Global patterns of socioeconomic biomass flows in the year 2000: A comprehensive assessment of supply, consumption and constraints

Krausmann, Fridolin; Erb, Karl‐Heinz; Gingrich, Simone; Lauk, Christian; Haberl, Helmut

doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2007.07.012

Cited by 312 publications

(341 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…As of 2000, the livestock sector is estimated to have contributed 14% of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions (18% taking into account land use, land use change, and forestry) (5), 63% of reactive nitrogen mobilization*, and consumed 58% of directly used humanappropriated biomass globally (3). Using simplified and (we believe) conservative models, we estimate that production of livestock in 2050 at levels projected by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO projections scenario) (6) may increase direct livestock-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from meat, milk, and egg production on the order of 39%, biomass appropriation by 21%, and reactive nitrogen mobilization by 36% above reported year 2000 levels (Fig.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Global estimates of biotic resource use have been reported by several researchers (3,20). At present, it is estimated that humans appropriate 24% of potential net primary productivity (NPP), with the food system consuming 12% (20).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…G lobal food systems play a pivotal role in anthropogenic environmental change (1)(2)(3)(4). In particular, the livestock sector is a key contributor to a range of critical environmental problems (2,5).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Forecasting potential global environmental costs of livestock production 2000–2050

Pelletier

Tyedmers

2010

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

306

189

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Food systems—in particular, livestock production—are key drivers of environmental change. Here, we compare the contributions of the global livestock sector in 2000 with estimated contributions of this sector in 2050 to three important environmental concerns: climate change, reactive nitrogen mobilization, and appropriation of plant biomass at planetary scales. Because environmental sustainability ultimately requires that human activities as a whole respect critical thresholds in each of these domains, we quantify the extent to which current and future livestock production contributes to published estimates of sustainability thresholds at projected production levels and under several alternative endpoint scenarios intended to illustrate the potential range of impacts associated with dietary choice. We suggest that, by 2050, the livestock sector alone may either occupy the majority of, or significantly overshoot, recently published estimates of humanity’s “safe operating space” in each of these domains. In light of the magnitude of estimated impacts relative to these proposed (albeit uncertain) sustainability boundary conditions, we suggest that reining in growth of this sector should be prioritized in environmental governance.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Forecasting potential global environmental costs of livestock production 2000–2050

Pelletier

Tyedmers

2010

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

306

189

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“…Cropland NPPact was taken from previous work, which extrapolated NPP from primary crop harvest, applying region-and plant-specific factors such as dry matter content and harvest indices, as well as factors for pre-harvest losses 49,50 . For non-cropland areas, NPPact was assessed by calculating differences to NPPpot due to management 15,20,21 .…”

Section: Npp Of the Actual Vegetation (Nppact )mentioning

confidence: 99%

Biomass turnover time in terrestrial ecosystems halved by land use

Erb¹,

Fetzel²,

et al. 2016

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The terrestrial carbon cycle is not well quantified1. Biomass turnover time is a crucial parameter in the global carbon cycle2–4, and contributes to the feedback between the terrestrial carbon cycle and climate2–7. Biomass turnover time varies substantially in time and space, but its determinants are not well known8,9, making predictions of future global carbon cycle dynamics uncertain5,10–13. Land use—the sum of activities that aim at enhancing terrestrial ecosystem services14—alters plant growth15 and reduces biomass stocks16, and is hence expected to aect biomass turnover. Here we explore land-use-induced alterations of biomass turnover at the global scale by comparing the biomass turnover of the actual vegetation with that of a hypothetical vegetation state with no land use under current climate conditions. We find that, in the global average, biomass turnover is 1.9 times faster with land use. This acceleration aects all biomes roughly equally, but with large dierences between land-use types. Land conversion, for example fromforests to agricultural fields, is responsible for59%of the acceleration; the use of forestsand natural grazing land accounts for 26% and 15% respectively. Reductions in biomass stocks are partly compensated by reductions in net primary productivity. We conclude that land use significantly and systematically aects the fundamental trade-off between carbon turnover and carbon stocks

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“…Grazed biomass is estimated on the basis of feed balances using livestock and market feed data from the Food and Agriculture Organization and demand factors that considered species, region, and time (21,55). Extraction of crop residues, harvest losses in forestry, and belowground biomass on cropland and harvested forest areas are estimated using region and time-dependent coefficients based on Krausmann et al (56). NPP 0 was calculated for 1910 and 2000 (Table S4) with the LPJmL model (57).…”

Section: Calculation Of Hanppmentioning

confidence: 99%

Europe’s other debt crisis caused by the long legacy of future extinctions

Dullinger

Essl

Rabitsch

et al. 2013

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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115

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Rapid economic development in the past century has translated into severe pressures on species survival as a result of increasing land-use change, environmental pollution, and the spread of invasive alien species. However, though the impact of these pressures on biodiversity is substantial, it could be seriously underestimated if population declines of plants and animals lag behind contemporary environmental degradation. Here, we test for such a delay in impact by relating numbers of threatened species appearing on national red lists to historical and contemporary levels of socioeconomic pressures. Across 22 European countries, the proportions of vascular plants, bryophytes, mammals, reptiles, dragonflies, and grasshoppers facing medium-to-high extinction risks are more closely matched to indicators of socioeconomic pressures (i.e., human population density, per capita gross domestic product, and a measure of land use intensity) from the early or mid-, rather than the late, 20th century. We conclude that, irrespective of recent conservation actions, largescale risks to biodiversity lag considerably behind contemporary levels of socioeconomic pressures. The negative impact of human activities on current biodiversity will not become fully realized until several decades into the future. Mitigating extinction risks might be an even greater challenge if temporal delays mean many threatened species might already be destined toward extinction.extinction debt | socioeconomic history | time lag

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Global patterns of socioeconomic biomass flows in the year 2000: A comprehensive assessment of supply, consumption and constraints

Cited by 312 publications

References 27 publications

Forecasting potential global environmental costs of livestock production 2000–2050

Forecasting potential global environmental costs of livestock production 2000–2050

Biomass turnover time in terrestrial ecosystems halved by land use

Europe’s other debt crisis caused by the long legacy of future extinctions

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