A New Framework for the Assessment of Animal Welfare: Integrating Existing Knowledge from a Practical Ethics Perspective

When making an assessment of animal welfare, it is important to take environmental (housing) or animal-based parameters into account. An alternative approach is to focus on the behavior and appearance of the animal, without making actual measurements or quantifying this. None of these tell the whole story. In this paper, we suggest that it is possible to find common ground between these (seemingly) diametrically opposed positions and argue that this may be the way to deal with the complexity of animal welfare. The model will have to be acceptable for the different parties that will be affected by it and real benefits for the animal should result from it. This will be the basis of a practical ethical approach. All this can be condensed into a model that essentially is made up out of three basic elements: the classical welfare analysis with an existing welfare assessment tool, an assessment of the stockholder, and an implementation of the Free Choice Profiling technique. This new framework does not pretend to be a different or better animal welfare matrix; it is intended to integrate existing knowledge and to provide a practical tool to improve animal welfare. It identifies whether there are welfare problems on a farm, if present whether these problems are caused by the housing system or the stockholder, and what can be done to improve the situation.     

Qualitative Stakeholder Analysis for the Development of Sustainable Monitoring Systems for Farm Animal Welfare

Continued concern for animal welfare may be alleviated when welfare would be monitored on farms. Monitoring can be characterized as an information system where various stakeholders periodically exchange relevant information. Stakeholders include producers, consumers, retailers, the government, scientists, and others. Valuating animal welfare in the animal-product market chain is regarded as a key challenge to further improve the welfare of farm animals and information on the welfare of animals must, therefore, be assessed objectively, for instance, through monitoring. Interviews with Dutch stakeholder representatives were conducted to identify their perceptions about the monitoring of animal welfare. Stakeholder perceptions were characterized in relation to the specific perspectives of each stakeholder. While producers tend to perceive welfare from a production point of view, consumers will use visual images derived from traditional farming and from the animals natural environments. Scientists perceptions of animal welfare are affected by the need to measure welfare with quantifiable parameters. Retailers and governments (policy makers) have views of welfare that are derived from their relationships with producers, consumers, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and scientists. All interviewed stakeholder representatives stated that animal welfare is important. They varied in the extent to which they weighted economic considerations relative to concern for the animals welfare. Many stakeholders emphasized the importance of communication in making a monitoring system work. Overall, the perspectives for the development of a sustainable monitoring system that substantially improves farm animal welfare were assessed as being poor in the short term. However, a reliable system could be initiated under certain conditions, such as integrated chains and with influential and motivated stakeholders. A scheme is described with attention points for the development of sustainable monitoring systems for farm animal welfare in the long term.     

吉林省西部草原资源的开发与利用

草原是吉林省西部最重要的植被类型，是区域自然资源比较优势的集中体现。长期以来，由于对草原掠夺式开发利用，导致草原严重退化，环境恶化，成为本区可持续发展的制约因素。摆脱吉林省西部生态灾难，大兴草业是最佳的战略选择。应用草地农业生态学原理，实施草业工程，通过草地畜牧业，饲料业，草坪业，草原旅游业的系统开发，是实现吉林省西部可持续发展的必由之路。     

中国北方草原雪灾的致灾机制探讨

北方草原雪灾是天灾 ,更是一种人祸。受拉尼娜事件影响的异常气候固然是致灾的客观原因 ,但是不合理的人类经济活动 ,如超载放牧、耕地过垦、滥挖草药、滥用水资源等社会经济压力 ,超过了草原生态阈限 ,使脆弱的草原生态平衡遭到严重破坏 ;粗放经营 ,草原基础设施落后 ,也使草原生态系统抵御灾害的能力降低 ;草原公有、牲畜私有之间的所有制相位差是激发牧民掠夺式利用草原资源的最根本原因。为了追求私人经济利益的最大化 ,放牧者往往置公共草原的承载能力于不顾 ,严重恶化的草原生态环境也许正是“公共物品悲剧”的真实写照。     

The Idea of “Ethical Accounting” for a Livestock Farm

This paper presents the idea of a decision-support system for a livestock farm, called “ethical accounting”, to be used as an extension of traditional cost accounting. “Ethical accounting” seeks to make available to the farmer information about how his decisions affect the interests of farm animals, consumers and future generations. Furthermore, “ethical accounting” involves value-based planning. Thus, the farmer should base his choice of production plan on reflections as to his fundamental objectives, and he should make his final decision only after having seriously considered the various consequences for the affected parties. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

不同资源环境梯度下吉林西部生态经济系统能值分析

利用能值方法,从东南-西北方向选取吉林西部长岭、乾安、大安、镇赉四县市进行不同资源环境梯度下生态经济系统演变的对比分析。结果表明1989-2001年研究区多项能值指标差异明显:①系统稳定性方面,降水相对较多的长岭和乾安稳定性强于镇赉和大安。能值密度及能值投入率为长岭>乾安>大安>镇赉。能值产出以及能值积累量呈增大趋势,增幅长岭>乾安>大安>镇赉;②系统产出结构变化显著,虽然种植业比例有所下降,但一直是长岭、乾安的主导产业,镇赉、大安畜牧业超过种植业成为主导产业,系统平均能值产出率为长岭(1.89)<乾安(1.96)<大安(1.99)<镇赉(2.29);③环境负载率长岭<乾安<大安<镇赉,可持续发展指数则相反;④资源环境条件尤其是降水是该区生态经济系统状态的重要影响因素。     

宁夏盐池牧业生产系统的研究

本文采用系统科学的理论方法,详细地分析了盐池县牧业生产系统的内外关系与存在问题及相应的战略对策;结合对现实农业生态系统的能流与物流的定性分析,指出合理运行牧业生产系统,是使盐池县草原恢复、生态维持及农村经济发展的重要途径。     

畜禽粪便冻融作用后磷形态分布及其释放特征

畜禽粪便中磷(P)释放特性与其赋存的形态密切相关,冻融循环可通过改变畜禽粪便的理化性质而影响粪便中P形态的分布,进而影响其后续的释放过程.本研究通过一系列室内模拟实验,探究了冻融循环对不同含水率猪粪中P形态分布的影响,以及冻融循环后粪便中P释放特征及其影响因素.结果表明,与未经冻融猪粪相比,冻融后低含水率粪便中Ca-P、Oc-P和Res-P含量分别下降了47.38%、29.76%和55.19%,NH_4Cl-P和Al-P分别增加了36.82%和23.13%;高含水率猪粪中Ca-P、Oc-P和Res-P含量分别减少了49.59%、41.59%和76.96%,NH_4Cl-P、Al-P和Fe-P含量分别增加了37.34%、32.84%和8.96%.经冻融处理的粪便P的释放速率和累积释放量明显大于未冻融处理的粪便.伪一级动力学方程、Elovich方程、权函数方程均能较好的拟合粪便P释放动力学过程,其中Elovich方程的拟合效果最佳,表明粪便中P释放动力学过程是以扩散为主的反应过程.雨水pH值和共存阴离子会影响粪便P的释放,溶液pH越低或NO~-_3/SO■比值越小,越有利用于粪便P的释放.依据统计数据估算,我国冻融区域内畜禽粪便因冻融导致的P最大释放增量总和约为3.20万t·a~(-1),为降低其面源污染风险需要更好的粪便储存处理措施.     

典型草原区土壤水分变化特征及影响因素分析

为了揭示典型草原区土壤水分时空变化规律,探讨主要影响因子,利用内蒙古两个站点近20年土壤水分观测资料和相应的气象资料,采用数理统计方法,分析了该区域土壤水分变化的基本事实和统计特征及影响因子,得出:年内土壤水分基本呈双峰曲线变化,春季化冻(04-08)到入冬前(10-18)的土壤水分平均相差5.3mm,大多数年份土壤水分年内可以达到平衡;年际变化有每隔7～8年走势发生改变的趋势;垂直向水分变化主要发生在60cm以上土层中,近几年深层变幅有增大的倾向;蒸降差与土壤水分变化呈相反趋势,生长季蒸降差对土壤水分的干扰最大.样本站0～50cm土层的最大容水量为85mm和135mm,多数时期土壤相对含水量平均在40%～60%以上,有较强的调蓄能力.     

Discrimination and bias in the vegan ideal

The vegan ideal is entailed by arguments for ethical veganism based on traditional moral theory (rights and/or utilitarianism) extended to animals. The most ideal lifestyle would abjure the use of animals or their products for food since animals suffer and have rights not to be killed. The ideal is discriminatory because the arguments presuppose a male physiological norm that gives a privileged position to adult, middle-class males living in industrialized countries. Women, children, the aged, and others have substantially different nutritional requirements and would bear a greater burden on vegetarian and vegan diets with respect to health and economic risks, than do these males. The poor and many persons in Third World nations live in circumstances that make the obligatory adoption of such diets, where they are not already a matter of sheer necessity, even more risky.Traditional moral theorists (such as Evelyn Pluhar and Gary Varner whose essays appear in this issue) argue that those who are at risk would beexcused from a duty to attain the virtue associated with ethical vegan lifestyles. The routine excuse of nearly everyone in the world besides adult, middle-class males in industrialized countries suggests bias in the perspective from which traditional arguments for animal rights and (utilitarian) animal welfare are formulated.