The Invading Sea
  • Commentary
  • Editorials
  • News
  • Multimedia
  • About
No Result
View All Result
The Invading Sea
  • Commentary
  • Editorials
  • News
  • Multimedia
  • About
No Result
View All Result
The Invading Sea
No Result
View All Result

Florida’s ranches play a significant role in combatting the threats from the warming climate

But they’re threatened by the huge numbers of people moving to the state and the developers who are building homes for them

by Jim Strickland
March 3, 2021
in Commentary
1

By Jim Strickland, Florida rancher

I consider myself blessed to live and work as a rancher in Florida. As a caretaker of the land, I have both the privilege and the obligation to protect the habitat and wildlife on our ranchlands.

Florida ranches are part of the solution to protect Florida’s environment. Ranchers engage in conservation practices that maintain grasslands, healthy soils, and healthy watersheds. These practices also have a role in combating the effects of climate change.

Rotational grazing, maintaining appropriate cattle herd sizes and managing for native habitat reduce greenhouse gas emissions and sequester carbon. Cattle ranching in Florida protects the environment, maintains rural landscapes, and supports the Florida agricultural economy.

Jim Strickland

But Florida ranches are in danger of being lost as Florida grows by about 300,000 people a year. This growth results in the conversion of thousands of acres of ranches every year.

So, managing ranches for greater conservation and environmental benefits is important, but offering incentives to protect ranches from land conversion is essential as well. Once these ranchlands are converted to subdivisions and shopping malls, we forever lose the environmental values they provide.

Ranchers are committed to protecting Florida’s wildlife and water while also helping to address climate change. Many ranchers are working with conservation groups and state and federal government to restore wetlands, provide wildlife habitat and corridors, and to help sequester carbon in both wetland soils and grasslands.

Ranches provide important habitat for protected wildlife species such as the Florida panther.  Ranches are also critical to protecting wildlife corridors, another critical strategy for addressing climate change. Our ranches protect wetlands, offer opportunities to restore additional wetlands, and provide grasslands that can help store carbon and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

My colleagues have for years collaborated with University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences experts to make ranching more economically and ecologically sustainable.

In 2021 we’ll mark the 500th anniversary of Ponce de Leon bringing the first cows to what would become our state. We wouldn’t have stayed in business since the 16th century without caring for the land.

We continue this stewardship through a cowboy-scientist alliance with UF/IFAS. Through innovation, we’re constantly improving our efficiency and reducing our environmental footprint. Florida, and the planet, are better off for it.

I am excited by how ranchers continue to be even better at contributing to climate solutions while providing wildlife habitat and protecting watersheds. Let’s all work together to make sure that Florida has the support, programs and funds to protect our ranches and to restore and manage grasslands and other habitat on these ranches to achieve our climate, wildlife, and water conservation goals.

Jim Strickland is the owner of Strickland Ranch and managing partner of Big Red Cattle Company and Blackbeard’s Ranch. He is Co-Chairman of the Florida Climate Smart Agriculture Work Group, sponsored by the University of Florida and Solutions from the Land, and Vice-Chairman of the Florida Conservation Group, an organization that advocates for the protection of Florida’s ranchlands.

“The Invading Sea” is the opinion arm of the Florida Climate Reporting Network, a collaborative of news organizations across the state focusing on the threats posed by the warming climate.

 

Tags: Big Red Cattle CompanyBlackbeard’s RanchFlorida Climate Smart Agriculture Work GroupJim StricklandPonce de LeonSolutions from the Landthe Florida Conservation GroupUniversity of FloridaUniversity of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences
Previous Post

Conservative Floridians need to tell our U.S. senators that they should support carbon pricing

Next Post

Urge your lawmakers to provide the money needed to preserve Florida’s land and waterways

Related Posts

Lessons learned from hurricanes in Florida
Commentary

Lessons learned from hurricanes in Florida

by Jim Gross
March 21, 2023
Environmental bills getting bipartisan love, Biden getting climate criticism
News

Environmental bills getting bipartisan love, Biden getting climate criticism

by Nathan Crabbe
March 21, 2023
Florida’s coasts at risk on anniversary of BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill
Commentary

Young Floridians are riding the wave of ocean restoration

by Daniela Fernandez
June 30, 2022
Next Post
Signs of fires, hurricanes, other disruptions linger for years in the Everglades, FIU research shows

Urge your lawmakers to provide the money needed to preserve Florida’s land and waterways

Comments 1

  1. Rebecca Walton says:
    2 years ago

    I agree that we need to offer incentives to protect ranches from land conversion/development. As a long time Floridian I am concerned about the explosive growth in the State & continued loss of habitat & natural areas.

Twitter Facebook

About this website

The Invading Sea is a non-partisan source for news, commentary and educational content about climate change and other environmental issues affecting Florida. The site is managed by Florida Atlantic University’s Center for Environmental Studies in the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. Read more 

 

Archives

Categories

Audio Commentary Editorials Multimedia News Other The Business of Climate Change Video

© 2022 The Invading Sea

No Result
View All Result
  • Commentary
  • Editorials
  • News
  • Multimedia
  • About

© 2022 The Invading Sea

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Fill the forms bellow to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In