LANCASTER, PA, Oct 24 (IPS) – Thousands of years ago we looked to the stars for guidance. Constellations such as Taurus and the Pleiades indicated the changing of the seasons and the best times to plant, harvest and move animals.
Today, we may soon be heading to the heavens again, but this time to satellites that reveal in near real time when and where grasses are most nutritious and digestible. Feeding livestock at these peak times not only stimulates growth but also reduces methane levels because animals release most methane during digestion, a process known as enteric fermentation.
Globally, enteric fermentation by livestock is responsible for almost a third of methane emissions resulting from human activities. This is important because methane does 86 times the heat-retaining capacity of CO2 over a period of twenty years; yet it breaks down much faster. This means that reducing methane is one of the fastest ways to slow the rate of global temperature rise.
Smarter grazing is a great opportunity. Farmers already rotate their herds so that pastures can recover, but often rely on guesswork. When cattle graze younger, more digestible grasses, they produce less methane per unit of milk or meat. Yet in many regions farms only catch fish 40 to 60 percent of the potential of their pasture. Unlocking this potential would improve productivity and reduce emissions.
Two thirds of all agricultural land worldwide is used for livestock grazing, so even small efficiency gains can have a big impact. A 10 percent For example, improving the digestibility of feed can reduce methane emissions per unit of feed or product by 12 to 20 percent.
Closing this pasture productivity gap by optimizing grazing would not only significantly reduce methane emissions, but also improve livestock farmers’ livelihoods, as increases in livestock productivity translate into more milk and more meat per animal.
The newly launched Time2Graze projectfunded by the Global Methane Hub and in collaboration with Land & Carbon Lab’s Global Pasture Watch research consortiumwill apply Sentinel-2 satellite data and models to monitor rangeland biomass.
This near real-time data, combined with rancher observations and digital decision support tools, will provide important information for farmers and land managers, helping them make informed decisions about grazing management, resource allocation and sustainable land use.
This new data will provide free, open and up-to-date information that will be available on Google Earth Engine and other platforms to determine when and where animals should graze to consume the most plentiful and digestible forage. To ensure usability for livestock farming and ranching, Time2Graze partners will conduct on-farm testing in more than 100 locations in eight countries in Latin America and Africa.
Besides others progress in the livestock sector – including improved feed additives, manure management, animal health and genetics – digital and data-based livestock management is essential to deliver climate solutions at the necessary speed and scale. Within the food system, these developments are accompanied by improvements in rice production, reducing food loss and waste and shifting from meat-heavy diets to plant-based diets.
Data innovations in livestock management come at a crucial time in the development of international policy on methane emissions. More than 150 countries have signed the treaty Global methane pledgecommitting to reducing methane emissions by 30 percent by 2030. Enteric fermentation of livestock is the biggest source they need to address. Also the UN climate talks COP28 Emirates Declaration on Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems and many countries’ climate strategies, or Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), now emphasize methane mitigation and climate-smart agriculture as cornerstones of their strategies.
Yet climate finance for global livestock systems is languishing 0.01 percent of total expenditure, equivalent to a financing gap of US$181 billion, which falls far short of the ambition shown by these international initiatives.
Innovations in satellite-based monitoring of pasture and forage are emerging as powerful tools to reduce methane while improving productivity. Governments, climate finance institutions and development banks should prioritize these types of solutions and expand their support to increase their impact in the livestock sector.
Redirecting a fraction of agricultural subsidies and climate finance towards such efficiency gains could not only deliver rapid, measurable methane reductions, but also deliver additional benefits such as reducing deforestation and ecosystem conversion, securing future food security and strengthening rural livelihoods. Realizing this potential will depend not only on data, but also on farmer adoption, political will and the ability to scale solutions across different grazing systems.
For generations, the stars helped farmers decide when to move their animals. Today, satellites can do the same thing, but with much greater precision. With greater investment and adoption, these new guides can help agriculture deliver on its climate promises.
Lindsey SloatResearch Associate, Land & Carbon Lab and World Resources Institute
IPS UN Office
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