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Dairy farms are predominantly carbon sources, due to high livestock emissions from enteric fermentation and manure. Integrated crop–livestock systems (ICLSs) have the potential to offset these greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, as recycling products within the farm boundaries is prioritized. Here, we quantify seasonal and annual greenhouse gas budgets of an ICLS dairy farm in Wisconsin USA using satellite remote sensing to estimate vegetation net primary productivity (NPP) and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) guidelines to calculate farm emissions. Remotely sensed annual vegetation NPP correlated well with farm harvest NPP (R2 = 0.9). As a whole, the farm was a large carbon sink, owing to natural vegetation carbon sinks and harvest products staying within the farm boundaries. Dairy cows accounted for 80% of all emissions as their feed intake dominated farm feed supply. Manure emissions (15%) were low because manure spreading was frequent throughout the year. In combination with soil conservation practices, ICLS farming provides a sustainable means of producing nutritionally valuable food while contributing to sequestration of atmospheric CO2. Here, we introduce a simple and cost-efficient way to quantify whole-farm GHG budgets, which can be used by farmers to understand their carbon footprint, and therefore may encourage management strategies to improve agricultural sustainability.
Susanne Wiesner; Alison J. Duff; Ankur R. Desai; Kevin Panke-Buisse. Increasing Dairy Sustainability with Integrated Crop–Livestock Farming. Sustainability 2020, 12, 765 .
AMA StyleSusanne Wiesner, Alison J. Duff, Ankur R. Desai, Kevin Panke-Buisse. Increasing Dairy Sustainability with Integrated Crop–Livestock Farming. Sustainability. 2020; 12 (3):765.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSusanne Wiesner; Alison J. Duff; Ankur R. Desai; Kevin Panke-Buisse. 2020. "Increasing Dairy Sustainability with Integrated Crop–Livestock Farming." Sustainability 12, no. 3: 765.
Duff, A. J., P. H. Zedler, J. A. Barzen, and D. L. Knuteson. 2017. The Capacity-Building Stewardship Model: assessment of an agricultural network as a mechanism for improving regional agroecosystem sustainability. Ecology and Society 22(1):45. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-09146-220145
Alison Duff; Paul Zedler; Jeb Barzen; Deana Knuteson. The Capacity-Building Stewardship Model: assessment of an agricultural network as a mechanism for improving regional agroecosystem sustainability. Ecology and Society 2017, 22, 1 .
AMA StyleAlison Duff, Paul Zedler, Jeb Barzen, Deana Knuteson. The Capacity-Building Stewardship Model: assessment of an agricultural network as a mechanism for improving regional agroecosystem sustainability. Ecology and Society. 2017; 22 (1):1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlison Duff; Paul Zedler; Jeb Barzen; Deana Knuteson. 2017. "The Capacity-Building Stewardship Model: assessment of an agricultural network as a mechanism for improving regional agroecosystem sustainability." Ecology and Society 22, no. 1: 1.