Effects of livestock intensification on fossil energy use efficiency and rangeland conservation in the lower basin of the Salado river, Buenos Aires province, Argentine
The aim of the study was to explore the impact of the current process of intensification in cattle production systems on the environmental sustainability in the Salado basin region. We compared the proportion and condition of grasslands, fossil energy consumption per unit of area and per unit of pro...
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Format: | Online |
Language: | spa |
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Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias
2016
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Online Access: | https://revistas.unc.edu.ar/index.php/agris/article/view/16567 |
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author | Jacobo, E. Rodriguez, A. Gonzalez, J. Golluscio, R. |
author_facet | Jacobo, E. Rodriguez, A. Gonzalez, J. Golluscio, R. |
author_sort | Jacobo, E. |
collection | Portal de Revistas |
description | The aim of the study was to explore the impact of the current process of intensification in cattle production systems on the environmental sustainability in the Salado basin region. We compared the proportion and condition of grasslands, fossil energy consumption per unit of area and per unit of product and fossil energy use efficiency on13 livestock farms that used different input levels for cattle feeding. Fossil energy consumption per unit of area ranged from 600 to 3600 megajoules (MJ) ha-1 yr-1, fossil energy consumption per unit of product from 0.01 to 8.49 MJ.kg-1 of live weight, and fossil energy use efficiency from 0.92 to 1973 MJ of energy produced per MJ of energy consumed. Fossil energy consumption was lower and fossil energy use efficiency was higher on farms with a large proportion of rangeland in good condition as a consequence of appropriate grazing management with respect to higher feed-input farms. The current process of intensification is causing a decrease in the energy efficiency of meat production systems, which might affect environmental sustainability. |
format | Online |
id | oai:ojs.revistas.unc.edu.ar:article-16567 |
institution | Universidad Nacional de Cordoba |
language | spa |
publishDate | 2016 |
publisher | Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias |
record_format | ojs |
spelling | oai:ojs.revistas.unc.edu.ar:article-165672019-03-11T22:30:48Z Effects of livestock intensification on fossil energy use efficiency and rangeland conservation in the lower basin of the Salado river, Buenos Aires province, Argentine Efectos de la intensificación ganadera sobre la eficiencia en el uso de la energía fósil y la conservación del pastizal en la cuenca baja del río Salado, provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina Jacobo, E. Rodriguez, A. Gonzalez, J. Golluscio, R. Flooding Pampas farm scale sustainability indicators agroecology Pampa Inundable escala establecimiento indicadores de sustentabilidad agroecología The aim of the study was to explore the impact of the current process of intensification in cattle production systems on the environmental sustainability in the Salado basin region. We compared the proportion and condition of grasslands, fossil energy consumption per unit of area and per unit of product and fossil energy use efficiency on13 livestock farms that used different input levels for cattle feeding. Fossil energy consumption per unit of area ranged from 600 to 3600 megajoules (MJ) ha-1 yr-1, fossil energy consumption per unit of product from 0.01 to 8.49 MJ.kg-1 of live weight, and fossil energy use efficiency from 0.92 to 1973 MJ of energy produced per MJ of energy consumed. Fossil energy consumption was lower and fossil energy use efficiency was higher on farms with a large proportion of rangeland in good condition as a consequence of appropriate grazing management with respect to higher feed-input farms. The current process of intensification is causing a decrease in the energy efficiency of meat production systems, which might affect environmental sustainability. Con el objetivo de explorar las consecuencias sobre la sustentabilidad ambiental del proceso de intensificación de la ganadería bovina de la cuenca del Salado, se comparó la proporción y condición del pastizal natural, la cantidad de energía fósil consumida por unidad de superficie y de producto y la eficiencia en el uso de energía fósil de13 establecimientos con distinta intensidad en el uso de insumos para la alimentación del ganado. La energía fósil consumida por unidad de superficie mostró un rango entre 600 y 3600 MJ hectárea-1 año-1, la consumida por unidad de producto se ubicó entre 0,01 y 8,49 MJ kg-1 de peso vivo de carne bovina y la eficiencia en el uso de energía resultó entre 0,92 y 1973 MJ producidos por MJ consumidos. El consumo de energía fue inferior y la eficiencia en su uso fue superior en los establecimientos que conservan una elevada proporción de pastizal en buena condición, como consecuencia del adecuado manejo del pastoreo respecto de la de aquellos que usaron mayor cantidad de insumos para la alimentación. El actual proceso de intensificación está disminuyendo la eficiencia energética de los sistemas de producción de carne, lo que sugiere una alerta para la sustentabilidad ambiental. Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias 2016-06-30 info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion application/pdf https://revistas.unc.edu.ar/index.php/agris/article/view/16567 10.31047/1668.298x.v33.n1.16567 AgriScientia; Vol. 33 No. 1 (2016); 1-14 AgriScientia; Vol. 33 Núm. 1 (2016); 1-14 1668-298X 10.31047/1668.298x.v33.n1 spa https://revistas.unc.edu.ar/index.php/agris/article/view/16567/16375 |
spellingShingle | Flooding Pampas farm scale sustainability indicators agroecology Pampa Inundable escala establecimiento indicadores de sustentabilidad agroecología Jacobo, E. Rodriguez, A. Gonzalez, J. Golluscio, R. Effects of livestock intensification on fossil energy use efficiency and rangeland conservation in the lower basin of the Salado river, Buenos Aires province, Argentine |
title | Effects of livestock intensification on fossil energy use efficiency and rangeland conservation in the lower basin of the Salado river, Buenos Aires province, Argentine |
title_alt | Efectos de la intensificación ganadera sobre la eficiencia en el uso de la energía fósil y la conservación del pastizal en la cuenca baja del río Salado, provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina |
title_full | Effects of livestock intensification on fossil energy use efficiency and rangeland conservation in the lower basin of the Salado river, Buenos Aires province, Argentine |
title_fullStr | Effects of livestock intensification on fossil energy use efficiency and rangeland conservation in the lower basin of the Salado river, Buenos Aires province, Argentine |
title_full_unstemmed | Effects of livestock intensification on fossil energy use efficiency and rangeland conservation in the lower basin of the Salado river, Buenos Aires province, Argentine |
title_short | Effects of livestock intensification on fossil energy use efficiency and rangeland conservation in the lower basin of the Salado river, Buenos Aires province, Argentine |
title_sort | effects of livestock intensification on fossil energy use efficiency and rangeland conservation in the lower basin of the salado river buenos aires province argentine |
topic | Flooding Pampas farm scale sustainability indicators agroecology Pampa Inundable escala establecimiento indicadores de sustentabilidad agroecología |
topic_facet | Flooding Pampas farm scale sustainability indicators agroecology Pampa Inundable escala establecimiento indicadores de sustentabilidad agroecología |
url | https://revistas.unc.edu.ar/index.php/agris/article/view/16567 |
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