The use of cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, poultry, and other livestock offer many benefits to the growing global population and millions of farmers in the developing world. These animals are integral to rural livelihoods and local cultures, providing food (meat, eggs and other dairy products), materials (wool, hide, horns, etc.), income, and mechanical power for pulling carts, drawing water or plowing fields. Asia has been identified as the developing region in which the demand for livestock products is expected to rise most rapidly.1 Livestock manure can serve as a source of fertilizer. Grazing can help sustain vegetation and promote biodiversity by dispersing seeds, controlling shrub growth, breaking soil crusts, stimulating grass growth and improving seed germination. Livestock may also represent savings and currency or have cultural value.
Properly managed, livestock production can enhance land and water quality, biodiversity, and social and economic well-being. However, when improperly managed, livestock production may cause significant economic, social and environmental damage. Increasing livestock production has the potential to increase environmental harm. This guideline will help identify potential adverse environmental impacts and suggest mitigation and monitoring options, as well as “best management practices,” to address them.
Resources
References
- Pica-Ciamarra, U., J. Otte, and C. Martini. Pro-Poor Livestock Policy Initiative. Livestock Sector Policies and Programmes in Developing Countries: A Menu for Practitioners. FAO. 2010. http://www.fao.org/docrep/012/i1520e/i1520e00.pdf
- Mandleni, B. and F.D.K. Anim. Climate Change and Adaptation of Small-Scale Cattle and Sheep Farmers. African Journal of Agricultural Research. 2012. http://www.academicjournals.org/ajar/PDF/pdf2012/5%20May/Mandleni%20and%20Anim.pdf
Climate Change Resources
Note: USAID's Global Climate Change (GCC) Office can provide support on the climate change aspects of this Guideline. To contact the GCC office, please email: climatechange@usaid.gov
- USAID. 2007. Adapting to Climate Variability and Change: A Guidance Manual for Development Planning. http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNADJ990.pdf
The Adaptation Guidance Manual provides guidance to assist planners and stakeholders as they cope with a changing climate. It provides guidance on adaptation and the project cycle. USAID is currently preparing updated Adaptation Guidance to be released in 2013.
- USAID. 2009. Adapting to Coastal Climate Change: A Guidebook for Development Planners. http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNADO614.pdf
- Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO). 2013. Climate Change Website. http://www.fao.org/climatechange/en/
Provides publications, resources, case studies, and other information on climate change, and climate-smart agriculture, including:
- FAO. Mainstreaming Climate-Smart Agriculture into a Broader Landscape Approach. 2012. http://www.fao.org/docrep/016/ap402e/ap402e.pdf
- FAO. Developing a Climate-Smart Agriculture Strategy At The Country Level: Lessons from Recent Experience. 2012. http://www.fao.org/docrep/016/ap401e/ap401e.pdf
- Achieving Food Security in the Face of Climate Change: Final Report from the Commission on Sustainable Agriculture and Climate Change. 2012. http://ccafs.cgiar.org/sites/default/files/assets/docs/climate_food_commission-final-mar2012.pdf
- World Watch. 2009. Livestock and Climate Change. http://www.worldwatch.org/files/pdf/Livestock%20and%20Climate%20Change.pdf
- Feed the Future Collaborative Research Innovation Lab: Adapting Livestock Systems to Climate Change. 2013. http://lcccrsp.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/RB-12-2013.pdf
- IFAD. Livestock and Climate Change. http://www.ifad.org/lrkm/factsheet/cc.pdf
- Punsalmaa Batima Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology. 2006. Climate Change Vulnerability and Adaptation in the Livestock Sector of Mongolia. https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CC8QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fipcc-wg2.gov%2Fnjlite_download.php%3Fid%3D5854&ei=EAn8UaT0I4jB4AOj8YCgDg&usg=AFQjCNHssppctRKQ_T3M2wUG-JucT3uqMw&sig2=Qk_YiTil8dgIz3HGjrMPFg&bvm=bv.50165853,d.dmg
- National Communications are submitted by countries to the UNFCCC and include information on country context, broad priority development and climate objectives, overviews of key sectors, historic climate conditions, projected changes in the climate and impacts on key sectors, potential priority adaptation measures, limitations, challenges and needs. http://unfccc.int/national_reports/non-annex_i_natcom/items/2979.php
- The World Bank’s Climate Change Knowledge Portal is intended to provide quick and readily accessible climate and climate-related data to policy makers and development practitioners. The site also includes a mapping visualization tool (webGIS) that displays key climate variables and climate-related data. http://sdwebx.worldbank.org/climateportal/
- National climate change policies and plans. Many countries have policies and plans for addressing climate change adaptation.
Documents
- Boyd, C., R. Blench, D. Bourn, E. Drake, and P. Stevenson (1999). Reconciling Interests among Wildlife, Livestock and People in Eastern Africa: A Sustainable Livelihood Approach. Overseas Development Institute, Natural Resource Perspectives Number 45. :London, UK. http://www.odi.org.uk/resources/details.asp?id=2109&title=reconciling-interests-wildlife-livestock-people-eastern-africa-sustainable-
livelihoods-approach
From the perspective of local livelihoods this paper explores the complex interactions between wildlife, livestock and people, and options for integrated wildlife and livestock management in the semi-arid rangelands of eastern Africa. The paper draws on the sustainable livelihoods approach which explicitly considers whether households have access to the assets required to engage in an activity, and how that activity fits with existing livelihood activities.
- The State of Food and Agriculture. Part 1: Livestock in the Balance. FAO. 2009. http://www.fao.org/docrep/012/i0680e/i0680e00.htm
This report is part of a comprehensive study on 'Interactions between Livestock Production Systems and the Environment - Global Perspectives and Prospects'. The study examines management of waste from animal product processing, and environmental impact of animal manure management, landless monogastric production systems, landless livestock ruminant systems, and mixed irrigated systems in the (sub-) humid zones.
- CGIAR Annual Report 2008: Global Recommitment to Agriculture. Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research. http://library.cgiar.org/bitstream/handle/10947/5262/2008_CGIAR_Annual_Report_low_res.pdf?sequence=1
This annual report highlights communities adopting new ways of doing livestock business that are creating pathways out of poverty. The main chapters of this document present three case studies of how livestock systems are helping poor people meet the challenges of agricultural intensification in developing countries. The research activities in China, India and Nigeria outlined in this annual report is providing ILRI and partners and donor agencies with lessons for producing global public goods.
- de Haan, C. et al (2001). Livestock Development: Implications on Rural Poverty, the Environment, and Global Food Security. World Bank, Washington D.C. http://www.ruta.org:8180/xmlui/bitstream/handle/123456789/523/RN62.pdf?sequence=1
This book argues for a people-focused approach to livestock development, giving high priority to the public-goods aspect of poverty reduction, environmental sustainability, food security and safety, and animal welfare. It outlines the primary policy/technology framework for the main production systems and concludes with an eleven-point action plan for the sector.
- Heffernan, C. (1998). Livestock, Destitution and Drought: The impact of restocking on food security post-disaster. Pastoral Development Network, Overseas Development Network, FAO. Rome, Italy. http://www.odi.org.uk/pdn/drought/heffernan.html
This paper examines concepts of food security in relation to pastoralists and attempts to quantify the impact of restocking on pastoralist households in Northern Kenya. The first section of the paper, analysis how food security can be both theoretically defined and practically applied. Whereas, the second section examines the impact of restocking projects on food security at both the household and project level. Food security parameters such as capital, investments and stores were evaluated. Household economic conditions were utilised as a proxy to measure food security. At the project level, the influence of the size of the restocking package on present and future food security was evaluated.
- ILRI and USAID (2000). Livestock Strategy to 2010: Making the Livestock Revolution Work for the Poor. Nairobi, Kenya. http://mahider.ilri.org/bitstream/handle/10568/587/ILRIStrategy2010.pdf?sequence=1
Major implications for livestock research are identified from analysis of the major factors expected to influence livestock development over the next decade. This framework is based on ex ante, or preventive, assessment of probable economic surplus from different research investments, taking into account five criteria: contribution to poverty reduction; expected economic impact; expected environmental impact; international relevance of recommendations under consideration; and expected impact on research capacity in developing countries.
- Jabbar, M.A., J. Pender and S.K. Ehui (eds), 2000. Policies for Sustainable Land Management in the Highlands of Ethiopia: Summary of Papers and Proceedings of a Seminar Held at ILRI, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 22-23 May 2000. International Livestock Research Institute, Nairobi, Socio-economics and Policy Research Working Paper 30. http://www.ifpri.org/divs/eptd/ws/papers/eptws09.pdf
The papers presented at this seminar provided information about the interrelated problems of land degradation, low agricultural productivity and poverty in the Ethiopian highlands (emphasizing the administrative regions of Tigray, Amhara and Oromiya); the proximate and underlying causes of those problems; the responses of individuals, communities and governments to the problems; the impacts of some of those responses; and the constraints and opportunities affecting the potential in the future for more productive, sustainable and poverty-reducing development pathways in the Ethiopian highlands.
- Osofsky, Steve (ed) (2005). Proceedings of the Southern and East African Experts Panel on Designing Successful Conservation and Development Interventions at the Wildlife/Livestock Interface: Implications for Wildlife, Livestock and Human Health, AHEAD (Animal Health for the Environment And Development) Forum, IUCN Vth World Parks Congress, Durban, South Africa, 14th and 15th September, 2003. IUCN Occasional Paper 30, IUCN - The World Conservation Union, UK. http://ilrinet.ilri.cgiar.org/inrm/InvestingFeb2006.pdf
The "Southern and East African Experts Panel on Designing Successful Conservation and Development Interventions at the Wildlife/Livestock Interface: Implications for Wildlife, Livestock and Human Health" forum brought together nearly 80 veterinarians, ecologists, economists, wildlife managers, and other experts from Botswana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, France, the United States, and the United Kingdom to develop ways to tackle the immense health-related conservation and development challenges at the wildlife/domestic animal/human interface facing Africa today, and tomorrow. This volume attempts to capture invitees' uniquely grounded insights, and their ideas for making the long-overdue "one health" perspective a reality in practice.
- Peden, D., A. Freeman, A. Astatke, A. Notenbaert (2006). Investment Options for Integrated Water-Livestockcrop Production in sub-Saharan Africa. Working Paper 1, International Livestock Research Institute, Kenya. ISBN 92-9146-183-0 http://ilrinet.ilri.cgiar.org/inrm/InvestingFeb2006.pdf
This paper focuses on opportunities to enhance investment returns in agricultural water through integration of livestock into production systems by considering three issues. The first is the development context of the dynamic livestock sector including the anticipated rapid growth in demand for animal products that are transforming the livestock sector and placing increased demand on agricultural water resources. The second is a continent-wide spatial analysis of the current and projected distribution of livestock with implications for related pressure on water resources and investment options that better integrate agricultural water and livestock development. Thirdly, this paper suggests a set of water-livestock investment strategies and options that can help guide planners toward more effective use of water and more beneficial animal production.
- Pratt, D. J., F. Le Gall and C. de Haan (1997). Investing in Pastoralism: Sustainable Natural Resource Use in Arid Africa and the Middle East. World Bank Technical Paper No. 365. World Bank, Washington D.C. http://www-wds.worldbank.org/servlet/WDS_IBank_Servlet?pcont=details&e id=000009265_3971110141434
This document offers guidelines for development in arid lands where pastoralism is practiced. It focuses on natural resource management (NRM) on arid rangelands used by pastoralists in Africa and Middle East. Part One provides advice on preparing for project interventions. Part Two provides guidelines for specific project components, addressing five essentials of pastoral development projects: herder organizations, support systems, drought management, phasing of technical inputs, and process monitoring.
- Ramisch, Joshua (1999). The Long Dry Season: Crop-livestock Linkages in Southern Mali. Agricultural Ecosystems Research Group, Agronomy Department, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI. http://pubs.iied.org/pdfs/7413IIED.pdf
- This article discusses agro-pastoralist exchanges in Mali. This has increase following the Sahelian droughts of the 1970s and 1980s, in which pastoralists have moved southwards with their herds, into wetter, more productive environments; cultivators are increasingly investing in livestock as the plough replaces the hoe. This paper investigates the interactions brought about by the co-existence of herds and agriculture in a village setting.
- Sheng, T.C. 1989. “Soil Conservation for Small Farmers in the Humid Tropics.” FAO Soils Bulletin 60: 104.
Although somewhat dated, considered by many as the most useful guide for a practical understanding and application of soil and water conservation practices.
- Williams, Timothy O (1998). Multiple Uses of Common Pool Resources in Semi-arid West Africa: A Survey of Existing Practices and Options for Sustainable Resource Management. Overseas Development Institute, Natural Resources Perspectives Number 38. London, UK. http://www.odi.org.uk/resources/docs/2885.pdf;
Common pool resources such as rangeland, forests, fallow fields and ponds provide an array of social and economic benefits for a wide variety of users in semi-arid West Africa. However, poor definition and enforcement of the institutional arrangements governing the use of these resources sometimes lead to social conflicts and resource degradation. This paper examines why institutional arrangements are at times weak, and suggests what action can be taken.
Documentos disponibles en español
- Evaluación del impacto ambiental Directrices para los Proyectos de Campo de la FAO. Roma 2011. http://www.fao.org/docrep/016/i2802s/i2802s.pdf
- Evaluación Ambiental Ganadería Colombiana Sostenible. Mainstreaming Biodiversity is Sustainable Cattle Ranching. Documento de trabajo elaborado por La Fundación Centro para la Investigación en Sistemas Sostenibles de Producción Agropecuaria – CIPAV. http://www.cipav.org.co/
- Las Guías sobre medio ambiente, salud y seguridad para la producción de ganado, Corporación financiera internacional Abril 2007. http://www1.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/5fe02880488657f9b3aaf36a6515bb18/Mammalian%2BLivestock%2BProd%2B-%2BSpanish%2B-%2BFinal-%2Brev%2Bcc.pdf?MOD=AJPERES
Documents disponibles en français
- Directives environnementales, sanitaires et sécuritaires pour la production animale (Bétail) Société Financière Internationale Avril 2007. http://www1.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/0105de004885523baaf4fa6a6515bb18/018_Mammalian_Livestock_Production.pdf?MOD=
AJPERES
- Lignes Directrices pour l’Évaluation Intégrée des Impacts Environnementaux et Sociaux, Banque Africain de Développement Novembre 2003. http://www.afdb.org/fileadmin/uploads/afdb/Documents/PolicyDocuments/Lignes%20Directrices%20pour%20L%27evaluation%20
Integree%20des%20Impacts%20Envitonmetal%20aux%20et%20Socieux.pdf
- Manuel en environnement - Ressources complémentaires — Élevage d'animaux. Outils pour l'identification des effets environnementaux de secteurs d'activités spécifiques, des mesures d'atténuation appropriées et lignes directrices ACDI. http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/acdi-cida/acdi-cida.nsf/fra/EMA-218123620-NNV