The LTAR Grazing Land Common Experiment at the Jornada Experimental Range: Old genetics, new precision technologies, and adaptive value chains
Journal of Environmental Quality
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Abstract
Rangelands and the supply chains connected to them are central to the agrifood systems of the Southwestern United States. Local ranchers are simultaneously arid lands managers, herd managers, and marketing managers. To stay in business, they must constantly adapt to unpredictable forage resources and markets while conserving soils and vegetation resources for the long term. As climate warming and drying exacerbate the complexity and difficulty of day-to-day production, producers and policy-makers are seeking alternatives to “business as usual”. To meet this need, the LTAR-Jornada team has developed a package of strategies to help producers adapt to the local and inter-regional challenges. The package includes heritage cattle, precision ranching systems, and adaptive value chains. Five ranches across the Southwest have adopted different combinations of the strategies and are partnering to measure their benefits and drawbacks in real-world conditions. Opportunities for controlled experimentation differ among the ranches, so we use LTAR’s indicator system to assess and compare results. Even as we invest in co-producing knowledge about these three strategies, we recognize that progressive aridification and urbanization of Southwestern rangelands create challenges for which a single “silver bullet” agricultural innovation is unlikely to provide durable solutions. We are learning from our customers and stakeholders about ways to adjust the development of new options.
Suggested Citation
Spiegal, S., Estell, R., Cibils, A.F., Cox, A., McIntosh, M.M., Browning, D.M., Duniway, M.C., Funk, M., Macon, L., McCord, S.E., Redd, M., Tolle, C., Utsumi, S.A., Walker, J., Webb, N.P., and Bestelmeyer, B.T., 2024, The LTAR Grazing Land Common Experiment at the Jornada Experimental Range: Old genetics, new precision technologies, and adaptive value chains: Journal of Environmental Quality, v. 63, no. 6, p. 880-892, https://doi.org/10.1002/jeq2.20605.
Study Area
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | The LTAR Grazing Land Common Experiment at the Jornada Experimental Range: Old genetics, new precision technologies, and adaptive value chains |
| Series title | Journal of Environmental Quality |
| DOI | 10.1002/jeq2.20605 |
| Volume | 63 |
| Issue | 6 |
| Publication Date | July 30, 2024 |
| Year Published | 2024 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Wiley |
| Contributing office(s) | Southwest Biological Science Center |
| Description | 13 p. |
| First page | 880 |
| Last page | 892 |
| Country | United States |
| State | New Mexico |