Regenerative Agriculture & Wildlife
Biodiversity Benefits
As our global population continues to grow, our society is pushing the boundaries of Earth’s natural resources and the limits of our atmosphere. We are living in a crucial time for sustainability if we are to ensure the endurance of our species (and our planet, for that matter). Sustainable practices must be applied to all of the systems in our society - agriculture being no exception.
Sustainability is defined by the Department of Energy as the creation and maintenance of conditions, under which humans and nature can exist in productive harmony, that permit fulfilling the social, economic and other requirements of present and future generations. Regenerative agriculture is a key sustainability practice which mimics natural systems and processes, and which results in numerous benefits for the environment and human health alike. If we are to feed our growing population nutritious food while preserving the integrity of our natural world, regenerative agriculture, climate-smart agriculture, and the voluntary adoption of key conservation practices used to produce our food and fiber must become the norm.
World Wildlife Day, celebrated annually on March 3, exists in celebration of wild animals and plants and the contributions they make to our coexistence. In honor of World Wildlife Day earlier this month, let’s explore the relationship between regenerative agriculture and wildlife.
When hearing the word “wildlife,” many people typically think of familiar mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians - but the term wildlife used in a general context is much more complex and diverse by definition. Wildlife also includes insects, microorganisms, and all living creatures. And by association, all wildlife depend on our natural flora (plants) to survive.
Image by Melissa Willhouse
All wildlife on farmland plays an important role as a part of a complex system, from the smallest earthworm to the largest apex predator in a region. When you think of wildlife, think about it like this - each species is like a brick that constructs our biosphere. If you played a game of Jenga with these bricks, initially removing them one by one wouldn’t impact the structural integrity too much. But eventually, by removing just one brick, the entire infrastructure can crumble. Keep this in mind when thinking about the wildlife found on farms (and in general).
To get started, let’s acknowledge some facts about farmland in America and the space it occupies.
DID YOU KNOW?
In 2017, farms accounted for 900.2 million acres of land in the United States (or 40% of all U.S. land)
As of 2017, two out of every five acres of land in the United States are farmland
Nine out ten acres of agricultural land in 2017 were either permanent pasture or cropland (Farms and Farmland 2019)
Woodland accounted for 8 percent of farmland
The remaining 3 percent includes land in farmsteads, buildings, livestock facilities, etc.
Farming has been a part of society since the very beginning of “modern” human history as we know it. While our early human ancestors appeared almost 200,000 years ago, consistent and widespread agricultural practices did not emerge until approximately 11,000 BCE. At this time, people by and large began a gradual transition away from a hunter-gatherer lifestyle toward cultivating crops and raising animals for food. Despite its relatively short existence in human history, the widespread adoption of agriculture shifted the course of society indefinitely, paving the way for more permanent civilizations and the development of more advanced tools and technologies.
Indigenous peoples who lived in modern day America for thousands of years often emphasized nature in their principles and practices - especially so in agriculture. Using methods such as intercropping and polycultures, water resource management, agroforestry, permaculture and more, these groups harnessed the power of nature while minimizing ecological disturbance. However, as the continent was colonized by European settlers, and the number of mouths to feed ballooned while the availability of prime farmland began to shrink, less-sustainable methods of farming started to dominate, and are now considered conventional in the present day. These methods are focused on achieving the greatest possible outputs, often at the expense of nutrition and/or conservation.
By mimicking natural processes and keeping natural resource conservation top of mind, regenerative agriculture benefits the environment (and human health) in many ways. This includes:
Preserving soil integrity by reducing disturbance through tillage; keeping the soil healthy and alive promotes biodiversity from the ground up
Reducing GHG emissions by reducing or eliminating tillage; this helps to ensure that land will not be left bare and thus soil carbon will be fixed
Preserving water quality by using practices like cover cropping and contour farming; this helps to reduce or prevent soil erosion and runoff
Overall, by minimizing erosion through regenerative practices, farms and the communities in which they operate can experience improved climate and weather resilience
These are just a few of the environmental benefits of regenerative agriculture, another being our focus today: improved biodiversity. Biodiversity is the variety of all living things and their interactions. Biodiversity is crucial to ecosystem integrity. According to USGS, “biodiversity is of critical importance to the stability of natural ecosystems and their abilities to provide positive benefits (...) to plant and animal communities, as well as to human society.” By using regenerative agriculture methods and minimizing ecosystem disturbance, biodiversity can thrive in the absence of habitat degradation.
Some regenerative practices which can promote biodiversity on farmland include:
Crop rotation, which provides a variety of root structures and organic matter to structure and feed the soil
Cover cropping, which adds nutrients to the soil
Reduced tillage or no-till, which encourages living soil
Livestock integration, which mimics natural processes and supports living soil
Overall, by keeping the soil covered and keeping roots covered, habitat is provided for organisms that live in the soil, like bacteria, fungi, earthworms, and more
FUN FACT! Did you know that earthworms are considered keystone species? A keystone species is a species that has a disproportionately large effect on its natural environment relative to its abundance. To put it simply, a keystone species (like earthworms) is vital for an ecosystem and the life therein to function “normally.”
Soil biodiversity is intrinsically important, particularly on agricultural lands. Soil biodiversity is defined by the Food & Agriculture Organization of the United Nations as the variety of life below ground, from genes and species to the communities they form, as well as the ecological complexes to which they contribute and to which they belong, from soil micro-habitats to landscapes. Soil biodiversity is crucial for the health of an ecosystem as it provides the foundation for many ecosystem services. Organisms found in soil are vital for many of the processes that make life on Earth possible - including water filtration, carbon sequestration, and more.
When it comes to soil biodiversity and agriculture, healthier soil is more fertile and more resilient to environmental conditions. Commodities grown in healthier soil tend to be more nutrient dense. Soil biodiversity is a powerful bioremediation tool in general, especially on agricultural land. It can even naturally reduce pests like harmful insects, weeds, etc.
Regenerative agriculture should be the norm on American soil, but barriers faced by producers and lack of federal support prevent its widespread adoption. One of the main barriers is cost. RIPE is working to help producers overcome these barriers, and to influence federal policy and private markets to support American farmers and ranchers. The benefits that regenerative agriculture creates for biodiversity are invaluable alone - and there are many more environmental benefits, as well as benefits to human health as well. These benefits, created by the producer who uses regenerative techniques, should be compensated for.
Anyone can support producers and rural communities by being a friend and supporter of RIPE. Read more about our approach and our research, and join us on our mission to compensate farmers and ranchers for the public benefits created by regenerative agriculture practices. This is how we scale regenerative agriculture The RIPE Way.
REFERENCES
Brears, R. C. (2023, July 30). Sustainable Agriculture and Nature-Based Solutions for Water Quality Protection. Medium. https://medium.com/water-food-nexus/sustainable-agriculture-and-nature-based-solutions-for-water-quality-protection-1a2e6f83410a
California State Parks Foundation. (2024, October 19). Preserving California’s Extraordinary Biodiversity: 30x30. Cal Parks. https://www.calparks.org/blog/preserving-californias-extraordinary-biodiversity-30x30
Cole, S., Hanak, E., & Peterson, C. (2024, July 17). Agricultural Land Use in California. Public Policy Institute of California. https://www.ppic.org/publication/agricultural-land-use-in-california/
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. (n.d.). The State of Knowledge of Soil Biodiversity. Soil Biodiversity. https://www.fao.org/interactive/soil-biodiversity/en/
Johns Hopkins University Center for a Livable Future . (n.d.). History of Agriculture. Food System Primer. https://foodsystemprimer.org/production/history-of-agriculture
National Farmers Union. (2020, October 12). The Indigenous Origins of Regenerative Agriculture. https://nfu.org/2020/10/12/the-indigenous-origins-of-regenerative-agriculture/
Rodale Institute. (n.d.). Biodiversity. Rodale Institute. https://rodaleinstitute.org/why-organic/issues-and-priorities/biodiversity/
Rodale Institute. (n.d.-b). Regenerative Organic Agriculture and Climate Change. Rodale Institute. https://rodaleinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/rodale-white-paper.pdf
Soil Science Society of America. (n.d.). Biology Life in Soil. Soils 4 Teachers. https://www.soils4teachers.org/biology-life-soil
United Nations. (n.d.). Soil Biodiversity: Contributions and Threats. UN Decade on Restoration. https://www.decadeonrestoration.org/stories/soil-biodiversity-contributions-and-threats
United States Dept of Agriculture. (2019, August). Farms and Farmland. National Agricultural Statistics Service. https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/Highlights/2019/2017Census_Farms_Farmland.pdf
U.S. Dept. of Energy. (n.d.). Sustainability. Directives Program, Office of Management (MA-1.2). https://www.directives.doe.gov/terms_definitions/sustainability
Wetland and Aquatic Research Center. (2016, January 15). Biodiversity Critical to Maintaining Healthy Ecosystems. USGS. https://www.usgs.gov/news/biodiversity-critical-maintaining-healthy-ecosystems
