Tractors and tires should be maintained to optimize tractor wheel slippage. Photograph: University of Nebraska Lincoln |
Tips for Efficient Tractor and Machinery Operations
The following five articles were updated on November 22, 2011 on the University of Nebraska Lincoln eXtension website:
Biogas Basics
"Introduction to Biogas and Anaerobic Digestion" is a feature article appearing on the Extension website and updated September 22, 2011. The article provides basic information about biogas and anaerobic digestion, particularly in livestock systems. For those who are curious exactly what a biodigester does and what it looks like, and/or want to know what biogas is used for and what are the risks and benefits of such a system, this article provides a simple introduction.
USDA Tool for Sustainable Grazing
A grazing level modeling tool, under development by the USDA Agricultural Research Service, will allow farmers in the Great Plains area to compare and contrast stocking rates for sheep and cattle. The model, currently in its testing phase, will take weather predictions into account, and provide a result which balances economic and environmental factors. To learn more, read "Livestock Numbers by Weather and Climate," published in the March 2011 issue of Agricultural Research magazine.
USDA Smells Roses When Examining Methane Biodigester Potential
Climate Change Policy and the Adoption of Methane Digesters on Livestock Operations, by Nigel Key and Stacy Sneeringer of the USDA Economic Research Service, provides an economic model of the relationship between carbon offset prices, farm management practices and the profitability of adoption for dairy and hog farmers. The report finds that if farmers were compensated for their carbon reductions, a modest increase in the price of carbon would result in significantly higher rates of methane digester adoption by farmers.