Environmental impacts of grazed pastures

Large nitrogen (N) surplus and return of excreta-N in localised patches at high N rates in intensively grazed pasture systems markedly increases the risk of N losses to waterways and the atmosphere. Here are described the main routes of N input to grazed pastures, losses via N leaching, methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions. Furthermore farm N budgets and N use efficiency in relation to management strategies that can be applied to reduce N losses are discussed. Nitrate leaching increases exponentially with increased inputs and is closely related to urine patches, which also influence the leaching of dissolved organic N. High N2O emission rates in grazed pastures are related to fertiliser-N or N in excreta combined with compaction by animal treading. Grazing may considerably reduce CH3 emissions compared to indoor housing of cows. Pastures are occasionally cultivated due to sward deterioration followed by a rapid and extended period of N mineralization, contributing to an increased potential for losses. Good management of the pasture (e.g. reduced fertiliser input and reduced length of grazing) and of the mixed crop rotation during both the grassland and the arable phase (e.g. delayed ploughing time and a catch crop strategy) can considerably reduce the negative environmental impact of grazing. It is important to consider the whole farm system when evaluating environmental impact. In particular for green house gasses since the pasture may serve as a source of N2O and indirectly of CH3, but also as a sink of CO2 influenced by management practices on the farm

Environmental impacts of organic farming in Europe

Organic farming has become an important element of European agri-environmental policy due to increasing concern about the impact of agriculture on the environment. This book describes in detail the environmental and resource use impacts of organic farming relative to conventional farming systems, based on a set of environmental indicators for the agricultural sector on a European level. The policy relevance of the results is also discussed in detail

Environmental impacts of grazed clover/grass pastures

peer-reviwedGrazed clover/grass pastures are important for animal production systems and the clover component is critical for its contribution to N inputs via biological fixation of atmospheric N2. The resource efficiency and environmental emissions for clover/grass pastures can differ from that of N-fertilised grass-only pastures. Fixation of N2 by clover uses photosynthetically- fixed carbon, whereas fertiliser N production consumes fossil fuels and has net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Clover has a higher phosphorus (P) requirement than grass and where extra P fertiliser is used for clover/grass pastures the risk of P loss to waterways is greater than for grass-only pastures. Nitrogen leaching from grazed pasture increases exponentially with increased N inputs and urinary-N contributes 70 to 90% of total N leaching. However, the few studies comparing clover/grass and N-fertilised grass-only pastures at similar total N inputs indicated similar N leaching losses. Nitrous oxide emissions from grazed pastures due to N-cycling of excreta are similar for clover/grass and N-fertilised grass-only pastures at similar total N inputs. However, grass-only pasture requires the application of N fertiliser, which will result in additional specific losses that don’t occur from clover-fixed N. Thus, total N2O emissions are generally higher for N-fertilised grass pastures than for clover/grass pastures. A summary of various whole-system and life cycle assessment analyses for dairy farms from various countries indicated that at similar total N inputs, clover/grass pasture systems can be more efficient than N-fertilised grass systems per kilogram of milk produced from an energy use and GHG perspective whereas results for nutrient losses to waterways were mixed and appear to be similar for both pasture types. In practice, other management practices on farm, such as crop integration, supplementary feeding strategy and winter management, can have a larger overall effect on environmental emissions than whether the N input is derived from fertiliser N or from N2 fixation

The environmental and health impacts of tobacco agriculture, cigarette manufacture and consumption.

The health consequences of tobacco use are well known, but less recognized are the significant environmental impacts of tobacco production and use. The environmental impacts of tobacco include tobacco growing and curing; product manufacturing and distribution; product consumption; and post-consumption waste. The World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control addresses environmental concerns in Articles 17 and 18, which primarily apply to tobacco agriculture. Article 5.3 calls for protection from policy interference by the tobacco industry regarding the environmental harms of tobacco production and use. We detail the environmental impacts of the tobacco life-cycle and suggest policy responses

Factoring sustainability into the Higher Education product-service system

This paper summarises the findings of the first phase of a major study of the environmental impacts of an important service system - higher education (HE). The study assessed three methods of providing HE: conventional campus-based courses and distance/open learning courses using print-based and electronic delivery, with the following key findings. (1) On average, the distance taught Open University (OU) courses involved 90% less energy and CO2 emissions (per unit of study) than the campus based courses, mainly due to reductions in student travel and housing energy consumption, plus scale economies in campus site utilisation. (2) The OU e-learning course had over 20% higher environmental impacts than the print-based OU course, due to higher use of computing, paper consumption for printing web-based material, and extra home heating during Internet access. Programmes to reduce the environmental impacts of HE should be broadened beyond 'greening' the campus and the curriculum to include the impacts of student travel and housing. The study challenges claims that 'de-materialisation' and using ICT to provide services such as HE necessarily reduces environmental impacts. Service system environmental impacts depend mainly on its requirements for transport and a dedicated infrastructure of buildings and equipment. ICT will only benefit the environment if they reduce the service's requirements for these elements

Environmental Impacts of the liquid waste from Assalaya Sugar Factory in Rabek Locality, White Nile State, Sudan

The study aimed to assess the environmental health impacts of the liquid waste from Assalaya Sugar Factory, the efficiency of the existing Assalaya effluent treatment plant, the dilution factors available in the White Nile to gather with wastewater environmental impacts. A descriptive cross-sectional focused on the Factory and its neighborhoods. Four hundred and thirty two out of 3931 households were statistically determined as the sample size, the individual samples were picked using multi-stage stratified method 432 households selected as sample size. Data were collected by using structured questionnaires, field observations, laboratory analysis and interviewing the concerned and affected persons. The effluent load discharged from the factory into the Al - jassir canal at the White Nile was analyzed for BOD, COD, pH, PO4, TDS, TSS, Turbidity, Color, and flow rate.The Data were processed by using the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 16, Chi-square test, test associations and office excel 2007. The study showed that Eighty one percent of the households used the surplus irrigation canal as a source for water supply. 64% of the respondents suffered from diarrhea, vomiting and allergic diseases, the rather low rate of water consumption and the bad quality of water consumed were reflected adversely on hygiene and consequently increased water related diseases. The study concludes that always or sometime 49.5% of the water collectors were children and used animals and plastic containers for water collection and transportation. The conducted laboratory water analysis revealed that the average concentrations of PO4, COD and BOD of the raw wastewater produced by Assalaya Sugar Factory were 4260, 3800 and 1500 mg/l, respectively, these values were above the WHO recommended concentrations for the disposed treated effluent (2, 250 and 30 mg/L respectively). As to physical analysis; the turbidity on the average was higher (540 NTU) and the color was (854 TCU) also high

Comparing the environmental impacts of meatless and meat-containing meals in the United States

This study compares the environmental impacts of meatless and meat-containing meals in the United States according to consumption data in order to identify commercial opportunities to lower environmental impacts of meals. Average consumption of meal types (breakfast, lunch, dinner) were assessed using life cycle assessment. Retail and consumer wastes, and weight losses and gains through cooking, were used to adjust the consumption quantities to production quantities. On average, meatless meals had more than a 40% reduction in environmental impacts than meat-containing meals for any of the assessed indicators (carbon footprint, water use, resource consumption, health impacts of pollution, and ecosystem quality). At maximum and minimum for carbon footprint, meat-containing dinners were associated with 5 kgCO2e and meatless lunches 1 kg CO2e. Results indicate that, on average in the US, meatless meals lessen environmental impacts in comparison to meat-containing meals; however, animal products (i.e., dairy) in meatless meals also had a substantial impact. Findings suggest that industrial interventions focusing on low-impact meat substitutes for dinners and thereafter lunches, and low-impact dairy substitutes for breakfasts, offer large opportunities for improving the environmental performance of the average diet

EVALUATING ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS

Discussions of "sustainable development" call attention to various dimensions of human well-being to be considered concomitantly with traditional financial and economic measures. The challenge of environmental impact analysis (EIA) is to encourage re-design of projects so that net benefits are maximized over some weighting of economic, environmental, and other criteria. To date, development organizations have been under attack by environmentalists for ignoring or conveniently overlooking environmental damages of development projects. Explanations for this include inadequate institutional commitment to link resource conservation with economic development, short time horizons, narrow evaluation criteria, problems of monetary valuation, and problems with implementation of EIAs. The future of EIAs will see a number of changes to correct for these deficiencies. Evaluation of project impacts in isolation may yield to a more comprehensive environmental assessment for entire regions. Projects will not be funded without the assurance of specific policy conditions for environmental management. The technology of EIA will advance with the assistance of geographic information systems and related tools for data management. Cost-benefit analysis of development projects will continue to integrate the work of project economists with engineers, agronomists, and other specialists with knowledge of environmental issues. Methods of multiple criteria evaluation represent an advance over the partial approaches of EIA and cost-benefit analysis. There is considerable support for moving towards longer project cycles and extended planning periods within the total cycle, meaning that EIA can be more extensive and continuous than in the past. Within the development organizations, reconsideration of personnel accountability and reward systems is one of the strategies to raise the prominence of environmental issues. Each year presents more case studies, videos, and other didactic materials for training in EIA. Finally, the question of improving EIA is a matter of demanding stronger institutions for proactive planning, technical analysis, and policy reforms favorable to environmental protection.Environmental Economics and Policy,

Environmentally sustainable practices at UK airports

In response to growing concerns about rising energy bills, long-term energy security and the environmental impacts of greenhouse gas emissions, airport operators worldwide are increasingly implementing new sustainable practices to help reduce costs, increase efficiency and reduce their environmental impacts. These initiatives include the installation of on-site wind turbines, biomass plants, and ‘smart' heating and lighting systems as well as other ‘green' initiatives including rainwater harvesting initiatives, improved recycling facilities and financial incentives to encourage staff to travel to work by modes other than the private car. Drawing on specific examples, this paper examines the ways in which UK airports have responded to the challenge of reducing the environmental impacts of operations for which they are directly responsible by implementing green and sustainable energy and working practices. The paper concludes by discussing the importance of sustainable airport practices in light of future growth in key emerging aviation markets