Allan Savory’s
Plan to “Mimic” Nature
Allan Savory is
a biologist from Zimbabwe who coined the idea of Holistic Management (Savory
Institute). Holistic Management is a ranch and farming planning system created
to help farmers manage their land in ways that would be sustainable (Holistic
Management). In February 2013, Savory gave a Ted talk claiming the solution to
reverse desertification was to increase the number of livestock on the planet
in order to “mimic” the large herds that once occupied those habitats (Savory,
2013). He believes that the large herds of cattle will not only be able to feed
humans, but also nurture the grasslands with their manure and their trampling
which will increase the soils ability to hold water (Savory, 2013).
I believe this
idea is far too simple and doesn’t take into account many of the other factors
involved in the ecosystem. Back in the 1950s Savory believed that the
deterioration of the land was due to the fact that there were too many
elephants. His solution to this problem was to kill 40,000 elephants. After all
those elephants had been massacred, the land showed no signs of improvement (Coughlin,
2013). Now he’s trying to take the opposite approach and greatly increase the
amount of livestock on the planet. I find Savory’s methods far too extreme and
damaging to the natural ways of the ecosystem.
Greatly
increasing the livestock of the planet will affect the biodiversity of the
planet, creating more of a monoculture, as biodiversity is lost. Savory’s idea
involved “mimicking” the herds that were once there, however those herds lived
their entire lives there, ending with decomposing into the ground, providing
the earth with nutrients (McWilliams, 2013). Finally, cows are one of the
greatest contributors to global methane emissions, which are greatly affecting
the earth’s climate (Stanford University, 2007).
I find Savory’s
methods far too extreme and believe he ignores many of the other factors that
contribute to the ecosystem. His method will greatly reduce the planet’s
biodiversity and will add to the already staggering global warming changes.
Coughlin,
Chrissy. (2013). Allan Savory: How Livestock can protect the land. http://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2013/03/10/allan-savory-how-livestock-can-protect-land
McWilliams,
James. All Sizzle and No Steak. http://www.slate.com/articles/life/food/2013/04/allan_savory_s_ted_talk_is_wrong_and_the_benefits_of_holistic_grazing_have.2.html
Savory, Allan.
“How to fight desertification and reverse climate change.” 2013. Ted.com
Stanford University
(2007, February 22). Harmful Environmental Effects Of Livestock Production On
The Planet 'Increasingly Serious,' Says Panel. ScienceDaily. Retrieved
May 15, 2013, from http://www.sciencedaily.com
/releases/2007/02/070220145244.htm
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