Carbon footprint assessment of livestock farms under tropical conditions: first approximation
Abstract This study evaluates the carbon footprint (CF) of livestock farms in the Orellana Province of the Ecuadorian Amazon, focusing on emissions from enteric fermentation, manure management, and energy use. Utilizing Tier I and Tier II methodologies outlined by the IPCC (2006), the research quant...
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Instituto Internacional de Ecologia
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Brazilian Journal of Biology |
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| Online Access: | http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1519-69842025000100249&lng=en&tlng=en |
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| author | S. A. Guamán-Rivera F. M. Carrillo Riofrío M. E. Jativa-Brito L. E. Chuqui-Puma G. M. Soldado Soldado L. D. Cabezas Andrade H. R. Sanchez Quispe A. A. Casierra Cardenas J. M. Mira Naranjo J. P. Santillán Aguirre C. D. Congo-Yépez |
| author_facet | S. A. Guamán-Rivera F. M. Carrillo Riofrío M. E. Jativa-Brito L. E. Chuqui-Puma G. M. Soldado Soldado L. D. Cabezas Andrade H. R. Sanchez Quispe A. A. Casierra Cardenas J. M. Mira Naranjo J. P. Santillán Aguirre C. D. Congo-Yépez |
| author_sort | S. A. Guamán-Rivera |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract This study evaluates the carbon footprint (CF) of livestock farms in the Orellana Province of the Ecuadorian Amazon, focusing on emissions from enteric fermentation, manure management, and energy use. Utilizing Tier I and Tier II methodologies outlined by the IPCC (2006), the research quantifies greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across three distinct typologies of Agricultural Productive Units (APUs): Conventional Systems (Type 1), Efficient Resource Use (Type 2), and Subsistence and Dependency Systems (Type 3). Results show that the average CF ranged from 14.5 to 18.3 kg CO2-eq per kg of live weight, with enteric fermentation accounting for 60.2% of emissions, followed by manure management (25.4%) and energy use (14.4%). Type 1 farms demonstrated the highest total CF (2.400 kg CO2-eq/farm), primarily due to larger herd sizes (9.8 TLU) and less efficient practices. Type 2 farms, characterized by rotational grazing and improved resource use, showed a reduced CF of 1.860 kg CO2-eq/farm. Type 3 farms, though smaller in scale, exhibited a CF of 1.810 kg CO2-eq/farm, with higher emissions intensity per animal (60.3 kg CO2-eq/animal) compared to Type 1 and 2 (53.2 kg CO2-eq/animal on average). Across all typologies, methane (CH4) from enteric fermentation remains the largest emission source. The findings underscore the critical need for sustainable interventions, such as silvopastoral systems, to mitigate GHG emissions while improving productivity. This research provides baseline data for designing region-specific mitigation strategies, contributing to global efforts to reduce the environmental impact of livestock farming. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-64befb4bbfec466d8d53fd108b0cd299 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1678-4375 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Instituto Internacional de Ecologia |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Brazilian Journal of Biology |
| spelling | doaj-art-64befb4bbfec466d8d53fd108b0cd2992025-08-20T02:35:33ZengInstituto Internacional de EcologiaBrazilian Journal of Biology1678-43752025-06-018510.1590/1519-6984.293349Carbon footprint assessment of livestock farms under tropical conditions: first approximationS. A. Guamán-Riverahttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-8699-0655F. M. Carrillo Riofríohttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-2744-267XM. E. Jativa-Britohttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-6394-2586L. E. Chuqui-Pumahttps://orcid.org/0009-0006-9250-3925G. M. Soldado Soldadohttps://orcid.org/0009-0006-7018-883XL. D. Cabezas Andradehttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-5056-9180H. R. Sanchez Quispehttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-9785-9337A. A. Casierra CardenasJ. M. Mira NaranjoJ. P. Santillán AguirreC. D. Congo-Yépezhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-3471-6707Abstract This study evaluates the carbon footprint (CF) of livestock farms in the Orellana Province of the Ecuadorian Amazon, focusing on emissions from enteric fermentation, manure management, and energy use. Utilizing Tier I and Tier II methodologies outlined by the IPCC (2006), the research quantifies greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across three distinct typologies of Agricultural Productive Units (APUs): Conventional Systems (Type 1), Efficient Resource Use (Type 2), and Subsistence and Dependency Systems (Type 3). Results show that the average CF ranged from 14.5 to 18.3 kg CO2-eq per kg of live weight, with enteric fermentation accounting for 60.2% of emissions, followed by manure management (25.4%) and energy use (14.4%). Type 1 farms demonstrated the highest total CF (2.400 kg CO2-eq/farm), primarily due to larger herd sizes (9.8 TLU) and less efficient practices. Type 2 farms, characterized by rotational grazing and improved resource use, showed a reduced CF of 1.860 kg CO2-eq/farm. Type 3 farms, though smaller in scale, exhibited a CF of 1.810 kg CO2-eq/farm, with higher emissions intensity per animal (60.3 kg CO2-eq/animal) compared to Type 1 and 2 (53.2 kg CO2-eq/animal on average). Across all typologies, methane (CH4) from enteric fermentation remains the largest emission source. The findings underscore the critical need for sustainable interventions, such as silvopastoral systems, to mitigate GHG emissions while improving productivity. This research provides baseline data for designing region-specific mitigation strategies, contributing to global efforts to reduce the environmental impact of livestock farming.http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1519-69842025000100249&lng=en&tlng=encarbon footprintlivestock farmingsilvopastoral systemsOrellana Province |
| spellingShingle | S. A. Guamán-Rivera F. M. Carrillo Riofrío M. E. Jativa-Brito L. E. Chuqui-Puma G. M. Soldado Soldado L. D. Cabezas Andrade H. R. Sanchez Quispe A. A. Casierra Cardenas J. M. Mira Naranjo J. P. Santillán Aguirre C. D. Congo-Yépez Carbon footprint assessment of livestock farms under tropical conditions: first approximation Brazilian Journal of Biology carbon footprint livestock farming silvopastoral systems Orellana Province |
| title | Carbon footprint assessment of livestock farms under tropical conditions: first approximation |
| title_full | Carbon footprint assessment of livestock farms under tropical conditions: first approximation |
| title_fullStr | Carbon footprint assessment of livestock farms under tropical conditions: first approximation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Carbon footprint assessment of livestock farms under tropical conditions: first approximation |
| title_short | Carbon footprint assessment of livestock farms under tropical conditions: first approximation |
| title_sort | carbon footprint assessment of livestock farms under tropical conditions first approximation |
| topic | carbon footprint livestock farming silvopastoral systems Orellana Province |
| url | http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1519-69842025000100249&lng=en&tlng=en |
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