Standardized research protocols enable transdisciplinary research of climate variation impacts in corn production systems

The important questions about agriculture, climate, and sustainability have become increasingly complex and require a coordinated, multifaceted approach for developing new knowledge and understanding. A multistate, transdisciplinary project was begun in 2011 to study the potential for both mitigation and adaptation of corn-based cropping systems to climate variations. The team is measuring the baseline as well as change of the system\u27s carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and water footprints, crop productivity, and pest pressure in response to existing and novel production practices. Nine states and 11 institutions are participating in the project, necessitating a well thought out approach to coordinating field data collection procedures at 35 research sites. In addition, the collected data must be brought together in a way that can be stored and used by persons not originally involved in the data collection, necessitating robust procedures for linking metadata with the data and clearly delineated rules for use and publication of data from the overall project. In order to improve the ability to compare data across sites and begin to make inferences about soil and cropping system responses to climate across the region, detailed research protocols were developed to standardize the types of measurements taken and the specific details such as depth, time, method, numbers of samples, and minimum data set required from each site. This process required significant time, debate, and commitment of all the investigators involved with field data collection and was also informed by the data needed to run the simulation models and life cycle analyses. Although individual research teams are collecting additional measurements beyond those stated in the standardized protocols, the written protocols are used by the team for the base measurements to be compared across the region. A centralized database was constructed to meet the needs of current researchers on this project as well as for future use for data synthesis and modeling for agricultural, ecosystem, and climate sciences

The value of manure - Manure as co-product in life cycle assessment

Research ArticleLivestock production is important for food security, nutrition, and landscape maintenance, but it is associated with several environmental impacts. To assess the risk and benefits arising from livestock production, transparent and robust indicators are required, such as those offered by life cycle assessment. A central question in such approaches is how environmental burden is allocated to livestock products and to manure that is re-used for agricultural production. To incentivize sustainable use of manure, it should be considered as a co-product as long as it is not disposed of, or wasted, or applied in excess of crop nutrient needs, in which case it should be treated as a waste. This paper proposes a theoretical approach to define nutrient requirements based on nutrient response curves to economic and physical optima and a pragmatic approach based on crop nutrient yield adjusted for nutrient losses to atmosphere and water. Allocation of environmental burden to manure and other livestock products is then based on the nutrient value from manure for crop production using the price of fertilizer nutrients. We illustrate and discuss the proposed method with two case studiesinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Effects of Tillage, Rotation and Cover Crop on the Physical Properties of a Silt-Loam Soil

Soil and crop management practices can affect the physical properties and have a direct impact on soil sustainability and crop performance. The objective of this study was to investigate how soil physical properties were affected by three years of tillage, cover crop and crop rotation treatments in a cornand soybean field. The study was conducted on a Waldron silty-loam soil at Lincoln University of Missouri. Soil physical pro-perties studied were soil bulk density, volumetric and gravimetric water contents, volumetric air content, total pore space, air-filled and water-filled pore space, gas diffusion coefficient and pore tortuosity factor. Results showed significant interactions (p<0.05) between cover crop and crop rotation for bulk density, gravimetric and total pore space in 2013. In addition, cover crop also significantly interacted (p<0.05) with tillage for bulk density and total pore space. All soil physical properties studied were significantly affected by the depth of sampling (p<0.0001), except for bulk density, the pore tortuosity factor and total pore space in 2012, and gravimetric and volumetric in 2013. Overall, soil physical properties were significantly affected by the treatments, with the effects changing from one year to another. Addition of a cover crop improved soil physical properties better in rotation than in monoculture

Effects of tillage, rotation and cover crop on the physical properties of a silt-loam soil

Soil and crop management practices can affect the physical properties and have a direct impact on soil sustainability and crop performance. The objective of this study was to investigate how soil physical properties were affected by three years of tillage, cover crop and crop rotation treatments in a cornand soybean field. The study was conducted on a Waldron silty-loam soil at Lincoln University of Missouri. Soil physical pro-perties studied were soil bulk density, volumetric and gravimetric water contents, volumetric air content, total pore space, air-filled and water-filled pore space, gas diffusion coefficient and pore tortuosity factor. Results showed significant interactions (p<0.05) between cover crop and crop rotation for bulk density, gravimetric and total pore space in 2013. In addition, cover crop also significantly interacted (p<0.05) with tillage for bulk density and total pore space. All soil physical properties studied were significantly affected by the depth of sampling (p<0.0001), except for bulk density, the pore tortuosity factor and total pore space in 2012, and gravimetric and volumetric in 2013. Overall, soil physical properties were significantly affected by the treatments, with the effects changing from one year to another. Addition of a cover crop improved soil physical properties better in rotation than in monoculture

The impact of flooding on people living with HIV: a case study from the Ohangwena Region, Namibia

Background: Floods are a disaster situation for all affected populations and especially for vulnerable groups within communities such as children, orphans, women, and people with chronic diseases such as HIV and AIDS. They need functioning health care, sanitation and hygiene, safe water, and healthy food supply, and are critically dependent on their social care and support networks. A study carried out in the Ohangwena region, Namibia, where HIV prevalence is high and extensive flooding frequently occurs, aims to provide a deeper understanding of the impact that flooding has on people living with HIV (PLWHIV) as well as on HIV service providers in the region. Design: The qualitative research applying grounded theory included semi-structured interviews with PLWHIV, focus group discussions with HIV service providers, and a national feedback meeting. The findings were interpreted using the sustainable livelihoods framework, the natural hazard research approach, and health behaviour theories. Results: The study reveals that flooding poses major problems to PLWHIV in terms of their everyday lives, affecting livelihoods, work, income, and living conditions. The factors threatening them under normal conditions – poverty, malnutrition, unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene, limited access to health facilities, a weak health status, and stigma – are intensified by flood-related breakdown of infrastructure, insecurity, malnutrition, and diseases evolving over the course of a flood. A potential dual risk exists for their health: the increased risk both of infection and disease due to the inaccessibility of health services and antiretroviral treatment. A HIV and Flooding Framework was developed to display the results. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that vulnerabilities and health risks of PLWHIV will increase in a disaster situation like flooding if access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support are not addressed and ensured. The findings and the HIV and Flooding Framework are not specific to Ohangwena and can be transferred to any flood-affected region that has a high HIV prevalence and relies mainly on subsistence agriculture. They serve as a model case for analysing vulnerabilities related to health and health service provision under disaster conditions. The impact will vary according to the physical, geographical, climatological, social, and behavioural characteristics of the region and the people affected. In the Ohangwena region, a disaster risk management mechanism is already in place which addresses people with HIV during flooding. However, preparedness could be improved further by applying the HIV and Flooding Framework