Reprinted from Climatewire with permission from Environment & Energy Publishing, LLC. www.eenews.net, 202-628-6500

9 Comments

1. 1. krohleder 12:21 PM 3/5/13

   Using the processes of nature and evolution is a very good idea. I use the same concepts on my lawn. I know this is trivial compared to global livestock management but it does illustrate the same change in assumptions. First I try to xeriscape as much as possible and keep the grass cut high. Cutting the grass at a higher level actually makes it grow slower since it does not go into an emergency growth mode. Longer grass also helps hold in moister and protects the roots. Second I water the grass way less frequently but longer for deeper root growth. Third I do not get freaked out by insects and spiders living in my yard; so minimal to zero pesticides and no artificial fertilizers (if you have to use fertilizer you not managing the yard correctly). Finally I create earthworm and toad habitats. The extra birds and toads that are in my yard help fertilize and keep the insect populations in check. My experiment has worked: my yard is the best in the neighborhood. I mow less, water less, and do less maintenance. This saves my time and money. In this case eco-friendly also means economically friendly. The grass is greener on my side and in my bank account!

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

2. 2. chubbee in reply to krohleder 06:43 AM 3/7/13

   I manage my lawn in pretty much the same way.
   Although I need to spot weed every few years as well as cut the grub population. My dogs take care of the fertilization nicely.

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

3. 3. samdiener 08:06 PM 3/7/13

   This is intriguingly counter-intuitive, but fascinating. I know he's advocating rotating livestock through to prevent overgrazing. And I think he's saying that somehow the methane is broken down by the fertilized soil. But isn't there a danger of the increased livestock producing increased methane and making the greenhouse problem worse? He claims the opposite at the end of the TED talk, but doesn't explain the basis of the calculation. Plus, on the TED talk, at the end, the reasonable question of how livestock can graze on already desertified lands wasn't answered. Anyone have any insight?

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

4. 4. IslandGardener 06:32 AM 3/12/13

   I'd like to know more about this in order to understand it.
   
   As far as I can make it, the crucial part is that the livestock MOVE. They don't stay in one place and overgraze it.
   
   But how can most people living in such dry places make use of this technique? Traditional nomads moved their livestock around, but most societies now have taken against travelling people and many of them have had to settle down. Then their livstock cause huge trouble because they are stuck in one place.
   
   So I'd like to know about the social side of this proposal. Has it been tried by the local people who actually live there?
   
   I'd also like to know about some alternatives:
   conservation work which would allow the wild animals to thrive again, which would include removing whatever blocks them, so that they can move again;
   local people reducing their dependence on livestock, and increasing the food they get from trees, shrubs and other perennial plants, which is what Tree Aid helps people to do in some dry parts.
   http://www.treeaid.org.uk/
   

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

5. 5. Tony Gardner in reply to samdiener 01:35 AM 3/20/13

   Yes the question wasn't answered sufficiently. My thoughts are that if there is NO feed, you can not graze any animals there ie you can't use this method to restore completely desertified land, however if you send a herd into land with some grass, quickly, and remove them, you may get a slight improvement from seed in manure, allow LONG recovery time and do it again you could eventually restore back to good grazing land.

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

6. 6. Tony Gardner in reply to IslandGardener 01:43 AM 3/20/13

   I agree that wild places need to be promoted aswell, and also that perennial tree crops are a part of the solution. Protein is a big factor though and ruminants are just so amazingly good at converting protein we can't eat, into protein we can, especially in dry areas. A big constraint is moving herds around and providing adequate water in each cell. In Australia GIS technology and ear tagging can be used to create virtual fences that contain stock to a small area through noise emission when they get close to the virtual fence.

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

7. 7. dylanbrams 05:56 PM 4/22/13

   Article is kinda a rehash of the TED video, unfortunately. If you dig a little, there's a lot more information available on their website. Start at http://www.savoryinstitute.com/
   
   And I suggest leafing through this:
   http://www.savoryinstitute.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Savory_Inst_HM_Research_Portfolio_March2013.pdf
   
   If you dig through the studies cited you might notice that the approach taken is fairly thorough and they're trying to make a scientific ecological study out of it. Very interesting.

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

8. 8. dylanbrams in reply to dylanbrams 05:57 PM 4/22/13

   (err.... 'trying to' is probably the wrong descriptor; let me just posit they're obviously interested in being thorough and solving a problem they see)

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

9. 9. greeno.it 11:45 AM 4/29/13

   Hi everybody,
   take a look at our exclusive interview to Allan Savory, published on our italian journal of environmental communication:
   
   http://www.greeno.it/home/2013/04/exclusive-allan-savory-we-can-afford-no-further-fence-sitting/

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this