New VCS Methodology to Help Grassland Farmers Sustainably Manage their Land
Millions of people around the world rely on grasslands to feed their livestock, and ultimately put food on their tables. Yet, poor land management can badly degrade these lands and jeopardize future farming operations. To address these concerns, the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the Chinese Academy of Agriculture Science and the World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF) and the Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology developed a newVCS methodology that will give farmers the tools to manage their animals and grasslands more sustainably for years to come.
The methodology can be applied worldwide, however it is expected it to be particularly useful in China, as the country works to sustainably feed an ever growing population, while lowering its carbon footprint with the aid of its emerging carbon markets.
Livestock grazing occupies 26 percent of the earth’s ice-free land surface, making them a very substantial sink for carbon sequestration. Considering the varied drivers of grassland degradation, this new methodology quantifies emission reductions from a range of activities including improving the rotation of grazing animals between summer and winter pastures, limiting the timing and number of grazing animals on degraded pastures, and restoration of severely degraded grasslands. It also includes a comprehensive module for quantifying any displacement of emissions from livestock leaving the project area. This could bring enormous benefits to farmers around the world, particularly in China.
VCS staff will be joined by representatives from FAO, the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and UNIQUE forestry and Land Use for a webinar on 6 May 2014 at 9:00am-10:00am Eastern Daylight Time to introduce stakeholders to the methodology.
Register for the webinar
Tuesday 6 May 2014
9:00am-10:00am (U.S. East Coast time)
As always, please address any comments or questions you might have to secretariat@v-c-s.org