Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment

Journal: Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment

Abbreviation

Agric. Ecosyst. Environ.

Publisher

Elsevier

ISSN

0167-8809
1873-2305

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Publications1 - 10 of 119

Organic farming is more related to topography than to soil characteristics in extensively and intensively managed grasslands in Switzerland
Klaus, Valentin; Richter, Franziska Julia; Lüscher, Andreas; et al. (2024)
Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment
Organic farming and other agri-environmental schemes (AES) are important policy tools to support environmental-friendly agriculture. Often, AES require a direct reduction of actual management intensity to sustain biodiversity and non-marketable ecosystem services. In addition to lower management intensity, differences in topography and soils between AES and non-AES land can occur, driven by the targeted placement of AES in the landscape. Many of the latter effects of an AES are, however, widely unknown and frequently ignored, limiting a comprehensive understanding of how organic farming and other AES deliver environmental outcomes. We analysed pedological, topographical and other spatial characteristics of parcels under two grassland AES, i.e., organic farming (vs. conventional) and extensive management (vs. intensive). Thus, this study assessed whether organic farming is related to differences in topography and soil conditions in both extensively and intensively managed grasslands in the study region in the north of Switzerland. Therefore, we combined a regional-scale spatial analysis of permanent grassland parcels and a soil survey. Both AES were tested not only in interaction with each other but also within the two main harvest types, i.e., meadows (mainly mown) and pastures (mainly grazed), resulting in eight distinct grassland types that were studied. Results show both AES to be linked to differences in soil nutrients as well as topographical and other spatial characteristics. We found interactions of the two AES with the harvest type, i.e., meadow versus pasture. This was particularly pronounced for extensively managed conventional meadows, which were frequent at low elevation and on land potentially suitable for arable farming. Extensively managed pastures and all organic grasslands exhibited reduced production conditions (i.e., higher elevation, steeper slope, lower soil phosphorus concentrations). Yet, differences between organic and conventional grasslands were by tendency more pronounced in intensively than extensively managed grasslands. Our results show that farmers preferentially adopted both AES on land not ideal for intensive production, with the exception of many extensively managed meadows in low elevations. Our study therefore demonstrated that an assessment of the ecological outcomes of an AES must not only account for direct effects via management restrictions but also for indirect effects via spatial targeting by farmers. More research is still needed to assess and compare direct and indirect effects of AES to support evidence-based policymaking and improve spatial targeting of different land-use types.
Ebullitive CH4 flux and its mitigation potential by aeration in freshwater aquaculture: Measurements and global data synthesis
Fang, Xiantao; Wang, Chao; Zhang, Tianrui; et al. (2022)
Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment
Freshwater aquaculture ponds constitute one of the important anthropogenic sources of atmospheric methane (CH4). Nevertheless, estimates of global CH4 emissions from freshwater aquaculture have large uncertainties due to a lack of data from different aquaculture types. Furthermore, despite that ebullition is a major pathway of CH4 in aquatic systems, the quantification of ebullitive CH4 fluxes from typical freshwater aquaculture ponds has been poorly represented. Here, field measurements of CH4 fluxes over two years were taken to quantify ebullitive CH4 fluxes from inland freshwater fish and crab aquaculture ponds in subtropical China. Ebullitive CH4 fluxes averaged 15.97 ± 1.57 and 11.22 ± 1.26 mg m−2 d−1 in the fish and crab ponds in the first experimental year, respectively, and were 22.86 ± 2.30 and 21.95 ± 2.19 mg m−2 d−1 in the second year. During aquaculture period, ebullition dominated the emission pathways of CH4, accounting for 83% and 98% of the total CH4 emissions in the fish and crab ponds, respectively. Ebullitive CH4 fluxes exhibited considerable spatial variations, with the lowest flux rates captured at the aeration area due to aerator-use in both the fish and crab ponds. Dissolved oxygen and dissolved organic carbon were the two primary factors that drove ebullitive CH4 fluxes in both aquaculture ponds. By incorporating global measurement data, we further assessed the CH4 mitigation potential of aerator use in freshwater aquaculture and revealed the dominant role of ebullition in this mitigation contribution. Together with the rice-based aquaculture, aerator use could reduce CH4 emissions from freshwater aquaculture ponds globally by 71% and in China by 63%.
Methane conversion rate of bulls fattened on grass or maize silage as compared with the IPCC default values, and the long-term methane mitigation efficiency of adding acacia tannin, garlic, maca and lupine
Staerfl, Sabrina M.; Zeitz, Johanna O.; Kreuzer, Michael; et al. (2012)
Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment
Use of topographic variability for assessing plant diversity in agricultural landscapes
Hofer, Gabriela; Bunce, Robert G.H.; Edwards, Peter J.; et al. (2011)
Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment
Crop cultivar affects performance of herbivore enemies and may trigger enhanced pest control by coaction of different parasitoid species
Mody, Karsten; Collatz, Jana; Bucharova, Anna; et al. (2017)
Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment
Perennial, species-rich wildflower strips enhance pest control and crop yield
Tschumi, Matthias; Albrecht, Matthias; Bärtschi, Cedric; et al. (2016)
Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment
Quantifying the effect of organic farming, field boundary type and landscape structure on the vegetation of field boundaries
Aavik, Tsipe; Liira, Jaan (2010)
Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment
Partitioning European grassland net ecosystem CO2 exchange into gross primary productivity and ecosystem respiration using light response function analysis
Gilmanov, T.; Soussana, J. F.; Aires, L.; et al. (2007)
Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment
Impact of pine chip biochar on trace greenhouse gas emissions and soil nutrient dynamics in an annual ryegrass system in California
Angst, Teri E.; Six, Johan; Reay, Dave S.; et al. (2014)
Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment ~ Environmental Benefits and Risks of Biochar Application to Soil
Regionalization of a large-scale crop growth model for sub Saharan Africa
Folberth, Christian; Gaiser, Thomas; Abbaspour, Karim C.; et al. (2012)
Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment

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Journal: Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment

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