Case Study Of Farmers Research Articles

A farmland choice based on hesitant fuzzy linguistic preferences relations

A new type of fuzzy preference structure, called hesitant linguistic preference relations, is developed in order to describe uncertain evaluation information in group decision-making (GDM) farmland choice. Moreover, it allows decision makers to offer all possible linguistic terms that are not accounted for in current preference structure types when we compare two alternatives. Systematic aggregation operators are proposed to aggregate hesitant fuzzy linguistic information. In addition, an approach to GDM based on PROMETHEE method concepts and hesitant linguistic preference relations is developed to take into account the differences in opinions between individual decision makers. An agriculture real case study is implemented to demonstrate the practicability of the proposed method. Also, a sensitivity analysis is carried out to reveal the effect of the criteria weighting variations on the originally obtained ranking.

Improving water quality knowledge through a focus on partnership: A University of Wisconsin Discovery Farms case study

A griculture accounts for 34% of land use in Wisconsin (USDA NASS 2012), and nonpoint source pollution plays a significant role in water quality impairment (WDNR 2016). Out of 2,400 water bodies assessed by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, 1,294 were considered impaired, 74% of which were impaired by either phosphorus (P) or sediment, which are typically contributed by agricultural fields (WDNR 2016). In 2010, revisions to Wisconsin's Phosphorus Water Quality Standards created water quality standards for P in surface waters. To implement these standards, permit holders and agricultural producers were encouraged to work together through the compliance options called Water Quality Trading and Adaptive Management (WDNR 2012). These options allow point sources to offset their pollution load by taking credit for other P reductions in the watershed. The implementation of an enhanced regulatory package raises questions about the best way to engage with farmers in a watershed in order to document current practices and make improvements in water quality through installation of best management practices. Farmers are the focal point of many water quality improvement projects and efforts (Woods et al. 2014). The focus on farms is in part because nonpoint source pollution from agriculture contributes a significant amount…

A Model Predictive Wind Farm Controller with Linear Parameter-Varying Models

In this paper, we present an implementation of a model predictive controller (MPC) for wind farm power tracking problem. The controller is evaluated in the high-fidelity PAral-lelized Large-eddy simulation Model (PALM). By taking measurements from PALM, we show that the closed-loop MPC can provide power reference tracking while reducing force variations on a farm level by solving a constrained optimization problem at each time step. A six turbine wind farm case study is presented in which the controller operates with yawed turbines that increases the potential power that can be harvested with the wind farm, and we show that it is possible to track a reference power signal that temporarily exceeds the power harvested when operating under the so-called greedy control settings.

Cost of quality and process model: Improving accounting tools for attaining higher environmental efficiency

Abstract The article, based on a case study of pig farming in France, examines water and air pollution, and finds that, in a traditional system of allocating costs, individual socio-economic actors would shoulder higher repair or restoration costs instead of prevention costs. It shows the importance of prevention for a higher environmental efficiency and adopts a broader view than just the individual economic actor, utilising a process model covering an entire chain of pollution costs (including different stakeholders’ objectives and cost structures), beginning with natural resource degradation as an input and ending with the output delivered to “end users” (stakeholders who endure pollution effects). This article suggests a methodological framework that allows a rapprochement between socio-economic actors – those polluting and others, suffering pollution in a more economically efficient manner: Cost of quality (CQ) and process model concepts can be used for public decision-making, supplanting standard welfare economics approaches. It is demonstrated here that those concepts can establish a concise and realistic economic basis for natural resource management, and enable better decision-making on efficient investment in environmental protection.

A Multicriteria GIS-Based Assessment to Optimize Biomass Facility Sites with Parallel Environment—A Case Study in Spain

Optimizing a biomass facility site is a critical concern that is currently receiving an increased attention because of geographically spread biomass feedstock. This research presents a multicriteria GIS assessment with Weighted Linear Combination (WLC) (most suitable areas) and a sensitivity analysis (implementation strategies) applied to various disciplines using suitable criteria to optimize a biomass facility location in the context of renewable energies respecting the environment. The analyses of results with twelve criteria show the most suitable areas (9.25%) and constraints in a case study in Extremadura (Spain), where forest and agriculture are typical for land uses. Thus, the sensitivity analysis demonstrates the insight of the most influential criteria for supporting energy planning decisions. Therefore, this assessment could be used in studies to verify suitable biomass plants sites with corresponding geographical and spatial circumstances and available spatial data necessary in various governmental and industrial sectors.

An analysis-forecast system for uncertainty modeling of wind speed: A case study of large-scale wind farms

The uncertainty analysis and modeling of wind speed, which has an essential influence on wind power systems, is consistently considered a challenging task. However, most investigations thus far were focused mainly on point forecasts, which in reality cannot facilitate quantitative characterization of the endogenous uncertainty involved. An analysis-forecast system that includes an analysis module and a forecast module and can provide appropriate scenarios for the dispatching and scheduling of a power system is devised in this study; this system superior to those presented in previous studies. In order to qualitatively and quantitatively investigate the uncertainty of wind speed, recurrence analysis techniques are effectively developed for application in the analysis module. Furthermore, in order to quantify the uncertainty accurately, a novel architecture aimed at uncertainty mining is devised for the forecast module, where a non-parametric model optimized by an improved multi-objective water cycle algorithm is considered a predictor for producing intervals for each mode component after feature selection. The results of extensive in-depth experiments show that the devised system is not only superior to the considered benchmark models, but also has good potential practical applications in wind power systems.

Including a one-year grass ley increases soil organic carbon and decreases greenhouse gas emissions from cereal-dominated rotations – A Swedish farm case study

Increased soil organic carbon (SOC) content has been shown to increase soil fertility and carbon sequestration, but SOC changes are frequently neglected in life cycle assessment (LCA) studies of crop production. This study used a novel LCA application using simulated SOC changes to examine the greenhouse gas (GHG) impact of a combined food and energy crop production from a crop rotation perspective. On a case pig farm, introduction of one year of grass ley into a cereal-dominated crop rotation was simulated. The grass and pig manure were used for biogas production and the digestion residues were used as fertiliser on the farm. This crop rotation shift increased the SOC stocks by an estimated 27 and 49% after 50 years and at steady state, respectively. The estimated corresponding net wheat yield increase due to higher SOC was 8-16% and 16-32%, respectively, indicating that initial loss of low-yield oat production can be partly counterbalanced. Net SOC increase (corresponding to 2 t CO2-eq ha(-1) a(-1)) was the single most important variable affecting the GHG balance. When biogas replaced fossil fuels, GHG emissions of the combined energy food crop rotation were approx. 3 t CO2-eq ha(-1) a(-1) lower than for the current food crop rotation. Sensitivity analyses led to variation of only 2-9% in the GHG balance. This study indicates that integrated food and energy crop production can improve SOC content and decrease GHG emissions from cropping systems. It also demonstrates the importance of including SOC changes in crop production-related LCA studies. (C) 2017 The Authors.

A cost analysis approach to valuing cover crop environmental and nitrogen cycling benefits: A central Illinois on farm case study

The use of cover crops (CC) in row crop agricultural systems has been shown to provide numerous environmental benefits along with increasing overall soil health. The environmental benefits of CC are well known and demonstrated in the literature. However, before voluntary widespread CC adoption can occur, methods for potential CC cost recovery must be explored. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to quantify the environmental and nitrogen (N) cycling benefits observed from CC and to determine the potential of those benefits to offset the costs of CC implementation. This experiment used data collected between CC planting in 2014 and cash crop harvest in 2016 from an associated study conducted at the Illinois State University Nitrogen Management Research Field Station, in Lexington, IL. In this case study, CC were integrated into two cropping systems common to Central IL, split application of N with the dominant portion of N applied in the spring (20%fall, 80% spring) with and without CC, and a split N application with the dominant portion of N applied in the fall (70% fall, 30%spring) with and without CC. The chosen CC for the study was a 92% cereal rye (Secale cereal L.) and 8% daikon radish (Raphanus sativus L.) blend, and data were collected for both strip-till corn (Zea mays L.) and no-till soybeans (Glycine max L.). Different from existing attempts to model the economic value of CC, this model includes input variables that quantify the reduction of N loss through tile drainage, the return of N from CC residue following termination and reductions in soil erosion. We determined that valuing the impact of CC on subsurface drainage N loading, soil erosion, and CC residue N mineralization has the potential to recover an average of 61% of the costs associated with CC implementation. More specifically, the average composition of recovered costs was 34% from reductions in N loading to subsurface drainage, 57% from the tile-adjusted mineralization of N from the CC biomass, and 9% from the estimated reduction in erosion. The results of this study have the potential to provide a more comprehensive assessment of CC value that could help producers make informed N and CC management decisions.

Reconceptualising translation in agricultural innovation: A co-translation approach to bring research knowledge and practice closer together

Scientific research continues to play a significant role in meeting the multiple innovation challenges in agriculture. If this role is to be fulfilled, provision needs to be made for effective translation of research outputs, where translation is understood to be the process whereby science becomes part of useful knowledge for decision making. There is increasing interest in enhancing translation in the European agricultural innovation, research and policy context, and specifically in making it a more collaborative process. This new attention calls for a reorientation of how the concept is understood, theorised and operationalised. This paper considers these needs and specifically asks how can interactive innovation approaches be integrated with science-driven approaches to enhance translation; and how can this help to reveal the constituent translation processes? An interactive stakeholder methodology is described drawing on three agricultural case studies examined in the xx project which aims to make translation of existing bodies of scientific knowledge more effective. Analysis to date shows how this interactive methodology enables a communicative and reciprocal set of translation processes to evolve which comprise: identification, prioritisation, articulation, searching, retrieval, extraction and synthesis, and evaluation of innovation issues and solutions. These insights allow us to move beyond an understanding of translation as science- or innovation-driven to envisaging co-translation, where multiple processes interact in a fluid middle-ground, and where the actors involved develop the capacity to jointly analyse innovation issues and solutions. From the perspective of the EU’s policy ambitions to stimulate collaborative translation, operationalising translation needs re-thinking with respect to requirements for new mind-sets and skills, and in particular for committed and well-resourced intermediaries who can foster these multi-actors approaches.

What drives green advocacy? A case study of leisure farms in Taiwan

Abstract The purpose of this study is to test a research model to gain a better understanding of the relationships among environmental concern, green experiential quality, green experiential satisfaction, green experiential loyalty, green perceived flow, green perceived playfulness and green advocacy. The findings are based on a structural equation model analysis of a convenience sample of 483 visitors at Tamarind Ecological Education Leisure Farm in Taichung, Taiwan. The results will assist leisure farm management to develop and implement market-orientated service strategies to increase environmental concern, green experiential quality, green experiential satisfaction and green experiential loyalty, enhance green perceived flow and green perceived playfulness, and increase green advocacy.

Selection of pig manure management strategies: Case study of Polish farms

The goal of the study is to propose a pig manure management system that is useful for the owners of 30,000 ha of arable lands and a group of five Polish pig farms that produce approximately 240,000 m3 y−1 of pig manure. The BATNEEC options method was used to evaluate three selected systems of pig manure management: storage, utilisation for fertilization, and processing by filtration using the AMAK method for fertilizer production. These options were evaluated on the basis of specific formulated criteria. The processing by the AMAK method was rated very highly (89% maximum). However, very low scores were given for fertilization with pig manure and its storage (39% and 22% maximum, respectively). The system proposed for pig manure management was as follows: elimination of manure storage in lagoons, application of roughly half the pig manure as fertilizer, processing of the other half by the AMAK method on each farm, and the use of a separated solid phase to produce mineral-organic fertilizers in one central unit.

A fuzzy multi-objective multi-product supplier selection and order allocation problem in supply chain under coverage and price considerations: An urban agricultural case study

In this paper, a fuzzy multi-objective model is presented to select and allocate the order to the suppliers in uncertainty conditions, considering multi-period, multi-source, and multi-product cases at two levels of a supply chain with pricing considerations. Objective functions considered in this study as the measures to evaluate the suppliers are the purchase, transportation, and ordering costs, timely delivering or deference shipment quality or wastages which are amongst major quality aspects. Partial and general coverage of suppliers in respect of distance and finally suppliers' weights make the amounts of products orders more realistic. Deference and coverage parameters in the model are considered as uncertain and random triangular fuzzy number. Since the proposed mathematical model is NP-hard, multi-objective particle swarm optimization (MOPSO) algorithm is presented. To validate the performance of MOPSO, we applied non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II). Taguchi technique is executed to tune the parameters of both algorithms. A practical case study in an agricultural industry is shown to demonstrate that the proposed algorithm applies to the real-world problems. The results are analyzed using quantitative criteria, performing parametric, and non-parametric statistical analysis.

Is contract farming an inclusive alternative to land grabbing? The case of potato contract farming in Maharashtra, India

In the recent explosion of attention given to the land grabbing phenomenon, contract farming has been identified as a potentially inclusive alternative for smallholders to outright acquisition of farm land by agri-business capital. This paper responds to these claims by resituating contract farming as an equally important form of land control. The focus of the paper is a case study of potato contract farming in Maharashtra, India. While there is ‘nothing new’ about contract farming as a mode of agriculture production in India, its influence on patterns of agrarian change is poorly understood. Adopting an agrarian political economy-informed livelihoods approach, the paper argues that rather than an inclusive alternative to land grabbing, contract farming in the study site represents another way that capital is coming to control land in rural India, with just as important implications for agrarian livelihoods. While some individual households have improved their livelihoods through participation, the contract scheme acts to reinforce already existing patterns of inequality. In particular, the unequal power relations between firm and farmer skew the capture of benefits towards the firm, and render participating households vulnerable to indebtedness and loss of autonomy over land and livelihood decisions.

Including GHG emissions from mangrove forests LULUC in LCA: a case study on shrimp farming in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam

PurposeMangrove forests have been recognized as important regulators of greenhouse gases (GHGs), yet the resulting land use and land-use change (LULUC) emissions have rarely been accounted for in life cycle assessment (LCA) studies. The present study therefore presents up-to-date estimates for GHG emissions from mangrove LULUC and applies them to a case study of shrimp farming in Vietnam.MethodsTo estimate the global warming impacts of mangrove LULUC, a combination of the International Panel for Climate Change (IPCC) guidelines, the Net Committed Emissions, and the Missed Potential Carbon Sink method were used. A literature review was then conducted to characterize the most critical parameters for calculating carbon losses, missed sequestration, methane fluxes, and dinitrogen monoxide emissions.Results and discussionOur estimated LUC emissions from mangrove deforestation resulted in 124 t CO2 ha−1 year−1, assuming IPCC’s recommendations of 1 m of soil loss, and 96% carbon oxidation. In addition to this, 1.25 t of carbon would no longer be sequestered annually. Discounted over 20 years, this resulted in total LULUC emissions of 129 t CO2 ha−1 year−1 (CV = 0.441, lognormal distribution (ln)). Shrimp farms in the Mekong Delta, however, can today operate for 50 years or more, but are 1.5 m deep (50% oxidation). In addition to this, Asian tiger shrimp farming in mixed mangrove concurrent farms (the only type of shrimp farm that resulted in mangrove deforestation since 2000 in our case study) resulted in 533 kg methane and 1.67 kg dinitrogen monoxide per hectare annually. Consequently, the LULUC GHG emissions resulted in 184 and 282 t CO2-eq t−1 live shrimp at farm gate, using mass and economic allocation, respectively. These GHG emissions are about an order of magnitude higher than from semi-intensive or intensive shrimp farming systems. Limitations in data quality and quantity also led us to quantify the uncertainties around our emission estimates, resulting in a CV of between 0.4 and 0.5.ConclusionsOur results reinforce the urgency of conserving mangrove forests and the need to quantify uncertainties around LULUC emissions. It also questions mixed mangrove concurrent shrimp farming, where partial removal of mangrove forests is endorsed based upon the benefits of partial mangrove conservation and maintenance of certain ecosystem services. While we recognize that these activities limit the chances of complete removal, our estimates show that large GHG emissions from mangrove LULUC question the sustainability of this type of shrimp farming, especially since mixed mangrove farming only provide 5% of all farmed shrimp produced in Vietnam.

Collaboration, knowledge and innovation toward a welfare society: the case of the Board of Social Farming in Valdera (Tuscany), Italy

ABSTRACTPurpose: Through an analysis of a social farming (SF) case study, this article investigates how collaboration and knowledge co-creation between different actors can support the process of rural transition in order to stimulate innovation in the welfare system using agricultural resources.Methodology: We used the ‘Antecedent-Process-Outcome Framework’ developed by Wood and Gray [1991. “Toward a Comprehensive Theory of Collaboration.” The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science 27 (2): 139-162] and adapted by Thomson and Perry [2006. “Collaboration Processes: Inside the Black Box.” Public Administration Review 66 (s1): 20-32], to analyse the collaborative process within the Board of Social Farming (BSF) in Valdera, Italy. The BSF in Valdera is particularly important as it was the first transition arena developed in Italy for SF development.Findings: The article highlights the difficulties and opportunities encountered by the BSF in the knowledge co-creation and collaboration, and identifies key elements to facilitate innovation in SF and more generally in transition processes.Practical implications: The article aims to generalize crucial practical elements in the relationship between collaborative approaches and innovation in the field of innovative welfare society, which is increasingly key to rural transition.Theoretical implications: Innovation in SF is complex due to the need to identify new knowledge, diverse kinds of organizations and innovative interactions among many private and public stakeholders. The article explores the concept of collaboration in SF in order to re-define the production of public and private goods within local and rural communities.Originality: The article aims to contribute to the ongoing discussion on the advantages and disadvantages of collaboration in order to reinforce rural transition pathways.

Wind Power Resource Assessment in Complex Terrain: Villonaco Case-study Using Computational Fluid Dynamics Analysis

Abstract This paper describes a complex terrain wind farm case study in the Ecuadorian Andes. The Windfarm Villonaco is located in southern Ecuador, 640km of Quito, 2700 m a.s.l. with 16.5 MW power output. The objective is to compare actual power production from an existing wind farm with power production predicted by Meteodyn WT, which is a CFD tool based on a nonlinear flow model. The results of this work show that the calculation of the annual energy production of the Villonaco Wind Farm using Meteodyn WT is equal to 69.0 GWh / year, with a capacity factor of 53%.

The Role of Systems of Innovation in Adapting to Climate Change: The Case of the Kenyan Coffee and Dairy Sectors

Research on sectoral systems of innovation has paid little attention to adaptation to climate change, notably in agriculture. This article, therefore, explores the role of systems of innovation in adapting to climate change. It focuses on two case studies in Kenyan agriculture, i.e. the coffee and dairy sectors, which differ in terms of stakeholders and institutional setups. In the coffee sector, the actors’ system is highly centralized and the system of innovation is oriented towards technology development. In contrast, the dairy sector consists of a diversity of actors, and its system of innovation is based on institutional building and marketing. The capacity to innovate and adapt, therefore, depends on institutional arrangements in addition to technology development, suggesting that the dairy sector in Kenya could be an example for the coffee sector.JEL Codes: O30, O31, O33

Assessment of the Efficiency of Farm Record Keeping In Kenya: A Case Study of Farmers in Cherangani Division Trans-Nzoia East District, Kenya

Assessment of the Efficiency of Farm Record Keeping In Kenya: A Case Study of Farmers in Cherangani Division Trans-Nzoia East District, Kenya

The effects of straw or straw-derived gasification biochar applications on soil quality and crop productivity: A farm case study

Thermal gasification of straw is a highly efficient technology that produces bioenergy and gasification biochar that can be used as a soil amendment, thereby returning non-renewable nutrients and stable carbon, and securing soil quality and crop productivity.A Danish on-farm field study investigated the impact of traditional straw incorporation vs. straw removal for thermal gasification bioenergy production and the application of straw gasification biochar (GB) on soil quality and crop production. Two rates of GB were applied over three successive years in which the field was cropped with winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), winter oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.) and winter wheat, respectively, to assess the potential effects on the soil carbon pool, soil microorganisms, earthworms, soil chemical properties and crop yields.The application of GB did not increase the soil organic carbon content significantly and had no effect on crop yields. The application of straw and GB had a positive effect on the populations of bacteria and protists, but no effect on earthworms. The high rate of GB increased soil exchangeable potassium content and soil pH indicating its potassium bioavailability and liming properties.These results suggest, that recycling GB into agricultural soils has the potential to be developed into a system combining bioenergy generation from agricultural residues and crop production, while maintaining soil quality. However, future studies should be undertaken to assess its long-term effects and to identify the optimum balance between straw removal and biochar application rate.

The full spectrum of climate change adaptation: testing an analytical framework in Tyrolean mountain agriculture (Austria).

Our scientific view on climate change adaptation (CCA) is unsatisfying in many ways: It is often dominated by a modernistic perspective of planned pro-active adaptation, with a selective focus on measures directly responding to climate change impacts and thus it is far from real-life conditions of those who are actually affected by climate change. Farmers have to simultaneously adapt to multiple changes. Therefore, also empirical climate change adaptation research needs a more integrative perspective on real-life climate change adaptations. This also has to consider “hidden” adaptations, which are not explicitly and directly motivated by CCA but actually contribute to the sector’s adaptability to climate change. The aim of the present study is to develop and test an analytic framework that contributes to a broader understanding of CCA and to bridge the gap between scientific expertise and practical action. The framework distinguishes three types of CCA according to their climate related motivations: explicit adaptations, multi-purpose adaptations, and hidden adaptations. Although agriculture is among the sectors that are most affected by climate change, results from the case study of Tyrolean mountain agriculture show that climate change is ranked behind other more pressing “real-life-challenges” such as changing agricultural policies or market conditions. We identified numerous hidden adaptations which make a valuable contribution when dealing with climate change impacts. We conclude that these hidden adaptations have not only to be considered to get an integrative und more realistic view on CCA; they also provide a great opportunity for linking adaptation strategies to farmers’ realities.