Hope Below Our Feet: Science Compendium

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Grazing facilitates litter-derived soil organic carbon formation in grasslands by fostering microbial involvement through microenvironment modification

"Accordingly, mowing treatment increased the exposure of litter to UV radiation (+38 %) and therefore facilitated the microbial assimilation of litter C (+20 %) and the SOC formation (+15 %). Trampling treatment promoted the transformation of litter C to SOC pools by mixing litter and soil (+34 %).  ... Collectively, our results suggest that grazing facilitates litter-derived SOC formation by regulating microbial involvement through changes in the microenvironment. Our study indicates that grazing promotes SOC formation from plant litter, which maintains SOC storage in grasslands. Accurate quantification of the contribution of plant C input to SOC pools in different grasslands under various utilization is the next step to better predict SOC dynamics."

Yuqi Wei, Bin Wei, Masahiro Ryo, Yixian Bi, Xiangyun Sun, Yingjun Zhang, Nan Liu, Grazing facilitates litter-derived soil organic carbon formation in grasslands by fostering microbial involvement through microenvironment modification, CATENA, Volume 232, 2023, 107389, ISSN 0341-8162,https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0341816223004800?dgcid=coauthor

Ecosystem Management Using Livestock: Embracing Diversity and Respecting Ecological Principles

Agricultural land is a scarce resource globally and will continue to encounter challenges to sustainably increase food production in the face of global change. Adaptations that make use of livestock should ideally incorporate agroecological principles (e.g., improved circularity), while limiting feed-food competition. However, they should also remain respectful of the diversity of ecosystem contexts, availability of resources, and the various social and economic needs of local populations.

Logan Thompson, Jason Rowntree, Wilhelm Windisch, Sinéad M Waters, Laurence Shalloo, Pablo Manzano, Ecosystem management using livestock: embracing diversity and respecting ecological principles, Animal Frontiers, Volume 13, Issue 2, April 2023, Pages 28–34, https://doi.org/10.1093/af/vfac094

Evaluating the impacts of alternative grazing management practices on soil carbon sequestration and soil health indicators

Abstract “... The objective of this study was to identify the impacts of alternative grazing management practices, including heavy continuous (HC), light continuous (LC), and adaptive multi-paddock (AMP) grazing, on SOC and soil health indicators at the ranch and watershed scales in the Lower Prairie Dog Town Fork Red River Watershed in Northwest Texas.  …  The study results indicated that when grazing management at the study ranch was changed from the current AMP grazing to hypothetical HC grazing, simulated average annual SOC decreased from 84 to 81.8 Mg/ha (a 2.6% decline). At the watershed-scale, when the grazing management was changed from the baseline HC grazing to AMP grazing, the simulated average annual SOC increased from 35.6 to 38.3 Mg/ha (a 7.5% increase) … These results indicate that compared to HC, AMP grazing performed better with respect to SOC increase, and improvement of soil ecosystem and hydrological functions at both the ranch and watershed scales in the study watershed. Our findings suggest the need to shift from continuous to AMP grazing in order to improve soil health at multiple spatial scales.”

JungJin Kim, Srinivasulu Ale, Urs P. Kreuter, W. Richard Teague, Stephen J. DelGrosso, Steven L. Dowhower, Evaluating the impacts of alternative grazing management practices on soil carbon sequestration and soil health indicators, Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, Volume 342, 2023, 108234, ISSN 0167-8809, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2022.108234

Loss of Grazing by Large Mammalian Herbivores can Destabilize the Soil Carbon Pool

16-year study (2006-2021) in India’s Himalayan region shows far greater stability in soil-C and soil-N stocks in grazed plots versus exclusion plots,  “fluctuations in soil-C and soil-N were 30 to 40% higher after herbivore exclusion than under grazing … Overall, we conclude that herbivores exert strong influence on both the stability and the size of the soil-C pool, and their persistence is essential for decarbonization services derived from grazing ecosystems.” 

Naidu, Roy, Bagchi (2022) Loss of grazing by large mammalian herbivores can destabilize the soil carbon pool. PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES (PNAS) Vol. 119 | No. 43 October 25, 2022 https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2211317119

Adaptive Multi-paddock Grazing Management’s Influence on Soil Food Web Community Structure for: Increasing Pasture Forage Production, Soil Organic Carbon, and Reducing Soil Respiration Rates in Southeastern USA Ranches

A comparative study of Adaptive Multi-paddock (AMP) and conventional grazing (CG) operations by New Mexico State University molecular biologist, Dr. David Johnson, finds that AMP ranches have on average a 46% increase in standing crop biomass (SCB) - representing similarly higher photosynthetic capacity - and a 20.6% increase in soil organic carbon (SOC) in the top 10 cm of soil profile coupled with a 19.52% decrease in soil CO2 respiration (meaning more C is staying in the ground). The paper calculates that if applied over 1.25 billion hectares of savannahs and grasslands globally, the increased photosynthetic capacity and decreased soil C respiration would remove 9.82 and 6.66 billion tonnes CO2 year−1 or 26.8% and 18.19% respectively of the global 36.6 billion tonnes of global anthropogenic emissions.  AMP stocking density can be 2.38 times higher than CG systems. 

Johnson DC, Teague R, Apfelbaum S, Thompson R, Byck P. 2022. Adaptive multi-paddock grazing management’s influence on soil food web community structure for: increasing pasture forage production, soil organic carbon, and reducing soil respiration rates in southeastern USA ranches. PeerJ 10:e13750 https://peerj.com/articles/13750/

Vegetation, Water Infiltration, and Soil Carbon Response to Adaptive Multi-Paddock and Conventional grazing in Southeastern USA Ranches

“On average, surface water infiltration was higher on AMP than paired CG ranches. Averaged over all locations, soil organic carbon stocks to a depth of 1 m were over 13% greater on AMP than CG ranches, and standing crop biomass was >300% higher on AMP ranches. AMP grazing supported substantially higher livestock stocking levels while providing significant improvements in vegetation, soil carbon, and water infiltration functions. AMP grazing also significantly increased available forage nutrition for key constituents …”  

Apfelbaum SI, Thompson R, Wang F, Mosier S, Teague R, Byck P. 2022. Vegetation, water infiltration, and soil carbon response to Adaptive Multi-Paddock and Conventional grazing in Southeastern USA ranches. Journal of Environmental Management 308:114576 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301479722001499?via%3Dihub

Soil Carbon Dioxide Planetary Thermostat

Biological regulation of planetary temperature has been explained with the Daisyworld model, in which reflective-cooling white daises balance absorbing-warming black daisies. This article advances the proposition that cooling "daisies" of Daisyworld represent carbon sequestration and consumption by productive soils and ecosystems, such as grasslands expanding into deserts and tropical forests migrating toward the poles. 

Retallack GJ. Soil Carbon Dioxide Planetary Thermostat. Astrobiology. 2022 Jan;22(1):116-123. doi: 10.1089/ast.2020.2415. PMID: 35020414. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35020414/

Soil Carbon Stocks and Nitrous Oxide Emissions of Pasture Systems in Orinoquía Region of Colombia: Potential for Developing Land-based Greenhouse Gas Removal Projects

Comparing permanent grasslands (PG) which are degraded from improper grazing and burning with improved grasslands (IG) “managed through rotational grazing of introduced, productive and deep-rooted pasture grass species promote soil organic carbon (SOC)”  … “Improving grassland conditions under grazing has the potential not only to accumulate carbon in soils, but also to reduce nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from animal urine deposition. … Estimated SOC stocks (0–100 cm) were in the range of 224.8 Mg C ha−1 for the PG and 259.0 Mg C ha−1 for the IG, with a significant (p < 0.05) average accumulation of 2.0 Mg C ha−1 y−1 (0–20 cm) in the IG area. N2O emissions were 10 times lower in the IG compared to the PG. … Compared to the reference default value of IPCC for, the SOC stock found in PG was almost 40% higher, whereas the N2O emission factor (5%) was within the uncertainty range (0.7–6%). The Orinoquía region shows significant potential for SOC storage and reduced N2O emissions in improved pastures with deep root systems. Thus, scaling the implementation of land-based SOC storage practices/projects could significantly contribute to reducing net emissions from beef production from this region.”

Costa  et al. 2022, Soil carbon stocks and nitrous oxide emissions of pasture systems in Orinoquía region of Colombia: Potential for developing land-based greenhouse gas removal projects, Frontiers in Climate, vol 4, 2022, 10.3389/fclim.2022.916068, https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fclim.2022.916068/full

Accelerating regenerative grazing to tackle farm, environmental, and societal challenges in the upper Midwest

2021 Viewpoint by Spratt et al. in the Journal of Soil and Water Conservation defines “regenerative grazing” as a “win-win-win” component of “regenerative agriculture” that “uses soil health and adaptive livestock management principles to improve farm profitability, human and ecosystem health, and food system resiliency.” 

Spratt et al. 2021, doi:10.2489/jswc.2021.1209A https://www.jswconline.org/content/jswc/76/1/15A.full.pdf

Adaptive multi-paddock grazing enhances soil carbon and nitrogen stocks and stabilization through mineral association in southeastern U.S. grazing lands

2021 paper by Mosier et al. in Journal of Environmental Management finds that adaptive multi-paddock grazing (AMP) increases both soil carbon and soil nitrogen stocks when compared with conventional grazing (CG). Specifically, carbon stocks increased 13% and nitrogen stocks 9%. SOC 13% increase corresponds with 9 Mg C per hectare to 1 meter depth.  It concludes, “Findings show that AMP grazing is a management strategy to sequester C and retain N.”

Mosier S, Apfelbaum S, Byck P, Calderon F, Teague R, Thompson R, Francesca Cotrufo M, Adaptive multi-paddock grazing enhances soil carbon and nitrogen stocks and stabilization through mineral association in southeastern U.S. grazing lands, Journal of Environmental Management, Volume 288, 2021, 112409, ISSN 0301-4797, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112409

A review of transformative strategies for climate mitigation by grasslands

A review of innovative strategies for climate change mitigation in agriculture (including adaptive multi-paddock grazing) finds that said strategies could promote following benefits of grasslands: CO2 sequestration, non-CO2GHG mitigation, productivity, resilience to climate change, and an efficient use of natural resources. Other strategies included Agrivoltaics, Agroforestry and Enhanced Weathering. 

Gomez-Casanovas N, Blanc-Betes E, Moore CE, Bernacchi CJ, Kantola I, De Lucia EH. 2021 799:149466 DOI 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.149466. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.149466

Expanding grass-based agriculture on marginal land in the U.S. Great Plains: The role of management intensive grazing

Compared to conventional tillage-based crop production, grass-based agriculture can support substantially more ecosystem benefits. Moreover, management intensive grazing (MIG) has the capacity to enhance grassland resilience, thereby enhancing the profitability of grass-based agriculture. The research reported here is based on a survey of 4,500 producers in the Great Plains of USA, which aimed to study the role of grazing intensity on producers’ land use decisions.  

Tong Wang, Hailong Jin, Urs Kreuter, Richard Teague, Expanding grass-based agriculture on marginal land in the U.S. Great Plains: The role of management intensive grazing, Land Use Policy, Volume 104, 2021, 105155, ISSN 0264-8377 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264837720324935?via%3Dihub

Protection of Permafrost Soils from Thawing by Increasing Herbivore Density

“Climate change will cause a substantial future greenhouse gas release from warming and thawing permafrost-affected soils to the atmosphere enabling a positive feedback mechanism. Increasing the population density of big herbivores in northern high-latitude ecosystems will increase snow density and hence decrease the insulation strength of snow during winter. As a consequence, theoretically 80% of current permafrost-affected soils (<10 m) is projected to remain until 2100 even when assuming a strong warming using the Representative Concentration Pathway 8.5. Importantly, permafrost temperature is estimated to remain below −4 °C on average after increasing herbivore population density. Such ecosystem management practices would be therefore theoretically an important additional climate change mitigation strategy. Our results also highlight the importance of new field experiments and observations, and the integration of fauna dynamics into complex Earth System models, in order to reliably project future ecosystem functions and climate.”

Beer, Christian & Zimov, Nikita & Olofsson, Johan & Porada, Philipp & Zimov, S.. (2020). Protection of Permafrost Soils from Thawing by Increasing Herbivore Density. Scientific Reports. 10. 10.1038/s41598-020-60938-y.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/339982637_Protection_of_Permafrost_Soils_from_Thawing_by_Increasing_Herbivore_Density  

Ecosystem Impacts and Productive Capacity of a Multi-Species Pastured Livestock System

2020 paper by Rowntree et al. documents the soil carbon increases from “holistic planned grazing” in a multi-species pasture rotation (MSPR) system on the USDA-certified organic White Oak Pastures farm in Clay County, Georgia. Over 20 years, the farm sequestered an average of 2.29 metric tonnes of carbon per hectare per year (2.29 Mg C/ha/yr).  The paper also shows that the area required to produce food in this regenerative way was 2.5 times that of conventional farming (which would have resulted in soil degradation and toxic chemicals impact). 

Rowntree JE, Stanley PL, Maciel ICF, Thorbecke M, Rosenzweig ST, Hancock DW, Guzman A and Raven MR (2020) Ecosystem Impacts and Productive Capacity of a Multi-Species Pastured Livestock System. Front. Sustain. Food Syst. 4:544984. doi:10.3389/fsufs.2020.544984

Climate change mitigation as a co-benefit of regenerative ranching: insights from Australia and the United States

2020 paper in Interface Focus finds that “‘Managed grazing’ is gaining attention for its potential to contribute to climate change mitigation by reducing bare ground and promoting perennialization, thereby enhancing soil carbon sequestration (SCS).” The paper explores principles and practices associated with the larger enterprise of ‘regenerative ranching’ (RR), which, it states, “includes managed grazing but infuses the practice with holistic decision-making.” It argues that the holistic framework is appealing “due to a suite of ecological, economic and social benefits” and notes that climate change mitigation a “co-benefit.”

Gosnell H, Charnley S, Stanley P. 2020 Climate change mitigation as a co-benefit of regenerative ranching: insights from Australia and the United States. Interface Focus 10: 20200027. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsfs.2020.0027

A half century of Holistic Management: what does the evidence reveal?

2020 paper in Agriculture and Human Values provides a meta-analysis of Holistic Management (HM) considering “epistemic”  differences between disciplines associated with the agricultural sciences. It concludes that the way to resolve the controversy over HM is to “research, in partnership with ranchers, rangeland social-ecological systems in more holistic, integrated ways.” This broader approach to research, it argues, can account for “the full range of human experience, co-produce new knowledge, and contribute to social-ecological transformation.”

Gosnell, Hannah & Grimm, Kerry & Goldstein, Bruce. (2020). A half century of Holistic Management: what does the evidence reveal?. Agriculture and Human Values. 10.1007/s10460-020-10016-w. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10460-020-10016-w

Soil greenhouse gas emissions as impacted by soil moisture and temperature under continuous and holistic planned grazing in native tallgrass prairie. 

2020 paper in Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment finds that holistic planned grazing protocols, used in adaptive multi-paddock (AMP) management, had superior ecological performance in a tallgrass prairie region when compared with high-density continuous  grazing and medium-density continuous grazing systems. Results demonstrate AMP grazing had lower soil temperature, higher soil moisture, and lower N2O and CH4 emissions.

Dowhower, S. L., Teague, W. R., Casey, K. D., & Daniel, R. (2020). Soil greenhouse gas emissions as impacted by soil moisture and temperature under continuous and holistic planned grazing in native tallgrass prairie. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 287, 106647. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2019.106647

Impacto Del Pastoreo En Propiedades Fisico-Quimicas De Un Psammacuent En Pastizales Del Nordeste Argentino (The Impact of Grassland Management on Physical and Chemical Properties of a Sandy Soil in Northeastern Argentina)

2020 paper by Dr. Ditmar Kurtz of the National Institute of Agriculture in the spanish language publication REVISTA ARGENTINA DE PRODUCCIÓN ANIMAL reports an average 4 year drawdown of 2.1 tC/ha/yr in pasture conversion from continuous grazing to [pastoreo continuo (PC)] to Holistic Management [manejo holístico (MH)].

Kurtz, D. et al. (2020) Impacto Del Pastoreo En Propiedades Fisico-Quimicas De Un Psammacuent En Pastizales Del Nordeste Argentino (The impact of grassland management on physical and chemical properties of a sandy soil in northeastern Argentina), REVISTA ARGENTINA DE PRODUCCIÓN ANIMAL VOL 40 N° 2: 1-13 (2020) https://www.crea.org.ar/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/2020-PP-Kurtz-Ditmar-y-otros.pdf

Impacts of Holistic Planned Grazing with Bison Compared to Continuous Grazing with Cattle in South Dakota Shortgrass Prairie

2019 paper in Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment demonstrates that Adaptive Multi-paddock (AMP) grazing increases fine litter cover, water infiltration, forage biomass and soil carbon stocks in a comparison with heavy continuous grazing (HCG) on shortgrass prairie of the Northern Great Plains of North America.  

Hillenbrand, M., Thompson, R., Wang, F., Apfelbaum, S., & Teague, R. (2019). Impacts of holistic planned grazing with bison compared to continuous grazing with cattle in South Dakota shortgrass prairie. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 279, 156–168. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2019.02.005

Simulating the Influence of Integrated Crop-Livestock Systems on Water Yield at Watershed Scale

2019 paper in the Journal of Environmental Management shows that Integrated crop-livestock (ICL) systems have superior water retention (reduction in “water yields”) than in crops systems without a livestock grazing rotation. 

Pérez-Gutiérrez, J. D., & Kumar, S. (2019). Simulating the influence of integrated crop-livestock systems on water yield at watershed scale. Journal of Environmental Management, 239, 385–394. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2019.03.068

Impacts of Soil Carbon Sequestration on Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Midwestern USA Beef Finishing Systems

2018 Michigan State University study in Agricultural Systems finds 1.5 metric tons of carbon per acre per year drawdown via adaptive multi-paddock grazing, more than enough to offset all greenhouse gas emissions associated with the beef finishing phase.

Stanley, P. L., Rowntree, J. E., Beede, D. K., DeLonge, M. S., & Hamm, M. W. (2018). Impacts of soil carbon sequestration on life cycle greenhouse gas emissions in Midwestern USA beef finishing systems. Agricultural Systems, 162, 249-258.  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308521X17310338?via%3Dihub

The effect of Holistic Planned Grazing™ on African Rangelands: a Case Study from Zimbabwe

2018 paper in African Journal of Range & Forage Science finds positive long-term effects on ecosystem services (soils and vegetation) for Holistic Planned Grazing (HPG) and shows this approach enhancing the sustainability of livestock and wildlife.

Peel, M., & Stalmans, M. (2018). The effect of Holistic Planned Grazing™ on African rangelands: a case study from Zimbabwe. African Journal of Range & Forage Science, 35(1), 23-31. doi:10.2989/10220119.2018.1440630 https://doi.org/10.2989/10220119.2018.1440630

Enhancing Soil Organic Carbon, Particulate Organic Carbon and Microbial Biomass in Semi-arid Rangeland Using Pasture Enclosures

2018 study in BMC Ecology demonstrates that controlling livestock grazing through the establishment of pasture enclosures is the key strategy for enhancing multiple ecological indicators including total soil organic carbon, and that “the establishment of enclosures is an effective restoration approach to restore degraded soils in semi-arid rangelands.” Other improved indicators include particulate organic carbon, microbial biomass carbon, and microbial biomass nitrogen. 

Oduor, C.O., Karanja, N.K., Onwonga, R.N. et al. Enhancing soil organic carbon, particulate organic carbon and microbial biomass in semi-arid rangeland using pasture enclosures. BMC Ecol 18, 45 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12898-018-0202-z

Grasslands May be More Reliable Carbon Sinks Than Forests in California

2018 paper in Environmental Research Letters finds that California grasslands are a more resilient carbon sink than forests in response to 21st century changes in climate. The paper also notes that, in data compilations, herbivory has been shown to increase grassland C sequestration rates.

Dass, P., Houlton, B. Z., Wang, Y., & Warlind, D. (2018). Grasslands may be more reliable carbon sinks than forests in California. Environmental Research Letters, 13(7), 074027. doi:10.1088/1748-9326/aacb39 https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/aacb39

Evaluating the ranch and watershed scale impacts of using traditional and adaptive multi-paddock grazing on runoff, sediment and nutrient losses in North Texas, USA

At the watershed-scale, changing grazing management from the baseline HC (high-density continuous grazing) to adaptive MP (multi-paddock grazing) reduced the average annual surface runoff, sediment, TN and TP loads at the watershed outlet by 39%, 34%, 33% and 31%, respectively. In addition, implementation of adaptive MP grazing reduced streamflow during the high flow conditions that have 10% exceedance probability, by about 20%, and hence reduced the chances of flooding downstream of the watershed. Adaptive MP grazing was therefore found to be an effective conservation practice on grazing lands for enhancing water conservation and protecting water quality.

Jong-Yoon Park, Srinivasulu Ale, W. Richard Teague, Jaehak Jeong, Evaluating the ranch and watershed scale impacts of using traditional and adaptive multi-paddock grazing on runoff, sediment and nutrient losses in North Texas, USA, Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, Volume 240, 2017, Pages 32-44, ISSN 0167-8809,https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2017.02.004.

The Role of Ruminants in Reducing Agriculture's Carbon Footprint in North America

2016 Texas A&M study in Journal of Soil and Water Conservation finds 1.2 metric tons of carbon per acre per year drawdown via adaptive multi-paddock grazing and the drawdown potential of North American pasturelands is 800 million metric tons of carbon per year. 

Teague, W. R., Apfelbaum, S., Lal, R., Kreuter, U. P., Rowntree, J., Davies, C. A., R. Conser, M. Rasmussen, J. Hatfield, T. Wang, F. Wang, Byck, P. (2016). The role of ruminants in reducing agriculture's carbon footprint in North America. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 71(2), 156-164. doi:10.2489/jswc.71.2.156 http://www.jswconline.org/content/71/2/156.full.pdf+html

Potential Mitigation of Midwest Grass-finished Beef Production Emissions with Soil Carbon Sequestration in the United States of America

2016 paper in Journal on Food, Agriculture & Society finds that where soil carbon sequestration is included in a life cycle assessment of Midwest grass-finished beef production systems, such systems can be overall carbon sinks.

Rowntree, J., Ryals, R., Delonge, M., Teague, R. W., Chiavegato, M., Byck, P., . . . Xu, S. (2016). Potential mitigation of midwest grass-finished beef production emissions with soil carbon sequestration in the United States of America. Future of Food: Journal on Food, Agriculture & Society, 4(3), 8. https://asu.pure.elsevier.com/en/publications/potential-mitigation-of-midwest-grass-finished-beef-production-em.

Effects of Holistic Grazing Management on Milk Production, Weight Gain, and Visitation to Grazing Areas by Livestock and Wildlife in Laikipia County, Kenya

Results from 2016 paper indicate that holistic grazing management has the potential to improve animal performance, as well as condition of range areas as evident in the preference shown by frequent visits to holistic grazing areas (HGA)  by both livestock and wildlife. “Results: The results revealed that the average milk yields (106 ± 20.1) of animals in holistic grazing areas (HGA) were significantly (p < 0.05) higher than those in traditional grazing areas (TGA) (101 ± 20.1). Weight gain of animals in HGA was significantly (0.13 ± 0.01) higher as compared to those in TGA (0.07 ± 0.01). The number of livestock grazing was significantly (p < 0.05) higher in HGA (74 ± 10 %) than those in TGA (57 ± 10 %). In addition, the number of wildlife grazing was significantly (p < 0.05) higher in HGA (74 ± 18 %) than in TGA (32 ± 18 %).“

Lalampaa, P.K., Wasonga, O.V., Rubenstein, D.I. et al. Effects of holistic grazing management on milk production, weight gain, and visitation to grazing areas by livestock and wildlife in Laikipia County, Kenya. Ecol Process 5, 17 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13717-016-0061-5

Emerging Land use Practices Rapidly Increase Soil Organic Matter

2015 University of Georgia study in Nature Communications finds 3 metric tons of carbon per acre per year drawdown following a conversion from row cropping to regenerative grazing.

Machmuller, M. B., Kramer, M. G., Cyle, T. K., Hill, N., Hancock, D., & Thompson, A. (2015). Emerging land use practices rapidly increase soil organic matter. Nature Communications, 6, 6995. doi:10.1038/ncomms7995 https://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms7995

GHG Mitigation Potential of Different Grazing Strategies in the United States Southern Great Plain

2015 paper in Sustainability finds that a conversion from heavy continuous to multi-paddock grazing on cow-calf farms in the US southern Great Plains can result in a carbon sequestration rate in soil of 2 tonnes per hectare per year or approximately 0.89 tonnes per acre per year. In a sensitivity analysis that accounts for farm animal emissions, this sequestration in soil is sufficient to make the farm a net carbon sink for decades.

Wang, T., Teague, W., Park, S., & Bevers, S. (2015). GHG Mitigation Potential of Different Grazing Strategies in the United States Southern Great Plains. Sustainability, 7(10), 13500. Retrieved from http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/7/10/13500

Global Cooling by Grassland Soils of the Geological Past and Near Future

2013 paper in Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences by University of Oregon Department of Geological Sciences professor Gregory J. Retallack shows the co-evolution of ruminants and grassland soils (mollisols) was essential for geologic cooling of the past 40 million years - leading to the conditions suitable for human evolution - and can be an instrumental part of the necessary cooling in the future to reverse global warming.

Retallack, G. (2013). Global Cooling by Grassland Soils of the Geological Past and Near Future (Vol. 41, pp. 69–86): Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-earth-050212-124001

Sustainability of Holistic and Conventional Cattle Ranching in the Seasonally Dry Tropics of Chiapas, Mexico

2013 study in Agricultural Systems finds practitioners of Holistic Management in the dry tropics region of Chiapas, Mexico have denser grass, deeper topsoil, and more earthworms in their pastures than conventional graziers, and that “Holistic management is leading to greater ecological and economic sustainability.”

Ferguson, B. G., Diemont, S. A. W., Alfaro-Arguello, R., Martin, J. F., Nahed-Toral, J., Álvarez-Solís, D., & Pinto-Ruíz, R. (2013). Sustainability of holistic and conventional cattle ranching in the seasonally dry tropics of Chiapas, Mexico. Agricultural Systems, 120, 38-48. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2013.05.005

Tall Fescue Management in the Piedmont: Sequestration of Soil Organic Carbon and Total Nitrogen

2012 study in Soil Science Society of America Journal demonstrates improved grazing management systems can have an enormous benefit on surface soil fertility restoration of degraded soils in the southeastern United States, and managed grazing can sequester 1.5 metric tons of carbon per hectare per year.

Franzluebbers, A. J., D. M. Endale, J. S. Buyer, and J. A. Stuedemann. 2012. Tall Fescue Management in the Piedmont: Sequestration of Soil Organic Carbon and Total Nitrogen. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 76:1016-1026. doi:10.2136/sssaj2011.0347 

Effect of Grazing on Soil-water Content in Semiarid Rangelands of Southeast Idaho

2011 paper in Journal of Arid Environments finds simulated holistic planned grazing (SHPG) had significantly higher percent volumetric-water content (%VWC) after two years of comparison with similar ranch plots using rest-rotation (RESTROT), and total rest (TREST) systems in semiarid rangelands of southeast Idaho. Measured percent volumetric-water content were 45.8 for SHPG and 34.7 and 29.8 for RESTROT and TREST, respectively.

Weber, K. T., & Gokhale, B. S. (2011). Effect of grazing on soil-water content in semiarid rangelands of southeast Idaho. Journal of Arid Environments, 75(5), 464-470. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jaridenv.2010.12.009

Grazing Management Impacts on Vegetation, Soil Biota and Soil Chemical, Physical and Hydrological Properties in Tall Grass Prairie

2011 paper in Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment demonstrates multi-paddock grazing of the type recommended by Allan Savory, and representative of Holistic Management, led to improved soil health indicators including higher bulk density, greater infiltration rate, and increased fungal/bacterial ratios when compared with continuous single-paddock grazing, typical of conventional practice. Soil organic matter averaged 3.61% in the multi-paddock ranches, compared to 2.4% for heavy continuous, single-paddock grazing.

Teague, W. R., Dowhower, S. L., Baker, S. A., Haile, N., DeLaune, P. B., & Conover, D. M. (2011). Grazing management impacts on vegetation, soil biota and soil chemical, physical and hydrological properties in tall grass prairie. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 141(3–4), 310-322. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2011.03.009

Conservation Practices to Mitigate and Adapt to Climate Change 

2011 study in the Journal of Soil and Water Conservation finds “improved grazing management,” including “Rotational grazing “ and “silvopasture with rotational grazing” has numerous ecological benefits and soil carbon improvements, including “Reduces water requirements. Helps withstand drought. Increases long-term grassland productivity … Reduces erosion and increases carbon sequestration. “ Carbon drawdown rates are reported to be between 2 and 4 tons per hectare per year.

Jorge A. Delgado, Peter M. Groffman, Mark A. Nearing, Tom Goddard, Don Reicosky, Rattan Lal, Newell R. Kitchen, Charles W. Rice, Dan Towery and Paul Salon, Journal of Soil and Water Conservation,  July 2011, 66 (4) 118A-129A; DOI: https://doi.org/10.2489/jswc.66.4.118A

Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Potential of Agricultural Land Management in the United States A Synthesis of the Literature, 2nd Edition

2011 literature review from the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions at Duke University finds that rotational grazing sequesters between -0.05 and 2.90 tCO2e per hectare per year, with a median value of 1.45 tCO2e/ha/yr.

Eagle, A. J., L. R. Henry, L. P. Olander, K. H. Haugen-Kozyra, N. Millar, and G. P. Robertson. 2011. Greenhouse gas mitigation potential of agricultural land management in the United States: a synthesis of the literature. Second edition. Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions, Durham, North Carolina, USA.

https://lter.kbs.msu.edu/docs/robertson/eagle+et+al.+2011+nicholas+inst.pdf

Benefits of Multi-paddock Grazing Management on Rangelands: Limitations of Experimental Grazing Research and Knowledge Gaps

2008 chapter in “Grasslands: Ecology, Management, and Restoration,” published by H. G. Schroder, finds in a comprehensive literature review that multi-paddock rotational grazing produces superior results for grassland ecology when compared to conventional continuous grazing. It also finds that misunderstandings exist in the management techniques needed to achieve these benefits and in the scientific protocols required to assess them. 

Teague, W. R., Provenza, F., Norton, B., Steffens, T., Barnes, M., Kothmann, M. M., & Roath, R. (2008). Benefits of multi-paddock grazing management on rangelands: Limitations of experimental grazing research and knowledge gaps. In H. G. Schroder (Ed.), Grasslands: Ecology, Management, and Restoration (pp. 41-80): Nova Science Publishers, NY. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/285918973