crop residue tradeoffs in crop-livestock systems: ideas for scenarios to be analyzed

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Crop residue tradeoffs in crop-livestock systems: Ideas for scenarios to be

analyzed

Presentation by Mark T. van Wijk for the SLP Crop Residues Project Review and Planning Meeting

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 9-10 Dec 2010

Wageningen University, Plant Production Systems

email: mark.vanwijk@wur.nl

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Aim of SLP project

Optimizing livelihood and environmental

benefits from crop residues in smallholder

crop-livestock systems in sub-Saharan

Africa and South Asia: regional case studies

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Crop residues

Manure

Feed

Food

Fertilisers

Food + services

Feed

Market

Food

Livestock

Grasslands

Cropland

Household

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Crop residues have different functions

• Fodder for livestock short term productivity livestock

• Input for soil long term productivity crops

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NUANCES-FARMSIM

FIELD: dynamic, summary model of CROP and SOIL processes

LIVSIM: individual based dynamic, summary model of livestock

HEAPSIM: dynamic summary model of manure management and storage

LABOURSIM and CASHSIM: summary models of socio-economic components and their interactions with production comp.

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Aim of analyses could be

Biophysical (productivity, soil fertility) consequences of different use of crop residues along intensification pathways

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0

1

2

3

4

5

0 30 60 90 120

Clay

Sand

Activity A

Activity B

Input use

Pro

duct

ivity

Efficiency

Degree of crop-livestock integration

Stocks,

flows a

nd assets

0

1

2

3

4

5

0 30 60 90 120

Clay

Sand

Activity A

Activity B

Input use

Pro

duct

ivity

Efficiency

0

1

2

3

4

5

0 30 60 90 120

Activity AActivity B

Input use

Pro

duct

ivity

Efficiency

System state II

+

+

Management intensit

y

+

+System state III

System state I

Hou

seho

ld “

Wel

l-bei

ng”

Stress

Alleviation

Tittonell, Van Wijk et al, 2009, Agricultural Systems

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For different sites at different levels of crop-livestock integration:

Indicators

• soil C development

• crop productivity and its variability

• livestock productivity

Look at consequences of different use of crop residues (scenarios)

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Main interest

• Comparison of sites!!

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