The Key Role of Agroforestry and Soil Health in the Ecological Intensification of Agriculture
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The key role of Agroforestry and Soil Health in the Ecological Intensification of Agriculture Edmundo Barrios Eco-Intensive Agriculture Conference – KNAW Amsterdam, The Netherlands - 21 April 2015 Outline 1) Degrading our natural capital 2) Agroforestry: ecological facilitation in action 3) Linking trees, soil biota and ecosystem services 4) Fostering knowledge sharing 5) Challenges and opportunities Outline 1) Degrading our natural capital Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2001-2005 Steffen et al. 2004 IGBP Planetary Boundaries Rockstrom et al. 2009 Ecology & Society Planetary Boundaries Steffen et al. 2015 Science BIODIVERSITY IN PERSPECTIVE Planned and managed AGBD aboveground biodiversity Above-ground: planned, managed biodiversity ? ? BGBD Unplanned and unmanaged Below-ground:belowground unplanned, unmanagedbiodiversity biodiversity ? Diversitas 2005 DEFORESTATION AND BIODIVERSITY LOSS BRAZILIAN AMAZON (1988-2008) 3.5 3.0 2.5 2.0 1.5 1.0 Million year per deforested Million ha 0.5 0 Nepstad, 2008 WWF-UNFCC BGBD likely higher than Aboveground 7000* 51.4* *updated using Bardgett & van der Putten 2014 Nature Barrios 2007 Ecological Economics Are we looking at the tip of the iceberg? Aboveground biodiversity Belowground biodiversity SOIL BIOLOGICAL FUNCTION AND THE PROVISION OF ECOSYSTEM SERVICES Adapted from Kibblewhite et al 2008 in Barrios et al, 2012 SOIL HEALTH A measure of the state of natural capital that reflects the capacity of soil to respond to agricultural management by maintaining both the agricultural production and the provision of other ecosystem services Kibblewhite, Ritz & Swift 2008 Phil.Trans.R.Soc. Outline 1) The Global context and Agriculture 2) Agroforestry: ecological facilitation in action AGROFORESTRY TREES + CROPS and/or ANIMALS (Spatial or Temporal arrangement) SIGNIFICANT ECOLOGIC & ECONOMIC INTERACTIONS Silvopastoral system colombia INTENSIFICATION & FUNCTIONAL DIVERSITY LOSS Primary Forest Rubber Plantation Cassava Garden Increased habitat modification Biodiversity loss Functional diversity loss Tree Tree cover cover loss loss 34 1 species species Jones et al. 2003 J. Applied Ecology Habitat provision by trees TREE-AGBD Pollinators TREE-BGBD Bio-control agents WaNuLCAS HABITAT PROVISION BY TREES • Microclimate buffering SOLAR SOIL CROP TRANSPIRATION SOIL WATER IRRADIATION TEMPERATURE SOIL EVAPORATION AVAILABILITY Some effects of trees are mediated through impact on soil biota – trees increase abundance Mean density of different soil biota and calculated response ratios Barrios et al. 2012 – Soil Ecology & Ecosystem Services. D.H.Wall et al (Eds) Some effects of trees are mediated through impact on soil biota – trees increase activity Greater soil biological activity (earthworms) near trees but effect greater for some tree species than others Pruned trees Free growing trees Earthworm cast weight Sample with no earthworm casts Eartworm casts Pauli et al. 2010 Pedobiologia TREES AS HOTSPOTS OF BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITY IN AGRICULTURAL LANDSCAPES “Refugia” Sustaining ecological functions Barrios et al. 2012 – Soil Ecology & Ecosystem Services. D.H.Wall et al (Eds) TREES AS HOTSPOTS OF BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITY IN AGRICULTURAL LANDSCAPES “Refugia” Sustaining ecological functions Barrios et al. 2012 – Soil Ecology & Ecosystem Services. D.H.Wall et al (Eds) TREES AS HOTSPOTS OF BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITY IN AGRICULTURAL LANDSCAPES Barrios et al. 2012 – Soil Ecology & Ecosystem Services. D.H.Wall et al (Eds) TERMITES, DRYLANDS & CLIMATE CHANGE Trees and termite activity can increase the resilience of dryland ecosystems to climatic change Bonachela et al. 2015 Science Are we looking at the tip of the iceberg? Aboveground biodiversity SOIL HEALTH Belowground biodiversity Outline 1) The Global context and Agriculture 2) Agroforestry: ecological facilitation in action 3) Linking trees, soil health and ecosystem services TREE FUNCTIONS AND SOIL HEALTH Biomass production Organic BE(1 inputs AG-Organic inputs Up to 20 t ha -1 yr -1 DM containing as much as 358 kg N 28 kg P 232 kg K 144 kg Ca 60 kg Mg Palm 1995 Agrof. Systems. Slide 26 BE(1 Is this above ground alone? Check Palm 1995 Barrios, Edmundo (ICRAF); 11-4-2015 C CYCLING TREES Photosynthesis Decomposition SOIL BIOTA TREE FUNCTIONS AND SOIL HEALTH Biomass production Organic inputs .... BNF . ~60% plant N derived from BNF BNF rates -1 -1 up to 650 kg N 2 ha yr Nygren et al. 2012 Nutr.Cycl.Agroecol. BNF BIOMASS QUALITY TREE FUNCTIONS AND SOIL HEALTH Biomass production Organic inputs .... BNF Deep nutrient uptake rate . S.sesban 148 kg N ha -1 down to 4 m soil depth Buresh & Tian 1998 Agrof. Syst. SAFETY NET Deep nutrient uptake BNF NUTRIENT RECYCLING BIOMASS QUALITY DEEP NUTRIENT CAPTURE DEEP NUTRIENT UPTAKE OR Database and a Decision Support Tool for OM management Function Wet chemistry Aerobic incubation Polyphenol profile Perfusion method NIRS approaches In-vitro digestibility Palm et al. 2001 AGEE Vanlauwe et al. 2005 SSSAJ TREE FUNCTIONS AND SOIL HEALTH Biomass production Organic inputs Soil cover .... BNF Deep nutrient uptake Barrios et al. 2015 AGROFORESTRY & SOIL HEALTH 30% GREATER SOIL MACROFAUNA ABUNDANCE THAN SECONDARY FOREST Pauli et al. 2011 AppSEcol SLASH & MULCH REDUCE GHG EMISSIONS 5 times lower global warming potential CO2-equivalent emissions than Slash & Burn Davidson et al. 2008 Global Chge Biol. Castro et al. 2009 CPWF SOIL STRUCTURE: EROSION/C STORAGE Increased stability of soil aggregates to water contact BGBD Structure Reduction in C losses Lower soil erosion and greater potential for soil C storage Fonte, Barrios, Six 2010 Geoderma TREES INCREASE CROP YIELDS Meta-analysis > 90 trials across Sub-Saharan Africa • Mean yield of maize after tree fallows is > 1 ton ha -1 doubling the farmer practice • Very large standard error around the mean highlights that performance varies with context and circumstances we need to know where particular trees will increase yield by a large enough amount to be attractive to farmers Embedding Research “IN” Development Research designs with planned comparisons as part of development efforts testing sufficient options across Yield difference = Treatment – control yield inherent context heterogeneity HGMLs = Herbaceous green manure legumes Sileshi et al. 2008 Plant and Soil Coe, Sinclair & Barrios 2014 COSUST Outline 1) Degrading our natural capital 2) Agroforestry: ecological facilitation in action 3) Linking trees, soil health and ecosystem services 4) Fostering knowledge sharing Agroforestry and local knowledge Pauli et al. 2012 Geoderma Erosion of a cultural resource Under Threat Loss of Local Rural Youth Experienced knowledge migrating to Farmers Cities HOW TO PREVENT THE LOSS OF BIO-CULTURAL MEMORY? SOUTH-SOUTH METHODOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT 2000 2014 InPaC-S Barrios et al. 2012 Participatory blending of Local and Scientific Knowledge Participatory Trials Design Workshops AKT5 Market Nutrition Gender Large N Filters Exp. Blending of Local & Best-bet Best-fit InPaC-S Technical Knowledge options Trial Design options Barrios, Coe & Sinclair 2015 Outline 1) Degrading our natural capital 2) Agroforestry: ecological facilitation in action 3) Linking trees, soil health and ecosystem services 4) Fostering knowledge sharing 5) Challenges and opportunities CHALLENGES & OPPORTUNITIES OPENING THE BLACK BOX MOLECULAR TOOLS SPECTROSCOPIC TECHNIQUES BGBD SPATIAL ANALYSIS & GIS STABLE ISOTOPES SOIL PROCESSES REMOTE SENSING INPUTS OUTPUTS Barrios 2007 EcolEcon Spectral (NIRS) signatures Bulk soil PC2 Carton termite mounds Ant deposits Earthworm casts PC1 Termite sheathings Organo-mineral termite mounds Hedde et al., 2005 FuncEcol Implication: Increasing capacity to attribute relative contribution of specific soil organisms to soil structure stabilization greater predictive understanding CHALLENGES & OPPORTUNITIES Developing better understanding of tree/soil biodiversity interactions Recommendations of what types of tree densities, arrangements and species maintain essential ecosystem functions provided by soil biota in agricultural landscapes. Predicting BGBD by looking at AGBD REMOTE SENSING “Local” Indicator Plants ‘Hotspots’ of soil Key Selected Selected biological activity Functional Soil Ecosystem Groups Processes Services Adapted from Barrios,2007 EcolEcon Identifying, quantifying and mapping hot-spots of ecosystem service providers in agricultural soils Temporal and spatial dynamics as a result of environmental factors in situ Predictive knowledge of Ecosystem Service Provision Mapping Soil Biota and function in agricultural landscapes AfSIS Sentinel Site Network Developing and testing spatially-explicit approaches for soil biota Tree density and cover Developing Local Soil Health Monitoring Systems to evaluate Ecosystem Service provision performance Allow rural communities, environmental/agricultural institutions and local government Prepare for negotiations related to Payment for Ecosystem Services INTERDISCIPLINARY FRAMEWORK Linking functional diversity, social actor strategies, ecosystem services, and land use Diaz et al. 2011 PNAS AGROFORESTRY THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION Close to half of agricultural land has > 10% tree cover = area of 1 billion hectares and more than 500 million people (Zomer et al 2014).