partial liquidation and summer feeding, and it results in less profit variability than late calving or early weaning.Production Economics, Productivity Analysis,

Can Carbon Find a Home on the Range?

Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Profitability of Carbon Sequestration in Western Rangelands of the United States

Concerns over climate change have increased interest in carbon sequestration in agricultural lands. While the per-hectare carbon capture potential of rangelands is less than either cropland or forests, existing research suggests modest changes in carbon storage on rangelands can potentially alter the global carbon cycle. This paper examines the potential firm-level revenues from voluntary carbon offset programs, such as the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX) Rangeland Soil Carbon Offset program. We estimate revenues for short-term voluntary offsets given historical prices and prices projected with potential cap-and-trade legislation. We also estimate revenues assuming 100-yr offsets are required to meet international sequestration standards. Simulation results indicate a relatively wide range of modest revenues from recent CCX contracts and carbon prices. The analysis suggests that recent carbon prices or low-end projected prices from cap-and-trade legislation are not likely to encourage producer participation. Medium and high carbon price projections for cap-and-trade legislation may make carbon sequestration a more attractive option for rangeland managers, but given potential requirements for projects to meet international guidelines for greenhouse gas offset projects, many issues remain before range managers may be interested in carbon sequestration as an enterprise./La preocupación sobre el cambio climático ha aumentado el interés en el secuestro de carbono en tierras de uso agropecuario. Mientras que el potencial de captura de carbono en pastizales es menor que en tierras agrícolas y bosques, investigaciones sugieren que cambios modestos en el almacén de carbono en pastizales potencialmente alteran el ciclo global del carbono. Este artículo examina el ingreso potencial a nivel de empresa en programas voluntarios para la compensación de carbono tales como el programa de Compensación de Carbono en Pastizales del Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX). Estimamos ingresos en el cortoplazo por compensaciones voluntarias dado precios históricos y precios proyectados con potencial con legislación de tope y compra-venta. También estimamos ingresos asumiendo 100 años de compensación tal como es requerido para cumplir los estándares internacionales de captura. Resultados de simulaciones indican relativamente amplio margen de modestos ingresos de contratos recientes del CCX y precios del carbono. El análisis sugiere que los precios recientes del carbono o proyectos demenor importancia de la legislación tipo tope y compra-venta no tienen posibilidad de encontrar la participación de los productores. La proyección de precios medianos y altos del carbono de la legislación tope y compra-venta podría hacer más atractiva la opción de captura de carbono para los manejadores de pastizales pero, dado los requerimientos potenciales para proyectos que cumplan con los lineamientos internacionales para la compensación de proyectos de gases de efecto invernadero, muchos aspectos están presentes antes de que los manejadores de pastizales pudieran estar interesados en el secuestro de carbono a nivel empresarial.The Rangeland Ecology & Management archives are made available by the Society for Range Management and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact [email protected] for further information.Migrated from OJS platform August 202

Economically Optimal Stocking Rates: A Bioeconomic Grazing Model

A dynamic bioeconomic model that examines economically optimal stocking rate decisions while taking into account changes in forage availability is presented. The model presented here focuses on economically optimal stocking decisions while taking into account changes in the forage resource. The model is parameterized for a stocker operation in central Wyoming. Regardless of the scenario analyzed, the general rule of 50% utilization is determined to be an economically sound management strategy. The factors most heavily influencing economically optimal stocking rate decisions are forage growth rates and the Michaelis Constant. Both grain prices and cattle prices impact financial returns yet do not directly impact optimal stocking decisions by cattle producers. The Rangeland Ecology & Management archives are made available by the Society for Range Management and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact [email protected] for further information.Migrated from OJS platform August 202

Usable Socio-Economic Science for Rangelands

On the Ground • Because humans depend on rangelands for a wide variety of ecosystem goods and services, they have a large stake in research that explores supply and demand for those goods and services. • Scientists and science users who ranked 142 separate rangeland issues chose a socio-economic concern as most pressing: How to help rural communities plan for, adapt to, and recover from impacts of increased social, economic, and ecological variability. • Cross-jurisdictional stewardship is required to address many rangeland problems, so it is important to find ways to encourage and assist collaborative management efforts. • Decision makers and citizens need better ways to sift through the conflicting claims and conclusions available from a growing number of information sources. • Rangeland communities, and the land itself, require a steady supply of individuals who are both willing and able to choose careers in rangeland occupations.The Rangelands archives are made available by the Society for Range Management and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact [email protected] for further information.Migrated from OJS platform March 202

Long Term Comparison of Alternative Range Livestock Management Strategies Across Extended Droughts and Cyclical Prices

Variable precipitation, more importantly drought, impacts profitability for livestock management. Financial outcomes from management decisions related to forage shortages can be exacerbated by price variability. This research examines alternative management strategies to determine the potential profitability and riskiness over a long-term horizon and across various drought event scenarios. Results indicate that late calving can be a promising strategy, but it also can result in higher variability in profits as compared to some of the other strategies analyzed. Retaining ownership of steer calves over the winter, with the option to sell if forage supplies become scarce, outperforms both partial liquidation and summer feeding, and it results in less profit variability than late calving or early weaning

Beef production and net revenue variability from grazing systems on semiarid grasslands of North America

Sustainability of ranches and rural economies in the Great Plains of western North America is contingent on the economic vitality of beef production in a changing climate. Our objective was to measure and compare the interannual variability of beef production (kg/ha) and net returns ($/ha) over the past 15 years (2003–2017) from grazing yearlings at three different grazing intensities (light, moderate and heavy) on semiarid shortgrass steppe from mid-May to October. Four useful insights emerged: 1) A ranking of interannual variability, from lowest to highest, reveals that beef production had the lowest coefficient of variation (CV = 17–29%), followed by aboveground net primary production (ANPP, 26–32%), spring/early summer precipitation (36%) and net revenue (107–139%). 2) Beef production increased with grazing intensity during average and wet years, but not during dry years. Beef production increased from early August to early September but became negligible from early September to the end of the grazing season. Overall, beef production and net revenue were 41% and 38% greater for the heavy grazing intensity compared to the recommended moderate grazing intensity, respectively. 3) Removing yearlings from pastures in early September rather than the traditional October timing would provide opportunities for ranchers to increase net returns. 4) Forage production, estimated through remote sensing information, was positively associated with beef production, but with a steeper slope for the heavy grazing intensity, indicating greater sensitivity at this grazing intensity level. Economic sustainability of beef production in this rangeland ecosystem is challenged by high interannual variability in net revenues. This variability suggests that ranchers should focus on understanding agricultural economic principles, livestock marketing, and available options for reducing price risk. These efforts would enhance both the economic sustainability of individual ranching operations and rural economies.Fil: Irisarri, Jorge Gonzalo Nicolás. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; ArgentinaFil: Derner, Justin D.. United States Department of Agriculture; Estados UnidosFil: Ritten, John P.. University Of Wyoming. College Of Agriculture And Natural Resources;Fil: Peck, Dannele. United States Department of Agriculture; Estados Unido