Track 2-08: Impacts on and Adaptation of Livestock Production Systems to Climate Change
Description
In Australia, the dairy industry generates 8.9 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents (t CO2e) per year (Christie et al. 2011). Most greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the dairy sector are high global warming potential gases such as methane (CH4) from enteric fermentation and nitrous oxide (N2O) from cattle urine and nitrogen (N) based fertilizers, contributing to climate change issues. Several GHG abatement options are available to dairy farmers, including increasing diet quality, feeding oils and reducing replacement rates (Eckard et al. 2010), but little assessment of their effectiveness has been carried out at a farm system level. The two objectives of this study were: first, to quantify GHG emissions from pasture-based dairy production systems in southwestern Victoria; second, to identify GHG abatement strategies and examining their effects on reducing farm emissions.
Included in
The Effectiveness of Greenhouse Gas Abatement Strategies for the Dairy Industry in South-Western Victoria, Australia
In Australia, the dairy industry generates 8.9 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents (t CO2e) per year (Christie et al. 2011). Most greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the dairy sector are high global warming potential gases such as methane (CH4) from enteric fermentation and nitrous oxide (N2O) from cattle urine and nitrogen (N) based fertilizers, contributing to climate change issues. Several GHG abatement options are available to dairy farmers, including increasing diet quality, feeding oils and reducing replacement rates (Eckard et al. 2010), but little assessment of their effectiveness has been carried out at a farm system level. The two objectives of this study were: first, to quantify GHG emissions from pasture-based dairy production systems in southwestern Victoria; second, to identify GHG abatement strategies and examining their effects on reducing farm emissions.
