Closer look by NAU find mixed results for intensive grazing

Among environmentalists, ranchers and land managers, the name Allan Savory can elicit a range of responses. An ecologist who did much of his work in Africa, Savory advocates an intriguing idea: that a regimen of high intensity, short duration grazing, combined with holistic land management, can help fight desertification and even reverse climate change. The technique of "mob grazing" imitates natural cycles of dense herds of grazing animals constantly moving across the landscape, Savory says. Savory’s method has drawn criticism from many who say its benefits haven’t been replicated elsewhere and that the concept is riddled with caveats and unsupported by scientific information. At the same time, Savory’s ideas have spawned an entire institute in Boulder, Colorado, dedicated to perpetuating his land management teachings. Now, researchers at Northern Arizona University are wading into the debate with their own test of Savory’s grazing methods on ranchland southeast of Flagstaff...more