Macedon Ranges Draft Biodiversity Strategy lacks nature repair targets
Submission to Macedon Ranges Shire Council by Patrick Franics Summary The Macedon Ranges Shire Council’s Draft Biodiversity Strategy 2025 –
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Knowledge Base
Surging global tourism CO2 emissions unstoppable
Implementing disincentives for tourists to travel overseas may be the only way developed countries can reduce aviation greenhouse gas emissions and meet the net zero 2050 target.
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Soil carbon sequestration not a panacea for agriculture’s climate change mitigation
World Resources Institute challenges regenerative agriculture advocates claims about soil carbon as a major offset for agriculture’s greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.
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Nature Repair Market: suggestions for avoiding unintended consequences
The Nature Repair Market is likely to become available to farmers across Australia in 2025 but its operator the Clean Energy Regulator needs to ensure its unintended consequences are recognised and managed.
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Warm winters are waking snakes early
By Damian Lettoof, Chris J Jolly, Timothy N.W. Jackson; For people in southeast Australia, springtime means soaking up the sun
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Financial institutions are driving red meat sustainability demands
Despite the red meat industry having a carbon neutral 2030 policy a study into meat processor attitudes found the sector does not see value in product-level greenhouse gas emissions credentialling for consumers.
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Uncertain permanence makes soil carbon credits risky
Adopting management to support and increase soil carbon on a continuous basis is vital for supporting a multitude of ecosystem functions but does not guarantee soil carbon increases are permanent.
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Air travel highlights climate change policies inconvenient truth
Flying is an example of greenhouse gas emissions activity that will not achieve net zero by 2050. It’s emissions are likely to increase over the next 20 years. Terrestial CO2 abatement is not a long-term solution as the farm land it takes place on is needed for food production and to support the planet’s ecosystem functions.
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Climate Emergency – a Plan versus an Action Plan
A comparison of two councils climate emergency plans one with emission reduction targets, the other without them.
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Five year old clover herb pasture impacts lamb growth
Diversified clover herb ryegrass pastures need specific management to maintain composition, livestock performance and lower methane emissions.
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A climate emergency plan without targets is greenwashing
By Patrick Francis In October 2023 the Macedon Ranges Shire Council requested submissions about its Draft Climate Emergency Plan 2023
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Proliferation of soil carbon credit projects despite scientists urging caution
Emission Reduction Fund soil carbon projects are proliferating on Australian farms despite warnings from scientists they are not providing permanent carbon abatement.
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Romsey Structure Plan skittles environment, local food and lifestyle objectives – Why it should be returned to authors for further investigation
If re-written with a vision to embrace solutions to lower greenhouse gas emissions, abate carbon dioxide, use nature to address the Climate and Biodiversity emergencies, and encourage local food production, the Romsey Structure Plan would provide a blue print for sustainable development within town boundaries across the shire and give resident families the life styles they move to the shire to experience.
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Fertilise the system to build soil organic matter – SOM is more than carbon
A farming system in which inadequate nutrients limit crop/pasture productivity, microbial activity and maintenance of SOM clearly requires a paradigm shift.
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Irish multi species pastures lift livestock productivity
Evidence is mounting that multi-species pasture gives a lift to ruminant livestock productivity per hectare compared with monoculture pasture while at the same time increasing paddock ecosystem services and reducing methane emissions per kg of carcase weight.
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Wildlife rescue services provide clues to native animals threats
Wildlife rescues and road kills increasing as vehicle drivers maximum speed limit remains unaltered in wildlife hot spots.
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Is regenerative agriculture a leap of faith?
The results of the Page Witts survey indicates that amongst farmers themselves what their methods are called means very little, it is the direction they are heading and outcomes achieved in conjunction with nature that is important.
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Paying farmers to create habitat blocks the most cost-effective way to hit UK environment targets
New UK research shows farmers are not only willing to set aside parts of their land for nature, but that incentivizing them to do so will cost less than current financial incentives.
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A rural land use strategy with no future
The Macedon Ranges Shire Council’s Draft Rural Land Use Strategy fails to incorporate climate change abatement, carbon and biodiversity farming, and local food production as key issues for future landholders.
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Give sheep greater pasture species richness and they eat more
Sheep and cattle pasture intake is impacted by a range of complex interactions associated with plant biology and animal physiology, by providing livestock with greater choice they eat more, grow better and paddock biodiversity with all its ecosystem services implications is enhanced.
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Livestock essential for balanced diet and environmental well-being – scientists
By James Nason Scientists from around the world gathered in Dublin in October 2022 to examine negative claims regularly levelled
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Boosting biodiversity inconjunction with intensive pasture farming
Intensive livestock grazing which incorporates holistic management will support and improve grassland biodiversity; destocking can lead t biodiversity decline.
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Livestock enviro footprint needs context
To feed and nourish the whole world, we will need to significantly increase the productivity of small-scale livestock systems.
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Using livestock manures to boost pasture growth
Livestock manures can be a cost effective alternative to inorganic fertilisers but must be applied at rates which counter growth limiting nutrients.
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Alternative fertiliser trial highlights pasture phosphorous response
The soil treatments with the lowest cost of producing extra pasture were those that addressed first limiting nutrients.
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Gap between soil carbon abatement science and trading credits growing wider
Two new publications about the science of soil carbon abatement do not align well with the optimism amongst carbon project facilitators for achieving permanent, commercially large increases through changing land management practices.
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Farms natural capital importance recognised by NSW government
Natural Capital improvement on farms has been recognised as an important component of management by the NSW government.
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Textile Exchange Analysis injects division among farmers, brands and consumers
The Textile Exchange’s Regenerative Agriculture Landscape Analysis contends there are significant difference between farmers who adopt RA while CSIRO’s Mark Farrell says the approaches to soil health and quality are similar.
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Soil carbon double dipping not on
When carbon credits are sold off the farm to a third party, the farm business cannot then claim them for accessing carbon neutral markets.
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The search for healthy soil biology indicators
Historically soil health mostly meant how much organic matter is in soil. But organic matter changes slowly. Microbes change fast.
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Soil biology revealed
This FAO report provides an important scientific account of the role of soil biota in the soil food web and carbon flow between the atmosphere, plants and soil.
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US scheme used by Australian farmers reveals dangers of trading soil carbon
Changing grazing and land management practices to bolster ecosystem functions is positive for the environment but may not necessarily lead into trading soil carbon.
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Adding tonnes of manure and compost to perennial pastures didn’t change soil carbon
Anecdotal examples of increasing soil carbon stocks by changing livestock grazing and pasture management are common, but long term statistically significant trial data demonstrates making a significant change is likely to be difficult especially in perennial pasture paddocks where the existing carbon level in above 3%
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Victoria’s rural road speed guidelines ignore wildlife existence
Victoria’s state government departments responsible for maximum speed limits on minor rural roads and safety and welfare of wildlife do not recognize vehicles travelling to fast to avoid collisions with wildlife on minor rural roads, are the cause of an increasing number of wildlife road kills and injuries.
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Old-growth forest carbon sinks overestimated
Trees age. And at some point, they die. When that happens, decay begins, sending carbon back into the atmosphere as CO2. Other smaller trees will then take over, thereby leaving a fairly stable CO2 stock in the forest.
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Putting more relevant numbers around Australia’s livestock emissions
The Australian sheep meat industry has already achieved a status of green house gas stabilisation.
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Soil carbon to decline from global warming negative feedback loop
This research contends global warming is likely to increase soil carbon losses particularly in regions with high carbon stocks.
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Comparing grasses without grazing them has little value for building climate resilience
Applying artificial climate treatments to pasture species without including different grazing regimes is absurd, it makes the research conclusions around pasture species resilience in face of climate change irrelevant.
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