Winter 1996 (v8n1)
Montana State University
Montana State University
Extension Service. 1994
The organizers of this four-day symposium had two objectives. Their first objective was to present the results of a major research project funded through the USDA-Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education (SARE) program. This project, Specifying and Analyzing Whole-Ranch Systems for Sustainable Livestock Production in Environmentally Sensitive Areas, was conducted on ranches in the plains and foothill-mountain regions of Montana. The second was to explore the adequacy of the various criteria being used to assess the sustainability of range livestock production systems in the West. To address this second objective, a variety of speakers was invited to present perspectives on rangeland sustainability, including scientists, ranchers, industry representatives, and representatives from environmental interest groups.
The proceedings contain abstracts from 20 different presentations given during the symposium. A wide range of subjects are addressed in these papers. They are not in-depth analyses, but contact information is provided for each abstract so that readers can pursue their areas of interest with the authors if they wish. Major topics covered in the symposium include the following:
- Perspectives on Sustainability
- Economic and Social Issues Affecting Sustainability
- Changing Range Conditions: Impacts on Sustainability
- Managing Rangelands: Strategies for Sustainability
- Effects of Wildlife and Livestock Interactions on Sustainability
- Impacts of Rangeland Management Policy on Sustainability: Views and Recommendations Regarding the Sustainability of Livestock on Federal Ranges
In their preface to the proceedings, the symposium organizing committee concludes that: 1) the research of the Montana-based SARE project indicates that the majority of ranches monitored in the study are profitable, financially sustainable, and compatible with environmental goals; 2) the ongoing research on range livestock production systems in the West and adjoining regions demonstrates progress on identifying attributes of sustainable systems; and 3) the debate about the adequacy and appropriateness of the criteria used to assess the sustainability of rangeland systems needs to continue.
Copies of the symposium proceedings are available for $25.00 from Jack Riesselman, Department of Plant Pathology, 525 Leon Johnson Hall, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT 59717.
(DEC.531)
Contributed by David Chaney
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