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Pasture, Rangeland, and Grazing Operations
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Pasture, Rangeland, and Grazing Operations
Highlights
Information about environmental issues specifically relating to the livestock production in pastures, rangeland, and other grazing operations.
About Pasture, Rangeland, and Other Grazing Operations- Rangelands are those lands on which the native vegetation (climax or natural potential plant community) is predominantly grasses, grass-like plants, forbs, or shrubs suitable for grazing or browsing use. Rangelands include natural grassland, savannas, many wetlands, some deserts, tundra, and certain forb and shrub communities.
- Pastures are those lands that are primarily used for the production of adapted, domesticated forage plants for livestock.
- Other grazing lands include woodlands, native pastures, and croplands producing forages.
The major differences between rangelands and pastures are the kind of vegetation and level of management that each land area receives. In most cases, rangeland supports native vegetation that is extensively managed through the control of livestock rather than by agronomy practices, such as fertilization, mowing, and irrigation. Rangeland also includes areas that have been seeded to introduced species (e.g., crested wheatgrass), but which are extensively managed like native range. Pastures are represented by those lands that have been seeded, usually to introduced species (e.g., tall fescue) or in some cases to native plants (e.g., switchgrass), and which are intensively managed using agronomy practices and control of livestock.
Success Stories
Livestock Management Improves Dissolved Oxygen in TennesseeRelated publications from the Ag Center
Pasture, Rangeland, and Grazing OperationsMore information from EPA
Rangelands InformationMore information from USDA
NRCS Soil Quality
NRCS Rangeland Soil Quality
CSREES Southern Regional Water Quality Program: Information for Small Farms, Platforms and PostersMore information from the states
Rangelands West - a Western Rangelands Partnership delivering quality information, resources, and tools to improve management of western rangelands
- Alaska Rangelands
- Arizona Rangelands
- California Rangelands
- Colorado Rangelands
- Hawaii Rangelands
- Idaho Rangelands
- Kansas Rangelands
- Montana Rangelands
- Nebraska Rangelands
- Nevada Rangelands
- New Mexico Rangelands
- North Dakota Rangelands
- Oklahoma Rangelands
- Oregon Rangelands
- South Dakota Rangelands
- Texas Rangelands
- Utah Rangelands
- Washington Rangelands
- Wyoming Rangelands
This page is sponsored by
EPA's Ag Center. 