Activity 2.3.2 Ranches as Grassland Conservation
Six-Point Critical Analysis Worksheet
1. Exploratory
Jim Howell is a leader of a rancher company called Grasslands LLC. His job is buying large acres of land and figuring out how to make the land flourish more. 40% of the earth’s land surface is grassland. It supports an estimated 12 billion people. Not including the benefits, it has on animals. Making it very important to manage and maintain. Jim figured out grazing has a larger effect on the grasslands than people think. If there is a lack of activity of herbivores on the land, decay won’t take place leaving the soil not getting enough carbon. Affecting the carbon cycle which is the sustainable part of life. The grass inhibits bad forms from growing wrong and then eventually dying. This can happen not only by the lack of activity but no rain, over rest, and even overgrazing. That is why commercial ranching can be sometimes harmful. Having the cattle graze at the same place each time can bring issues leaving some dead patches. Or over resting in an area makes animals not want to eat or be by it. Jim’s results in his way of grazing showed more biodiversity 72% of new species and 34% of plants. It reminds me how the impact on beavers has on restoring streams, herbivores do the same for grasslands.
2. Diagnostic
Animals grazing in grasslands is critical because of their activity. Their eating, moving, and even passing away help the health of grasslands. Too much rest in an area can cause the grass to die quicker. For example, a national park has no grazing, and you can physically see the dead grass. There is no biodiversity present because life can’t be sustained there. Not far from the national park was someone's property, who did have animals in their land spread out. Their grass was green, and all plants were alive. The function of rainfall, mineral cycle, grazing, and solar energy are all factors; in keeping the grasslands nourished and thriving. The climate in some areas will be better than in others, which is unavoidable. It Is more important to take care of grasslands that have a good environment. With grazing, there is less surface runoff keeping the grass hydrated. Then when the animals pass away, it helps the carbon cycle. The mineral cycle benefits from decay; with the lack of decay minerals in the soil become stuck.
3. Cause and Effect
If grazing takes place in grasslands, biodiversity occurs. Lack of disturbance causes grass to die quicker with no biodiversity. If there is a lack of decay, minerals become stuck affecting the mineral cycle. If no decay occurs, the carbon cycle gets affected creating less carbon in the soil. With the soil not fully nutrient, the grass grows wrong making it brittle. It can become so bad it can create a soil crust; nature's way of covering the soil. With overgrazing in the same area, patches can occur. That applies to over-resting as well, animals will not want to eat from those areas. If grasslands become unhealthy, billions of people will be affected. Food sources like corn, wheat, soybeans, and more will not be able to be grown.
4. Priority
The issue in making grazing work in multiple places is the mental work of it. It requires people who are willing to learn and be open-minded on how to take care of their land. It takes a well-thought-out plan to make sure every detail of what works goes in it. With it being a plan for the future, it can change at any moment. So it takes a humble person to say their plan isn't working and to create a new one. It’s a process that requires you to be flexible, disciplined, abstract thinking, and good with adjustments. It’s possible and proven by Jim Howell. He has a team to mimic predators to keep it natural as possible with the animals. He has portable electric fences to make sure all property is grazed. Then, of course, resting or recovering periods for the land. Proving that this issue is possible to solve.
5. Application
This applies to me because grasslands provide a food source to over 12 billion people. Grain production is through the grasslands. It can be converted to corn or soybeans and wheat. Those are all foods that I've consumed. It’s also home to creatures that only make the grasslands flourish even more. If anything, it does more damage to not apply our knowledge to take care of the land. It is the majority of the world that grassland covers, and poor care will not only affect me but many others.
6. Critical
This didn't change my way of thinking about wanting to continue grazing. I knew it was crucial, just not to where there are companies whose purposes are for the health of grasslands. It is very good that we do have people with knowledge of how to keep our planet healthy. With that even open up about how they came up with their results. Living in Texas, I see corn fields and never once thought about how important those fields are. The open land with nothing but some cows have a bigger impact than I realized. When I went to a local park, it had a huge field of just grass and it was all dead. Down the road from the park is a man with a good amount of land with some animals. The grass was green and long. I always wondered why, so it’s nice to know the answer to that question. Overall, grazing is important, and the animals are crucial for our standard of living.
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