Organic Extension Resources - Ecology and Environment

 

Biodiversity Energy Use General Ecological and Environmental Impacts Greenhouse Gases and Climate Change Nutrient Efficiency Pollinators and Colony Collapse

Biodiversity

• 'Balanced' Ecosystems Seen in Organic Agriculture Better at Controlling Pests, Research Finds (ScienceDaily)
  • See the scientific abstract
• DIG: Diversity in Gardens (Sharon Rempel)
• Ecological properties of earthworm burrows in an organically managed grass-clover system
• Ecological Understanding of Insects in Organic Farming Systems (eXtension)
• Ecology and Environment Archived Webinars from eOrganic
  • Increasing Plant and Soil Biodiversity on Organic Farmscapes
• Is Organic Farming Good for Wildlife? It Depends on the Alternative (Science Daily)
• Increasing Predator-Friendly Land Can Help Farmers Reduce Costs (Science Daily)
  • See the research abstract
• Natural Enemies in Organic Farming Systems (eXtension)
• Optimizing buffer strips for improve ecosystem services (Leopold Center)
• Organic Agriculture and Biodiversity (FiBL)
• Researchers Use "Banker Plants" to Help Battle Whitefly Pests (USDA ARS)
• The State of the World’s Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (FAO)
• Sustainable Agriculture: Perennial Plants Produce More; Landscape Diversity Creates Habitat for Pest Enemies
• Too Much Wildlife? (OACC)
• Using Native Flowering Plants to Attract Beneficial Insects (eXtension)
• A win-win for legume mixtures (Organic Eprints)
  
  

Energy Use

• Economics and energy efficiency of alternative input and crop diversity strategies (OACC)
• Organic systems energy winners in 2 out of 3 farming goals (OACC)
• A table of ways to increase farm energy efficiency (OACC)

General Environmental and Ecological Impacts

• Agroecology is a big word, requiring broad research (OACC)
• Commercial Organic Farms Have Better Fruit and Soil, Lower Environmental Impact, Study Finds (Science Daily)
• Comparing organic and conventional land management practices (OACC)
• Dalhousie Research Shows Environmental Benefits of Organic Farming
• Ecological impact of organic farming systems (OACC)
• Ecology and Farming Magazine (IFOAM)
• The Environmental Impacts of Organic Agriculture: A Canadian Perspective (OACC)
• Expert Panel Calls for 'Transforming US Agriculture': Changes in Markets, Policies and Science Needed for More Sustainable Farming (ScienceDaily)
• Nature lovers walk on the wild side
• Organic Food and Farming: A system approach to meet the sustainability challenge (IFOAM) (PDF, 1.2MB)
• The Organic Green Revolution (Rodale)
• The Science Behind Organic Environmentalism

Greenhouse Gases and Climate Change

• NEW!! Performance of Organic Treatments in Long-Term Systems Trials: Organic Benefits and Challenges In the Face of Climate Change Webinar (eXtension)
• Carbon and Global Warming Potential Footprint of Organic Farming (Report to OVCRT)
• Changing Agriculture in a Changing Climate (Organic Eprints)
• The Contribution of Organic Agriculture to Climate Change Mitigation (IFOAM) (PDF, 1.3MB)
• Comparing Energy Use in Conventional and Organic Cropping Systems (ATTRA)
• Ecology and Environment Archived Webinars from eOrganic
  • Greenhouse Gases and Agriculture: Where Does Organic Farming Fit?
  • Impact of Grain Farming Methods on Climate Change
• Going from good to better in reducing GHG emissions (OACC)
• Greenhouse gas emissions from organic crop management (OACC)
• Grazing and Greenhouse Gases: Is the forage-fed ruminant a global warming scapegoat?
• Legumes touted as emission fighters - Plants that actively fix nitrogen result in much lower nitrous oxide emissions than other crops
• Organic Agriculture and Climate Change Mitigation (FAO)
• Organic Agriculture and Climate Change Mitigation - A Report of the Round Table on Organic Agriculture and Climate Change (FAO)
• Organic cropping studied for gas, pollutant emissions (Washington State University)
  
  

Nutrient Efficiency

• Cattle trampling reduces the risk of nitrate leaching in organic dairy rotations (ICROFS)
  
  
  

Pollinators and Colony Collapse

• Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) in Canada: Do we have a problem? (Canadian Honey Council)
• Organic Farming for Bees (Xerces Society) (PDF, 3.5MB)
• Pollinators in Organic Farming Systems (eXtension)

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