Challenges and priorities for modelling livestock health and pathogens in the context of climate change
- Department of Animal and Aquacultural Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Biosciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), Post Box 5003, Ås 1430 (Norway)
- University of Tuscia, Department of Agriculture and Forestry Science (DAFNE), Via San Camillo De Lellis, snc, Viterbo 01100 (Italy)
- Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering Potsdam-Bornim (ATB), Max-Eyth-Allee 100, Potsdam 14469 (Germany)
- Wageningen UR Livestock Research, P.O. Box 338, Wageningen 6700 AH (Netherlands)
- Moredun Research Institute, Pentlands Science Park, Bush Loan, Penicuik EH26 0PZ (United Kingdom)
- Animal Welfare Subprogram, IRTA, Veinat de Sies s/n, Monells, Girona 17121 (Spain)
- Nutrition Unit, Animal Production Department, Veterinary Faculty, University of Liège, Boulevard de Colonster 20, Bât. B43, Liège 4000 (Belgium)
- ADAS UK Ltd, 4205 Park Approach, Thorpe Park, Leeds LS15 8GB (United Kingdom)
- Scotland's Rural College (SRUC), Peter Wilson Building, Kings Buildings, West Mains Road, Edinburgh EH9 3JG (United Kingdom)
- Scotland's Rural College (SRUC), Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Roslin Institute Building, Easter Bush, Midlothian EH25 9RG (United Kingdom)
- University of Nottingham, School of Biosciences, Sutton Bonington Campus, Loughborough LE12 5RD (United Kingdom)
Climate change has the potential to impair livestock health, with consequences for animal welfare, productivity, greenhouse gas emissions, and human livelihoods and health. Modelling has an important role in assessing the impacts of climate change on livestock systems and the efficacy of potential adaptation strategies, to support decision making for more efficient, resilient and sustainable production. However, a coherent set of challenges and research priorities for modelling livestock health and pathogens under climate change has not previously been available. To identify such challenges and priorities, researchers from across Europe were engaged in a horizon-scanning study, involving workshop and questionnaire based exercises and focussed literature reviews. Eighteen key challenges were identified and grouped into six categories based on subject-specific and capacity building requirements. Across a number of challenges, the need for inventories relating model types to different applications (e.g. the pathogen species, region, scale of focus and purpose to which they can be applied) was identified, in order to identify gaps in capability in relation to the impacts of climate change on animal health. The need for collaboration and learning across disciplines was highlighted in several challenges, e.g. to better understand and model complex ecological interactions between pathogens, vectors, wildlife hosts and livestock in the context of climate change. Collaboration between socio-economic and biophysical disciplines was seen as important for better engagement with stakeholders and for improved modelling of the costs and benefits of poor livestock health. The need for more comprehensive validation of empirical relationships, for harmonising terminology and measurements, and for building capacity for under-researched nations, systems and health problems indicated the importance of joined up approaches across nations. The challenges and priorities identified can help focus the development of modelling capacity and future research structures in this vital field. Well-funded networks capable of managing the long-term development of shared resources are required in order to create a cohesive modelling community equipped to tackle the complex challenges of climate change. - Highlights: • Experts identified challenges for health and pathogen modelling under climate change. • Eighteen key challenges and associated research priorities were identified. • Increasing capacity will require improved organisation and sharing knowledge. • Better communication across the diverse topics and approaches in this field is needed.
- OSTI ID:
- 22689505
- Journal Information:
- Environmental Research, Vol. 151; Other Information: Copyright (c) 2016 Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam, The Netherlands, All rights reserved.; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0013-9351
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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