An Overview of Current Research on

Environmental Goods & Services in

Alberta Grasslands

June 21, 2016

Western Beef Development Center

Lanigan, SK

Edward Bork

Mattheis Chair, Rangeland Ecology & Management

Dept. of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science

Brief Outline

Introduce the Rangeland Research Institute

Define environmental goods & services (EG & S)

Review main findings of recent carbon

benchmarking study done in Alberta grasslands

Introduce new studies assessing grazing impacts

on GHG emissions and other EG & S’s

Rangeland Research Institute

Organization dedicated to promoting and

conducting leading edge research and teaching

on rangelands, with the ultimate goal of

improving the sustainability of rangeland use

and management

Threats to Rangelands are on the Rise

Energy Extraction

Fragmentation

Climate Change

Endangered Spp.

Recreation

Grassland Loss

Competing Land Use

Previous Advances in Range Science for

the Cow/Calf Sector are Evident …

Understanding grassland ecology Increased grazing efficiency (use)

Improved forage agronomy (production)

EG & S: “Tangible benefits all of society

receives from the existence of grasslands”

Forage & Livestock Production Biodiversity & Wildlife Habitat

Water Purification/Flood

Mitigation

Carbon Storage &

GHG Uptake Pollination

* Kinsella

Mattheis

University of Alberta

Primary Rangeland

Research Facilities

(Kinsella and Mattheis Ranches)

*

*

* Kinsella

Mattheis

University of Alberta

Collaboration with Alberta

Environment and Parks

(former Ag Canada Sub-stations)

* Stavely *

Onefour

Rangelands and EG & S: Recent findings of a University of Alberta/AEP Collaboration

Sampled 114 grasslands

managed by Alberta

Environment & Parks

Quantified Various EG & S

Examined exclosures (15-

70 yr old)

Enabled long-term

assessment of

presence/absence of

livestock grazing

Measured biomass, plant

diversity & carbon stores

Grazing & Plant Diversity

Plant diversity peaked in

mod-high rainfall areas

Diversity increased with

long-term exposure to

grazing by releasing plant

species suppressed in the

absence of ungulates

Largest increases were in

Parkland and Foothills

Fescue

+

+

Does Grazing Alter Introduced

Plant Species?

Introduced species

~10% of composition

Semi-arid grasslands

with < 300 mm (12”)

had greater resistance

to invasion

Grazing increased

introduced spp., but

only under moist

conditions (>350 mm)

R² = 0.0486 R² = 0.131

0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.8

0.9

175 225 275 325 375 425

Pro

po

rtio

n o

f In

tro

du

ced

Sh

ann

on

's D

ive

rsit

y

Mean Growing Season Precipitation (May - Sept.; mm)

Nongrazed Grazed Poly. (Nongrazed) Poly. (Grazed)

Grazing Impacts on Total Above-

ground Grassland Productivity

Grazing enhanced

production in high

rainfall grasslands of

SW Alberta

Introduced species

likely play a role in

boosting herbage

productivity! 0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

DryMixedgrass

Mixedgrass CentralParkland

FoothillsFescue

Montane UpperFoothills

To

tal H

erb

Bio

mas

s (k

g/h

a)

Natural Sub-region

Non-grazed Grazed

+ +

Grazing May Help Limit Shrub

Encroachment

Grazing was tied

to lower shrub

cover in the Rocky

Mountain Forest

Reserve

The largest

reductions were in

grazing allotments

of the Upper

Foothills

0

5

10

15

20

25

DryMixedgrass

Mixedgrass CentralParkland

FoothillsFescue

Montane Upperfoothills

Wo

od

y C

ove

r (%

)

Natural Sub-region

Nongrazed

Grazed

- -

Rangelands & Carbon Storage (Mitigation of Rising CO2 Levels – “Greenhouse Effect”)

Grasslands store 10-30% of the world’s organic

carbon (C)

Temperate grasslands (~8% of earth’s surface)

contain more than 300 Gt C:

- 9 Gt in plants (3%)

- 295 Gt in soils (97%)

(Sources: Schuman et al. (2002); Lal (2002); IPCC (2000)

Annual Cropping Reduced Total

Carbon Compared to Native Grassland (Benchmarking Study)

0

50

100

150

200

250

C Currently Retained C Previously Lost

Mil

lio

ns o

f To

nn

es -

C

Comparison of Grassland VS Cropland

Prairie

Parkland

$4.3 B

$3.6 B

$4.2 B

$11.3 B

What is the Value of C Retained/Lost

from Native Grasslands? Carbon values derived using ABMI land areas for each

land use change and a C-valuation of $15/t-CO2e (CCEMC)

Land Use Conversion Also Reduced Soil Health (e.g. water delivery)

Native grasslands have comparatively better metrics of soil quality!

LAND USE Max Water Availability

(cm3 cm-3)

Soil Porosity Fractal Index

(e.g. aggregation)

Native Grassland 0.14b 0.54b 0.048b

Introduced Pasture 0.099a 0.46a 0.033ab

Annual Cropland 0.096a 0.47a 0.020a

> >

(Hebb et al., submitted)

What About Grazing and Carbon?

Grazing Effects on Total Carbon Have

Been Inconsistent & Difficult to Predict …

Mixedgrass under grazing Fescue under grazing

Grazing and Soil Carbon

Reductions in veg C

(litter, mulch) are

offset by consistent

increases in soil C

*** Soil C is the largest

pool of ecosystem C

due its large mass

(60 – 140 t/ha)

** Note trend for greater SOC in 5 of 6 regions:

Grassland Carbon Responses to

Grazing May be Linked to Production

Grazing stimulated root biomass (parallel to shoot

biomass), particularly in moister environments

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

12000

14000

16000

18000

DryMixedgrass

Mixedgrass CentralParkland

FoothillsFescue

Montane UpperFoothills

Sh

all

ow

Ro

ot

Ma

ss

(k

g/h

a)

Ungrazed Grazed

*

+

Next Steps Underway … Nutrient Cycling Studies

Litterbag filled with grass placed in the field

Collecting litter in the fall

1

Sample soils to measure in- situ belowground processes

Grazing Effects on Decomposition

• After 12 months, litter loss was enhanced by grazing … could this reflect greater incorporation of C into soil OM?

What About GHGs? Preliminary Results Show Lower CO2 Emissions in

Grazed Soils …

Loamy sand

01-May 01-Jun 01-Jul 01-Aug 01-Sep 01-Oct 01-Nov

-20

-15

-10

-5

0

Sandy loam

CH

4 flu

x (g

C h

a-1 d

-1)

-25

-20

-15

-10

-5

0

Inside the exclosure

Outside the exclosure

Inside the exclosure

01-Jun 01-Jul 01-Aug 01-Sep 01-Oct 01-Nov

Loamy sand

Sandy loamOutside the exclosure

*

**

*

** *

*

**

**

*

*

*

*

*

*

Trend for Greater CH4 Uptake in Grazed MGP (Gao et al., in prep; 2014 data)

Grazing = Larger uptake of CH4

More CH4 Appears to be ‘Removed’ by Soil Under HILF Defoliation (~ Mob Grazing)

-0.15

-0.10

-0.05

0.00

0.05a

*

* b

aba

aaa

aa

a

DK HILF HIHF

a

a

a aaa

b

AM

**

*

b

aa

a

aa a

a

a

W

CH

4 p

roduct

ion (

ng C

H4 g

-1 d

w h

-1)

0 - 10 cm

AM W

10 - 20 cm

AM W

0 - 10 cm

AM W

10 - 20 cm

Source: Wang et al. (in prep); 2013 data; Lab incubations

Sandy Ecosite

Loamy Ecosite

CH4 UPTAKE: High Intensity–Low Frequency > High Intensity-High Frequency

Policy Implications for Carbon

Storage/GHGs in Grasslands … ???

1) Need economic incentives to

maintain existing native

grassland …

2) Convert marginal cropland to

grassland where feasible …

3) Explore how & when grazing

increases C stores …

Impacts of Climate & Defoliation on Grassland Function

Wikipedia user: PM Poon

Grazed

Field Sites (3 Prairie Provinces) Kinsella, AB PFRA GAP Community Pasture, SK

Riding Mountain Nat. Park, MB

Excessive Defoliation

Reduces Forage Production

- 13%

- 32%

Drought Effects Varied Regionally …

- 43%

- 20%

N/C

Parkland

Mixedgrass

AP/Boreal

Warming Also Reduced

Average Forage Availability

- 8%

+1.3 to 2.2 deg C throughout

the growing season

New Study (6 Regional Sites in AB): Impact of defoliation regimes and drought on EG & S

(forage, biodiversity, C and GHG)

Ideal grazing systems under drought may vary with soil, vegetation, etc.

It’s Our Nature to Know Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute

35

Beef & Biodiversity

• Will directly link comprehensive biodiversity data

with beef management info at ~200 sites in AB

Relating Plant Diversity to Forage

Production & Ecosystem Function

• Results support notion that more floral

diversity leads to greater total production

Bird Distribution & Abundance in

Mixedgrass Prairie

• Using visual and song counts to link data from

>200 plots at the Mattheis Ranch to vegetation

type, grazing history, and oil & gas extraction

Pollinator Abundance & Diversity in

Alberta’s Agricultural Landscape

• Found over 140 bee species

• Bee abundance and diversity are positively

related to grassland presence, range health,

and forage quality

• RFI measures cattle feed efficiency (drylot)

• Do current beef cattle genetic selection

practices translate to benefits under open-

range grazing … ?

Field Testing Residual Feed Intake (RFI) in Cow/Calf Systems

Many Funders