Sustainability attributes from the water-energy-food nexus: An application to livestock systems in the Brazilian Pampa biome

Abstract

The water-energy-food nexus (WEF Nexus) is a research issue still in progress, especially in agriculture. In the context of climate change and biodiversity loss, the study of the sustainability of agricultural production becomes urgent. Several international types of research have focused on measuring sustainability attributes in agricultural systems, but they have yet to include the Nexus approach in their construction. Thus, based on the WEF Nexus, the study aimed to construct and measure sustainability attributes for livestock systems in the Brazilian Pampa. The construction of the indicators was based on the MESMIS methodology, divided into three dimensions: water, energy and food. In data collection, one hundred twenty-one farming systems were sampled in the Ibirapuitã river basin of the Pampa biome. As a result, the 37 WEF Nexus indicators were distributed to compose the sustainability attributes of adaptability, self-management, equity, stability, and productivity. The elements of the triad water, energy and food are used efficiently in the livestock systems of the Pampa biome to generate self-management and productivity. However, they are limited to fairly distributing the benefits and costs of managing their natural resources (equity). The food dimension contributes the least to the sustainability scores of the attributes. In contrast, the water dimension presents the most significant contribution, expressing the importance of managing water and soil resources for the welfare of society and success in livestock production.