Publication Date
1993
Description
The demands of the relatively wealthy and sophisticated societies of developed countries, with their substantial amounts of leisure time and discretionary income, are having an increasing impact on temperate rangelands in a variety of ways. Some parts of these societies are concerned to protect the landscapes, habitats, wildlife and solitude that can be found there, and wish to constrain any further development within these ecosystems; others also wish .to gain ready access to these resources for hunting, recreation and sport and believe that this requires the exclusion of domesticated livestock. Temperate rangelands are frequently used as water catchments and some areas can be converted readily into intensive forest production; but the production of food and animal fibre, and the managed grazing of domesticated livestock, are important to the long term stability of these ecosystems, and crucial to the sustenance of the social fabric of the remote rural communities that are associated with them. In the countries in which the traditional agricultural products from the rangelands and their associated improved pastures are in surplus, there are opportunities for landholders to diversify their production towards novel species of animal and silvopastoral systems, while others could supplement their agricultural income by selling opportunities to hunt, fish, camp, or pursue other recreational activities. The integration of such a complex set of multiple objectives requires a systematic and scientific approach; but the solutions, if they are to be successful, must be a product of the technological options available and the involvement and decision making of the people who will be expected to Implement them; the balance must vary with local circumstance and need.
Citation
Maxwell, T J. and Laycock, W A., "Integration of Pastoral and Non-Pastoral Uses on Temperate Rangelands with Cold Winters in Developed Countries" (2024). IGC Proceedings (1993-2023). 1.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc/1993/session50/1
Included in
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Integration of Pastoral and Non-Pastoral Uses on Temperate Rangelands with Cold Winters in Developed Countries
The demands of the relatively wealthy and sophisticated societies of developed countries, with their substantial amounts of leisure time and discretionary income, are having an increasing impact on temperate rangelands in a variety of ways. Some parts of these societies are concerned to protect the landscapes, habitats, wildlife and solitude that can be found there, and wish to constrain any further development within these ecosystems; others also wish .to gain ready access to these resources for hunting, recreation and sport and believe that this requires the exclusion of domesticated livestock. Temperate rangelands are frequently used as water catchments and some areas can be converted readily into intensive forest production; but the production of food and animal fibre, and the managed grazing of domesticated livestock, are important to the long term stability of these ecosystems, and crucial to the sustenance of the social fabric of the remote rural communities that are associated with them. In the countries in which the traditional agricultural products from the rangelands and their associated improved pastures are in surplus, there are opportunities for landholders to diversify their production towards novel species of animal and silvopastoral systems, while others could supplement their agricultural income by selling opportunities to hunt, fish, camp, or pursue other recreational activities. The integration of such a complex set of multiple objectives requires a systematic and scientific approach; but the solutions, if they are to be successful, must be a product of the technological options available and the involvement and decision making of the people who will be expected to Implement them; the balance must vary with local circumstance and need.
