Livestock production in a changing climate : adaptation and mitigation research in Australia

Climate change presents a range of challenges for animal agriculture in Australia. Livestock production will be affected by changes in temperature and water availability through impacts on pasture and forage crop quantity and quality, feed-grain production and price, and disease and pest distributions. This paper provides an overview of these impacts and the broader effects on landscape functionality, with a focus on recent research on effects of increasing temperature, changing rainfall patterns, and increased climate variability on animal health, growth, and reproduction, including through heat stress, and potential adaptation strategies. The rate of adoption of adaptation strategies by livestock producers will depend on perceptions of the uncertainty in projected climate and regional-scale impacts and associated risk. However, management changes adopted by farmers in parts of Australia during recent extended drought and associated heatwaves, trends consistent with long-term predicted climate patterns, provide some insights into the capacity for practical adaptation strategies. Animal production systems will also be significantly affected by climate change policy and national targets to address greenhouse gas emissions, since livestock are estimated to contribute ~10% of Australia’s total emissions and 8–11% of global emissions, with additional farm emissions associated with activities such as feed production. More than two-thirds of emissions are attributed to ruminant animals. This paper discusses the challenges and opportunities facing livestock industries in Australia in adapting to and mitigating climate change. It examines the research needed to better define practical options to reduce the emissions intensity of livestock products, enhance adaptation opportunities, and support the continued contribution of animal agriculture to Australia’s economy, environment, and regional communities.

Brave new green world : consequences of a carbon economy for the conservation of Australian biodiversity

Pricing greenhouse gas emissions is a burgeoning and possibly lucrative financial means for climate change mitigation. Emissions pricing is being used to fund emissions-abatement technologies and to modify land management to improve carbon sequestration and retention. Here we discuss the principal land-management options under existing and realistic future emissions-price legislation in Australia, and examine them with respect to their anticipated direct and indirect effects on biodiversity. The main ways in which emissions price-driven changes to land management can affect biodiversity are through policies and practices for (1) environmental plantings for carbon sequestration, (2) native regrowth, (3) fire management, (4) forestry, (5) agricultural practices (including cropping and grazing), and (6) feral animal control. While most land-management options available to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions offer clear advantages to increase the viability of native biodiversity, we describe several caveats regarding potentially negative outcomes, and outline components that need to be considered if biodiversity is also to benefit from the new carbon economy. Carbon plantings will only have real biodiversity value if they comprise appropriate native tree species and provide suitable habitats and resources for valued fauna. Such plantings also risk severely altering local hydrology and reducing water availability. Management of regrowth post-agricultural abandonment requires setting appropriate baselines and allowing for thinning in certain circumstances, and improvements to forestry rotation lengths would likely increase carbon-retention capacity and biodiversity value. Prescribed burning to reduce the frequency of high-intensity wildfires in northern Australia is being used as a tool to increase carbon retention. Fire management in southern Australia is not readily amenable for maximising carbon storage potential, but will become increasingly important for biodiversity conservation as the climate warms. Carbon price-based modifications to agriculture that would benefit biodiversity include reductions in tillage frequency and livestock densities, reductions in fertiliser use, and retention and regeneration of native shrubs; however, anticipated shifts to exotic perennial grass species such as buffel grass and kikuyu could have net negative implications for native biodiversity. Finally, it is unlikely that major reductions in greenhouse gas emissions arising from feral animal control are possible, even though reduced densities of feral herbivores will benefit Australian biodiversity greatly.

Offsetting methane emissions : an alternative to emission equivalence metrics

It is widely recognised that defining trade-offs between greenhouse gas emissions using ‘emission equivalence’ based on global warming potentials (GWPs) referenced to carbon dioxide produces anomalous results when applied to methane. The short atmospheric lifetime of methane, compared to the timescales of CO2 uptake, leads to the greenhouse warming depending strongly on the temporal pattern of emission substitution. We argue that a more appropriate way to consider the relationship between the warming effects of methane and carbon dioxide is to define a ‘mixed metric’ that compares ongoing methane emissions (or reductions) to one-off emissions (or reductions) of carbon dioxide. Quantifying this approach, we propose that a one-off sequestration of 1 t of carbon would offset an ongoing methane emission in the range 0.90–1.05 kg CH4 per year. We present an example of how our approach would apply to rangeland cattle production, and consider the broader context of mitigation of climate change, noting the reverse trade-off would raise significant challenges in managing the risk of non-compliance. Our analysis is consistent with other approaches to addressing the criticisms of GWP-based emission equivalence, but provides a simpler and more robust approach while still achieving close equivalence of climate mitigation outcomes ranging over decadal to multi-century timescales.

Delphi study for improving sustainable construction project management in universities

As sustainability becomes an important principle guiding various human activities around the globe, the higher education sector is being asked to take an active part in educating and promoting sustainability due to its moral responsibility, social obligation and its own needs to adapt to new circumstances. There is a global trend of higher education institutions embarking on responses to the sustainability challenge. On-campus building performance is one of the most important indicators for “sustainable universities”, because buildings carry substantially environmental burden such as considerable consumption of raw materials and energy as well as huge amount of waste generation and greenhouse gas emission. Plus, much research proves that building performance can impact on students and staff’s awareness about and behaviours related to sustainability. The past studies rarely discussed about sustainable construction projects in universities’ unique context. Universities are labeled with distinct characteristics such as complex governance, multiple cultures and juggling missions and so on. It is necessary and meaningful to examine the project management system in terms of universities’ organizational environment. Thus, this research project applies Delphi study to identify primary barriers to green technology application in on-campus buildings, critical factors for sustainable project success, key actions in project phases and strategies for project improvement. Through three rounds of questionnaires among panel experts, the authors obtain a profound understanding of project delivery system in universities. The research results are expected to provide sustainability practitioners with holistic understanding and generic information about sustainable construction project performance on campus as an assistance tool.

Total Dik - Transmedia Concept development

Total Dik! is a collaborative project between the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) and Queensland Theatre Company (QTC). Total Dik! explores transmedia storytelling in live performance from concept development to delivery and builds on works, By the Way, Meet Vera Stark, (Forrester2012), Hotel Modern’s Kamp (2005) and God’s Beard (2012) that use visual art, puppetry, music and film. The project’s first iteration enabled an interrogation of the integration of media-rich elements with live performers in a theatrical environment. Performative transmedia storytelling draws on the tenets of convergent media theory developed by Jenkins (2007, 2012), Dena (2010) and Philips (2012). This exploratory work, juxtaposing transmedia storytelling techniques with live performance, draws on Samuel Becket’s challenges to theatre orthodoxy, and touches on Brechtian notions of alienation through ‘sleight-of-hand’ or processual unpacking and deconstruction during performance. Total Dik! blends a convergence of technologies, models, green screen capture, and live dimensions of performance in one narrative allowing the work’s creators to test new combinations of transmedia storytelling techniques on a traditional performance platform.

Sustainable infrastructure procurement in Australia : standard vs. project practices

The Australian Government and most Australian road authorities have set ambitious greenhouse gas emission (GHGe) reduction targets for the near future, many of which have translated into action plans. However, previous research has shown that the various Australian state road authorities are at different stages of implementing ‘green’ initiatives in construction planning and development, with considerable gaps in their monitoring, tendering, and contracting. This study illustrates the differences between procurement standards and project specific practices that aim to reduce GHGe from road construction projects in three of the largest Australian road construction clients, with a focus on the tools used, contract type and incentives for better performance.

Static and dynamic performance of lightweight hybrid composite floor plate system

In the modern built environment, building construction and demolition consume a large amount of energy and emits greenhouse gasses due to widely used conventional construction materials such as reinforced and composite concrete. These materials consume high amount of natural resources and possess high embodied energy. More energy is required to recycle or reuse such materials at the cessation of use. Therefore, it is very important to use recyclable or reusable new materials in building construction in order to conserve natural resources and reduce the energy and emissions associated with conventional materials. Advancements in materials technology have resulted in the introduction of new composite and hybrid materials in infrastructure construction as alternatives to the conventional materials. This research project has developed a lightweight and prefabricatable Hybrid Composite Floor Plate System (HCFPS) as an alternative to conventional floor system, with desirable properties, easy to construct, economical, demountable, recyclable and reusable. Component materials of HCFPS include a central Polyurethane (PU) core, outer layers of Glass-fiber Reinforced Cement (GRC) and steel laminates at tensile regions. This research work explored the structural adequacy and performance characteristics of hybridised GRC, PU and steel laminate for the development of HCFPS. Performance characteristics of HCFPS were investigated using Finite Element (FE) method simulations supported by experimental testing. Parametric studies were conducted to develop the HCFPS to satisfy static performance using sectional configurations, spans, loading and material properties as the parameters. Dynamic response of HCFPS floors was investigated by conducting parametric studies using material properties, walking frequency and damping as the parameters. Research findings show that HCFPS can be used in office and residential buildings to provide acceptable static and dynamic performance. Design guidelines were developed for this new floor system. HCFPS is easy to construct and economical compared to conventional floor systems as it is lightweight and prefabricatable floor system. This floor system can also be demounted and reused or recycled at the cessation of use due to its component materials.

Every One, Every Day

Creative Statement: “There are those who see Planet Earth as a gigantic living being, one that feeds and nurtures humanity and myriad other species – an entity that must be cared for. Then there are those who see it as a rock full of riches to be pilfered heedlessly in a short-term quest for over-abundance. This ‘cradle to grave’ mentality, it would seem, is taking its toll (unless you’re a virulent disbeliever in climate change). Why not, ask artists Priscilla Bracks and Gavin Sade, take a different approach? To this end they have set out on a near impossible task; to visualise the staggering quantity of carbon produced by Australia every year. Their eerie, glowing plastic cube resembles something straight out of Dr Who or The X Files. And, like the best science fiction, it has technical realities at its heart. Every One, Every Day tangibly illustrates our greenhouse gas output – its 27m3 volume is approximately the amount of green-house gas emitted per capita, daily. Every One, Every Dayis lit by an array of LED’s displaying light patterns representing energy use generated by data from the Australian Energy Market. Every One, Every Day was formed from recycled, polyethylene – used milk bottles – ‘lent’ to the artists by a Visy recycling facility. At the end of the Vivid Festival this plastic will be returned to Visy, where it will re-enter the stream of ‘technical nutrients.’ Could we make another world? One that emulates the continuing cycles of nature? One that uses our ‘technical nutrients’ such as plastic and steel in continual cycles, just like a deciduous tree dropping leaves to compost itself and keep it’s roots warm and moist?” (Ashleigh Crawford. Melbourne – April, 2013) Artistic Research Statement: The research focus of this work is on exploring how to represent complex statistics and data at a human scale, and how produce a work where a large percentage of the materials could be recycled. The surface of Every One, Every Day is clad in tiles made from polyethylene, from primarily recycled milk bottles, ‘lent’ to the artists by the Visy recycling facility in Sydney. The tiles will be returned to Visy for recycling. As such the work can be viewed as an intervention in the industrial ecology of polyethylene, and in the process demonstrates how to sustain cycles of technical materials – by taking the output of a recycling facility back to a manufacturer to produce usable materials. In terms of data visualisation, Every One, Every Day takes the form of a cube with a volume of 27 cubic meters. The annual per capita emissions figures for Australia are cited as ranging between 18 to 25 tons. Assuming the lower figure, 18tons per capital annually, the 27 cubic meters represents approximately one day per capita of CO2 emissions – where CO2 is a gas at 15C and 1 atmosphere of pressure. The work also explores real time data visualisation by using an array of 600 controllable LEDs inside the cube. Illumination patterns are derived from a real time data from the Australian Energy Market, using the dispatch interval price and demand graph for New South Wales. The two variables of demand and price are mapped to properties of the illumination - hue, brightness, movement, frequency etc. The research underpinning the project spanned industrial ecology to data visualization and public art practices. The result is that Every One, Every Day is one of the first public artworks that successfully bring together materials, physical form, and real time data representation in a unified whole.

CSG A Greener Tomorrow : Comprehensive Organizational and Socialistic Report

Humans have altered environments and enhanced their wellbeing unlike any other creature on the planet (Hielman & Donda, 2007); this is no different whether the environment is ecological, social or organizational. In recent times, the debate regarding greenhouse effects on the global weather patterns and the sustainment of the earth’s temperature necessary for life support has become quite infamously problematic as society pushes to find new sources of energy both renewable and environmentally sustainable. The feedback received on CSG from both government and companies alike is that the opportunities this industry creates has a lasting range of social and economic benefits worth over fifty (50) billion dollars in projects (Queensland Government, 2013). This however, has been overshadowed by social activist and lobbyist groups as ‘Lock the Gate Alliance’ saying, as one part of their report noted from the National Water Commission, “coal seam gas development could cause significant social impacts by disrupting current land-use practices and the local environment through infrastructure construction and access” (Lock the Gate Alliance, n.d.), and “In recent years both a NSW and Federal Senate inquiry into coal seam gas production were deliberately mislead by an organization that claims to work on behalf of the farming community, This is the battle for the end of the fossil fuel industry. This is the end game..." (Ward, 2013).

Learning in host selection in Helicoverpa armigera (Hubner) (Lepidoptera : Noctuidae)

The effect of experience on pre- and post-alighting host selection in adult female Helicoverpa armigera was tested in an indoor flight cage, and in a large greenhouse. The moths had experienced either tobacco or tomato plants (both are hosts of H. armigera) for 3 days, or were given no experience. Individuals were then released and their host selection assessed. All individuals caught in the greenhouse were identified and tested for post-alighting acceptance on each host. Experience significantly influenced both pre- and post-alighting host selection in ovipositing moths. This modification in behaviour is attributed to 'learning', and presents the first detailed evidence for learning in moths. Possible behavioural mechanisms involved are discussed, and a hypothesis is presented regarding learning in post-alighting host acceptance. The existence of learning in H. armigera, a highly polyphagous agricultural pest, is discussed in the light of current theories on environmental predictability and the advantages of learning. Copyright 1998 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.

Spatiotemporal modelling in estimation of nitrous oxide emissions from soil

Nitrous oxide is a major greenhouse gas emission. The aim of this research was to develop and apply statistical models to characterize the complex spatial and temporal variation in nitrous oxide emissions from soils under different land use conditions. This is critical when developing site-specific management plans to reduce nitrous oxide emissions. These studies can improve predictions and increase our understanding of environmental factors that influence nitrous oxide emissions. They also help to identify areas for future research, which can further improve the prediction of nitrous oxide in practice.

Carbon dioxide reforming of methane to produce synthesis gas over metal-supported catalysts: State of the art

Carbon dioxide reforming of methane produces synthesis gas with a low hydrogen to carbon monoxide ratio, which is desirable for many industrial synthesis processes. This reaction also has very important environmental implications since both methane and carbon dioxide contribute to the greenhouse effect. Converting these gases into a valuable feedstock may significantly reduce the atmospheric emissions of CO2 and CH4. In this paper, we present a comprehensive review on the thermodynamics, catalyst selection and activity, reaction mechanism, and kinetics of this important reaction. Recently, research has centered on the development of catalysts and the feasible applications of this reaction in industry. Group VIII metals supported on oxides are found to be effective for this reason. However, carbon deposition causing catalyst deactivation is the major problem inhibiting the industrial application of the CO2/CH4 reaction. Ni-based catalysts impregnated on certain supports show carbon-free operation and thus attract much attention. To develop an effective catalyst for CO2 reforming of CH4 and accelerate the commercial application of the reaction, the following are identified to be the most important areas for future work: (1) selection of metal and support and studying the effect of their interaction on catalyst activity; (2) the effect of different promoter on catalyst activity; (3) the reaction mechanism and kinetics; and (4) pilot reactor performance and scale-up operation.

Climate variability over the last 35,000 years recorded in marine and terrestrial archives in the Australian region : an OZ-INTIMATE compilation

The Australian region spans some 60° of latitude and 50° of longitude and displays considerable regional climate variability both today and during the Late Quaternary. A synthesis of marine and terrestrial climate records, combining findings from the Southern Ocean, temperate, tropical and arid zones, identifies a complex response of climate proxies to a background of changing boundary conditions over the last 35,000 years. Climate drivers include the seasonal timing of insolation, greenhouse gas content of the atmosphere, sea level rise and ocean and atmospheric circulation changes. Our compilation finds few climatic events that could be used to construct a climate event stratigraphy for the entire region, limiting the usefulness of this approach. Instead we have taken a spatial approach, looking to discern the patterns of change across the continent. The data identify the clearest and most synchronous climatic response at the time of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) (21 ± 3 ka), with unambiguous cooling recorded in the ocean, and evidence of glaciation in the highlands of tropical New Guinea, southeast Australia and Tasmania. Many terrestrial records suggest drier conditions, but with the timing of inferred snowmelt, and changes to the rainfall/runoff relationships, driving higher river discharge at the LGM. In contrast, the deglaciation is a time of considerable south-east to north-west variation across the region. Warming was underway in all regions by 17 ka. Post-glacial sea level rise and its associated regional impacts have played an important role in determining the magnitude and timing of climate response in the north-west of the continent in contrast to the southern latitudes. No evidence for cooling during the Younger Dryas chronozone is evident in the region, but the Antarctic cold reversal clearly occurs south of Australia. The Holocene period is a time of considerable climate variability associated with an intense monsoon in the tropics early in the Holocene, giving way to a weakened monsoon and an increasingly El Niño-dominated ENSO to the present. The influence of ENSO is evident throughout the southeast of Australia, but not the southwest. This climate history provides a template from which to assess the regionality of climate events across Australia and make comparisons beyond our region. The data identify the clearest and most synchronous climatic response at the time of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) (21 ± 3 ka), with unambiguous cooling recorded in the ocean, and evidence of glaciation in the highlands of tropical New Guinea, southeast Australia and Tasmania. Many terrestrial records suggest drier conditions, but with the timing of inferred snowmelt, and changes to the rainfall/runoff relationships, driving higher river discharge at the LGM. In contrast, the deglaciation is a time of considerable south-east to north-west variation across the region. Warming was underway in all regions by 17 ka. Post-glacial sea level rise and its associated regional impacts have played an important role in determining the magnitude and timing of climate response in the north-west of the continent in contrast to the southern latitudes. No evidence for cooling during the Younger Dryas chronozone is evident in the region, but the Antarctic cold reversal clearly occurs south of Australia. The Holocene period is a time of considerable climate variability associated with an intense monsoon in the tropics early in the Holocene, giving way to a weakened monsoon and an increasingly El Niño-dominated ENSO to the present. The influence of ENSO is evident throughout the southeast of Australia, but not the southwest. This climate history provides a template from which to assess the regionality of climate events across Australia and make comparisons beyond our region.

Fraud risk and the visibility of carbon

In recent years, carbon has been increasingly rendered ‘visible’ both discursively and through political processes that have imbued it with economic value. Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have been constructed as social and environmental costs and their reduction or avoidance as social and economic gain. The ‘marketisation’ of carbon, which has been facilitated through various compliance schemes such as the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS), the Kyoto Protocol, the proposed Australian Emissions Reduction Scheme and through the voluntary carbon credit market, have attempted to bring carbon into the ‘foreground’ as an economic liability and/or opportunity. Accompanying the increasing economic visibility of carbon are reports of frauds and scams – the ‘gaming of carbon markets’(Chan 2010). As Lohmann (2010: 21) points out, ‘what are conventionally classed as scams or frauds are an inevitable feature of carbon offset markets, not something that could be eliminated by regulation targeting the specific businesses or state agencies involved’. This paper critiques the disparate discourses of fraud risk in carbon markets and examines cases of fraud within emerging landscapes of green criminology.

A flexible Bayesian model for describing temporal variability of N2O emissions from an Australian pasture

Soil-based emissions of nitrous oxide (N2O), a well-known greenhouse gas, have been associated with changes in soil water-filled pore space (WFPS) and soil temperature in many previous studies. However, it is acknowledged that the environment-N2O relationship is complex and still relatively poorly unknown. In this article, we employed a Bayesian model selection approach (Reversible jump Markov chain Monte Carlo) to develop a data-informed model of the relationship between daily N2O emissions and daily WFPS and soil temperature measurements between March 2007 and February 2009 from a soil under pasture in Queensland, Australia, taking seasonal factors and time-lagged effects into account. The model indicates a very strong relationship between a hybrid seasonal structure and daily N2O emission, with the latter substantially increased in summer. Given the other variables in the model, daily soil WFPS, lagged by a week, had a negative influence on daily N2O; there was evidence of a nonlinear positive relationship between daily soil WFPS and daily N2O emission; and daily soil temperature tended to have a linear positive relationship with daily N2O emission when daily soil temperature was above a threshold of approximately 19°C. We suggest that this flexible Bayesian modeling approach could facilitate greater understanding of the shape of the covariate-N2O flux relation and detection of effect thresholds in the natural temporal variation of environmental variables on N2O emission.