Regional environmental assessment of dairy farms
C. Alan Rotz, Robert Stout, Michael A. Holly, Peter J. A. Kleinman
Abstract
equivalent/kg of fat- and protein-corrected milk (FPCM) produced. Fossil energy consumption was 12,324 ± 1,946 TJ or 2.69 ± 0.42 MJ/kg of FPCM. Blue (nonprecipitation) water consumption was 64.1 ± 13.5 Tg with an intensity of 14.0 ± 3.0 kg/kg of FPCM. A total of all forms of reactive N loss was 43.2 ± 5.0 Gg with an intensity of 9.4 ± 1.1 g/kg of FPCM. These metrics were equivalent to 1.6% of the greenhouse gas emissions, 0.4% of fossil energy use, and 0.8% of fresh water consumption reported for the state. Thus, greenhouse gas emissions, fossil energy use, and blue water use associated with dairy farm production are relatively small compared with total estimates for the state. Perhaps the greatest environmental concern is that of ammonia emission, where dairy farms accounted for about half the estimated emissions of the state. This method can be applied to assessments of the dairy industry at larger regional and national scales.