Ecological and Economic Benefit-Cost Comparison of Grazed and Ungrazed Prairie Land for Critical Species Protection in Western Washington

View the project final report

Commodities

• Animals: bovine
• Animal Products: meat

Practices

• Animal Production: feed/forage, free-range, grazing management, grazing - rotational, pasture renovation, pasture fertility, rangeland/pasture management
• Education and Training: extension, farmer to farmer, on-farm/ranch research, participatory research
• Farm Business Management: budgets/cost and returns, financial management
• Natural Resources/Environment: biodiversity, habitat enhancement, wildlife
• Pest Management: competition, cultural control, weed ecology
• Production Systems: agroecosystems
• Sustainable Communities: community development, community planning, community services, local and regional food systems, public policy, sustainability measures

Most rangelands west of the Cascades in the Pacific Northwest occur on sites that historically supported native prairie. Over 90% of the prairies in this region have been converted to agriculture or lost to development, making conservation of this rare system a top conservation priority. At the same time, the human population in this region continues to grow, demanding more from regional food production systems. Therefore, agricultural producers are under great pressure from growing needs for food production and habitat conservation. Because of this, it is increasingly recognized that effective prairie conservation can only be achieved by partnering with private landowners to develop incentivized conservation strategies that maintain productive farms. Through a unique collaboration between agricultural producers, conservation scientists, economists, sociologists, regulators and agricultural researchers, we propose to evaluate if and how agricultural productivity can be maintained or enhanced in working landscapes while simultaneously accruing conservation value for rare native plants and animals. Through replicated on-farm experimental demonstrations, we will quantify the ‘ecological lift’ generated by conservation tools (altered grazing regimes, spring rest period, seeding native species). Additionally, we will evaluate the costs and benefits associated with conservation actions, to provide guidance on strategies and expenses for agricultural producers. Finally, we will survey producers to identify concerns, questions and needs (financial, technical, other) surrounding habitat conservation on their properties. The combined ecological, economic and social survey data will help guide government incentive programs. We expect this work to identify opportunities for agricultural producers to increase the conservation value of their properties, while maintaining or even enhancing their bottom line. Study findings and educational materials resulting from the demonstration trials will be communicated through peer-reviewed publications, presentations at academic conferences, a published grazing management guidebook, and a series of collaborative regional workshops for agricultural producers, researchers, extension agents, and land managers.

1. Develop a regional network of three grazed prairie research sites to demonstrate and evaluate effects of conservation tools on prairie habitat. This objective will:
   1. Implement conservation tools for target species and habitats, with focus on management intensive grazing, exclusion during critical flowering periods and/or native seeding.
   2. Evaluate impact of conservation installations through a range of habitat and species abundance metrics over 3 years.
2. Utilizing the regional network of grazed and ungrazed prairie sites, quantify the financial benefits and costs associated with managing critical habitat and species on grazed prairie as compared to ungrazed conservation prairie over a 3-year period. This objective will:
   1. Provide practical financial information to farmers, the conservation community, and the county planners concerning the costs of meeting HCP requirements on grazed and ungrazed prairie both on private and protected sites.
   2. Develop enterprise budgets and a benefit-cost analysis to inform HCP acreage targets for protecting critical species on grazed land relative to conservation preserve land.
3. Engage private landowners by administering a social survey focused on landowner needs for increased involvement in land conservation programs (conservation easements, HCP, Safe Harbor Agreement). This objective will:
   1. Engage producers and regulatory entities in a productive discussion on incentives needed for habitat conservation on working lands.
   2. Provide feedback for regulatory programs on effective strategies to engage private landowners.
4. Present opportunities for technical assistance related to habitat management and discuss economic and landowner incentive opportunities with agricultural producers, regulatory agencies and conservation land managers through several mechanisms:
   1. Workshop series, with field tours of the agricultural demonstration sites and native prairie preserve sites. Field tours will be sponsored by WSU, CNLM, Thurston County Conservation District and NRCS.
   2. WSU-Extension technical bulletin providing management guidelines and financial data for conservation tools; and two published manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals.
   3. Presentation of findings at regional and national conferences.