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Task 2, Subtask 2: Perennial systems |
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In the previous section, we presented the projects that CASMGS researchers will undertake to assess BMPs related to land management changes. In like manner, we summarize in this section the research that will be undertaken by CASMGS researchers on practices related to the adoption and management of perennial ecosystems.
In all subtask 2 research projects, a common set of methods will be employed. Established, long-term field study sites will be used to assess an array of management practices on the rate of soil C sequestration in rangelands, native and restored grasslands, forest lands and wetlands. Net primary productivity and biomass-C inputs as affected by treatments will be assessed at each location. Soil organic C and total N will be determined by depth, as will a number of standardized soil parameters established by Task 2. Long-term soil incubations on samples from treatments in Texas and Kansas will be utilized along with appropriate exponential models to evaluate changes in pool sizes and turnover rates of labile, slow, and recalcitrant soil C pools and to estimate potentially mineralizable C and N. d13C analyses will also be conducted on Texas samples and aggregate fractions to determine contributions of C3 and C4 species to SOC pools and aggregates. The contribution of charcoal to the recalcitrant C pool as affected by fire management will also be evaluated. Direct seasonal losses of SOC will be estimated by measurement of soil respiration via flux chambers on management treatments in Iowa, and possibly Kansas. Intensive soil sampling and SOC analyses across climatic, edaphic, physiographic, and grazing management gradients will allow the determination of the effects of these factors on soil C sequestration across a substantial portion of the central Great Plains. Task 2 members and other participants will contribute standardized data to a common database for use. To derive costs, returns and breakeven C values for each BMP, economic analyses will use an enterprise budgeting approach. The breakeven analysis will determine the necessary C value, which equates net returns from each BMP. Where an adequate number of treatments (BMPs) are available, the marginal cost of providing additional soil C sequestration will be derived. Previous work using econometric models of conservation tillage adoption decisions will be expanded to consider additional explanatory factors and alternative data sources. Land use changes such as conversion to perennial ecosystems via CRP or wetland reserve type programs will be considered. The econometric models use the NRI database to provide information on cropping practices, tillage choices, land characteristics and weather along with other supplemental data sources to estimate discrete choice (logit) models of the adoption decision. With these models, the subsidies needed to induce adoption can be estimated. Once estimated, the adoption models will be linked to EPIC/CENTURY or measured responses to predict changes in soil C levels from adoption of the alternative practices. In addition to examining the costs of C sequestration from alternative BMPs, the adoption models will be employed to evaluate the co-benefits of carbon-friendly practices for other environmental attributes, such as soil erosion and water quality (via the SWAT model). The econometric models will also be used to investigate the efficiency and feasibility of alternative conservation payment mechanisms such as programs that target C directly (performance-based) versus those that target conservation practices. Energy analyses associated with this project will be concerned with determining fossil-based energy expenditures (BTU/acre) associated with all field management practices as well as fertilizer and chemical inputs applicable to the production of commodity crops and perennials. Data from these analyses will be utilized to ascertain quantities of CO2 released into the atmosphere from the combustion of each fossil-based energy resource (coal and petroleum) in production and management. This data along with the soil sequestration estimates provided by the physical scientists will be used along with the enterprise budgets in the breakeven analysis to determine C values. The potential environmental co-benefits and co-costs will be identified with assistance from the NRCS, physical and ecological systems scientists and additional sources as appropriate. Existing non-market valuation studies will be reviewed to provide an initial assessment of the possible ranges in economic value of these costs/benefits. Although studies are often site specific, benefit transfer studies have been used to provide low cost scoping studies that provide recommendations for further, more costly, valuation efforts. The adoption models will also be employed to evaluate the co-benefits of carbon-friendly practices for other environmental attributes, such as soil erosion and water quality (via the SWAT model). Participants:
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