How Do We Define Reforestation in the Farming Industry?
To define reforestation, we can look globally to all sorts of land areas and vegetation.
It’s not unique to rainforests or pine tree forests or farm land. Reforestation efforts are taking place across the world in every country.
The concept of reforestation is simple: plant more trees. But that starts to look quite different on farmland, particularly that of which is used for commercial or even regional food growth and distribution.
Let’s define reforestation on farmland in the US, the benefits of these efforts, and how it can be scaled nationwide.
How to define reforestation for farmers specifically
Ironically enough, agriculture is one of the biggest contributors to deforestation. According to Greenpeace:
“Some 80% of global deforestation is a result of agricultural production, which is also the leading cause of habitat destruction. Animal agriculture — livestock and animal feed is a significant driver of deforestation, and is also responsible for approximately 60% of direct global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Overall, emissions from the food system as a whole, including production and consumption, represent up to 37% of total global human-induced GHG emissions.”
Silvopasture is one iteration of reforestation, in which you implement trees and grazing livestock operations on the same land. But there are a number of versions of reforestation and agroforestry that can be implemented on farmlands. As farmers note the potential effects of climate change on their business, they’re turning to regenerative agriculture practices to protect their business and potentially see a financial upside.
The need for reforestation efforts is strongest in the industry where it typically happens the least. Reforestation, as noted in the above infographic, is necessary for improving arable land which will in turn improve food quality and production. The environmental and economical benefits of all regenerative farming practices like reforestation and agroforestry are critical to note when defining reforestation on farmlands. But what exactly are those benefits for farmers and landowners?
The benefits of reforestation efforts on farmland
There are many benefits, both environmental and economical, to any regenerative farming practice but especially reforestation.
Define reforestation in the farming industry: the environmental benefits
First and foremost, reforestation provides a wealth of environmental benefits. As noted above, trees are foundational in converting carbon dioxide to oxygen and putting water back into the environment.
Rather than remove trees to provide ample roaming and grazing land for livestock or room to plant crops, conservation is achieved when using natural resources (like trees) to the best of their ability. Not only are trees themselves natural food sources, they can provide rich nutrients for soil that will make that soil more arable for crops.
Define reforestation in the farming industry: the economical benefits
In many ways, the environmental benefits inform the economical ones: better soil and more trees means more food that can be sold or distributed.
Some non-profits and organizations are even paying farms to replant trees and citing the benefits of restoring vegetation:
“TMA’s Community Reforestation Program is built to address this simple yet intractable fact of life. We pay farmers $1,821 per acre ($4,500/hectare) over a 5-year period to convert their deforested land into a regenerative forest that 1) produces food and income for their family, 2) restores habitat for wildlife, and 3) removes CO2 from the atmosphere.
This payment immediately increases farmers’ earnings by 44% relative to slash-and-burn corn cultivation and over 300% relative to cattle ranching, which are the two dominant agricultural activities in this region. This is enough to convince farmers to shift their activities away from degenerative agriculture and toward regenerative agroforestry.”
Now, not every farm is going to be eligible for funding or grants. It can also be difficult to know where to begin or how to implement these practices, specifically for individual farms and landowners. So how do we achieve agricultural reforestation at a wide scale?
It begins with education and technology.
How to achieve reforestation benefits for farmers
Reforestation doesn’t just start with planting trees sporadically on land. Naturally, there is systematic modeling that needs to happen to ensure those trees are providing those soil, water, and oxygen benefits. So how do we leverage technology to make these informed decisions? According to Science Direct:
“Development of spatial and temporal modelling platforms based on empirical models of structural and functional outcomes of reforestation is essential for deciding how to reconfigure agricultural regions. To build such platforms, we must quantify: (a) the influence of previous land uses, establishment methods, species mixes and interactions with adjacent land uses on environmental (particularly biodiversity) outcomes of reforestation and (b) the ways in which responses measured at the level of individual plantings scale up to watersheds and regions. Models based on this information will help widespread reforestation for carbon sequestration to improve native biodiversity, nutrient cycling and water balance at regional scales.”
Luckily, that technology exists. Educating farmers and landowners on both the economical and environmental benefits and upsides of reforestation as well as how these modeling tools can help is the next critical step to achieving and defining reforestation nationwide.
Define reforestation and leverage available technology
Agritech is advancing at a rate that adoption of it, even with very small farms, land plots, and other local businesses, is becoming the norm rather than a luxury only few can afford. The ROI of leveraging modeling and scaling technology speaks for itself.
To better understand reforestation and how it can provide a breadth of benefits to your business, read how our client in the Hudson Valley Region is setting up a legacy by creating sustainable practices.
