Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community

Helping Ranchers Learn From the Wild

Monday, November 28, 2022, By News Staff
Share
BiologyCollege of Arts and Sciencesfaculty researchgrantUSDA

Tropical forests garner headlines as greenhouse gas storehouses. But wild grasslands are crucial, lesser-known candidates as climate heroes. Wild grasslands—from the African savanna to the North American prairie—have the potential to soak up vast amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Cattle grazing on grasses in California

Cattle grazing on grasses in California

When migratory herds graze on grasses and shrubs and move on to new territory, plants respond by growing fresh shoots. This stimulated growth absorbs atmospheric carbon in plant leaves and roots, which eventually gets trapped in grassland soils, removing it—and its heat-trapping properties—from the atmosphere. For example, when vast bison herds migrated on the Great Plains, their grazing behaviors and grassland’s subsequent carbon storage helped maintain stable ecosystems and global climate.

Mark Ritchie, professor of biology in the College of Arts and Sciences, hopes more family- and tribal-run ranchers could capture additional carbon in their soils by learning from wild ecosystems. By doing so, ranchers could qualify for market certifications for climate-friendly or carbon-neutral beef that are similar to certifications for organic or antibiotic-free foods.

Large-scale beef production has come under criticism for high levels of greenhouse gas emissions. But improving specialized beef supply chains and markets for carbon-neutral beef—and innovative ranching practices—could start turning that around.

Mark Ritchie

Biology Professor Mark Ritchie is part of a USDA-funded project to develop, implement and measure how beef producers can sequester greenhouse gases in grassland soils.

“Ranches could become more climate-friendly or carbon-neutral by adopting management practices that mimic some characteristics of wild grasslands,” says Ritchie.

For instance, ranchers could rotate high numbers of animals through multiple pastures and paddocks for just a few days each and then fatten them during the last feeding stage with a diet of hay and other grasses instead of corn.

Ritchie is collaborating with Sustainable Northwest, an organization based in Portland, Oregon, which recently announced receiving a $10 million grant award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The organization’s Regenerative Ranching program partners with Country Natural Beef, a cooperative of more than 100 family ranches that manage several million acres in the West.

The grant would support the nation’s largest climate-focused beef production program across nine western states. It would be among the first programs in the nation to develop, implement and measure how beef producers can sequester greenhouse gases in grassland soils.

Ritchie and his team plan to develop a computer model for ranchers based on a minimum of inputs that will use regional baseline data of soil type, soil carbon and plant life characteristics. Ranchers could plug in their location and other data about their property and determine their best course without requiring a soil test. The user-friendly model could encourage more underserved and marginal ranchers to participate in the program.

“Ranchers could see how their soil carbon would change depending on their region’s characteristics and their management choices,” says Ritchie. “The model would allow them to make predictions under different climates and soil types for how much carbon storage in soils should change based on their management choices. They could compare their current management practices to desired practices and decide what is the best fit for their situation.”

Story by John H. Tibbetts

  • Author

News Staff

  • Recent
  • Chancellor Leads Ceremony Recognizing Crown Honors Professors
    Tuesday, January 31, 2023, By Dan Bernardi
  • 7 Reasons to Attend Interfaith Exploration Week
    Tuesday, January 31, 2023, By Dara Harper
  • NBA Hall of Famer and Former Detroit Mayor Dave Bing ’66 to Speak on Feb. 17
    Tuesday, January 31, 2023, By Jessica Youngman
  • Arts and Sciences Professors Honored by American Association for the Advancement of Science
    Tuesday, January 31, 2023, By John Boccacino
  • A Critical Link: Field Supervisors Support Teachers-in-Training Through Experience and Reflection
    Tuesday, January 31, 2023, By News Staff

More In Campus & Community

Chancellor Leads Ceremony Recognizing Crown Honors Professors

On Friday, Jan. 13, the University’s first Renée Crown Professors in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) were formally recognized. Heidi Hehnly, associate professor of biology, is the Renée Crown Honors Professor in the Sciences and Mathematics, and Karin…

7 Reasons to Attend Interfaith Exploration Week

Hendricks Chapel is celebrating religious and spiritual diversity and inclusion through Interfaith Exploration Week, from Wednesday, Feb. 1, through Tuesday, Feb. 7. All students, faculty and staff are invited to participate in a series of gatherings that provide a safe…

Arts and Sciences Professors Honored by American Association for the Advancement of Science

Jennifer Ross of the Department of Physics and Jason Wiles of the Department of Biology were named Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in recognition of their commitment to the advancement of science. They will be honored…

A Critical Link: Field Supervisors Support Teachers-in-Training Through Experience and Reflection

Now in the third act of their distinguished careers, Patricia Floyd-Echols G’83, G’95 and Patricia Charboneau G’08 continue to demonstrate a commitment to training the next generation of teachers. Both Floyd-Echols and Charboneau are former teachers and school administrators, and…

Professor Luvell Anderson Appointed to Laughing Matters Council

Peppercomm, a leading strategic communications and marketing agency, has announced the addition of two new members to its strategic advisory council of trusted experts in humor, the Laughing Matters Council. These members include Luvell Anderson, Associate Professor of Philosophy and…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • @SUCampus
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2023 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.