Possibilities for mitigating the environmental footprint of dairy ruminants

Mljekarstvo

BoÅ¡njak, Roko¹  Prpić, Zvonimir² 

[1] Selska cesta 1, 10340 Strmec, Croatia;University of Zagreb, Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Animal Science and Technology, SvetoÅ¡imunska cesta 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia

关键词: methane;    nitrous oxide;    greenhouse gases;    milk production;   

DOI  :  10.15567/mljekarstvo.2018.0301

学科分类：工程和技术（综合）

来源: Hrvatska Mljekarska Udruga

【 摘 要 】

Livestock industry, with dairy sector as one of the fastest growing, largely contributes to the atmospheric/soil pollution and greenhouse gases emissions (i.e. methane, carbon dioxide, and nitrous oxide) on the global scale. The goal of this paper is to present a short synthesis of published scientific works aiming to reduce dairy ruminants’ environmental footprint by mitigating land degradation, water pollution and depletion, and greenhouse gasses emissions (GHG) by implementing novel nutritional, biotechnological, microbiological, animal management, and manure management strategies. In order to mitigate land degradation, suggested strategies include the introduction and adjustment of grazing fees and lease rents, and addressing pollution by establishing a “provider gets - polluter pays”. Improving water use efficiency is the most important in animal feed production. Contamination of water with microorganisms and parasites from manure should be prevented to avoid a public health hazards. With respect to methane and nitrous oxide emissions, the most common nutritional strategy for mitigating GHG emissions is using forages with lower fiber and higher soluble carbohydrates content or grazing less mature pastures. Although many of feed additives (organic acids, secondary plant components, and lipids) can be effective to some extent in reducing rumen methanogenesis, much in vivo research is still needed to clarify which amounts and combinations of additives are the most effective in mitigating methane emission. In order to successfully respond to the increasing global demand for raw milk and milk products, the dairy industry will have to mitigate future negative impacts on the environment, modifying the current production systems, and maintain at the same time high quality of final products at an economic price acceptable for the consumers.

【 授权许可】

CC BY