Perception of freshwater use varies between nations and has led to concerns of how to evaluate water use for sustainable food production. The water footprint of beef cattle (WFB) is an important metric to determine current levels of freshwater use and to set sustainability goals. However, current WFB publications provide broad WF values with inconsistent units preventing direct comparison of WFB models. The water footprint assessment (WFA) methodologies use static physio-enviro-managerial equations, rather than dynamic, which limits their ability to estimate cattle water use. This study aimed to advance current WFA methods for WFB estimation by formulating the WFA into a system dynamics methodology to adequately characterize the major phases of the beef cattle industry and provide a tool to identify high-leverage solutions for complex water use systems. Texas is one of the largest cattle producing areas in the United States, a significant water user. This geolocation is an ideal template for WFB estimation in other regions due to its diverse geography, management-cultures, climate and natural resources. The Texas Beef Water Footprint model comprised seven submodels (cattle population, growth, nutrition, forage, WFB, supply chain and regional water use; 1432 state variables). Calibration of our model replicated initial WFB values from an independent study by Chapagain and Hoekstra in 2003 (CH2003). This CH2003 v. Texas production scenarios evaluated model parameters and assumptions and estimated a 41–66% WFB variability. The current model provides an insightful tool to improve complex, unsustainable and inefficient water use systems.

中文翻译：

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牛犊、饲养场和饲养场牛行业水足迹的表征，以评估牲畜用水可持续性的影响

各国对淡水使用的看法各不相同，这引发了人们对如何评估可持续粮食生产用水的担忧。肉牛的水足迹（WF乙) 是确定当前淡水使用水平和设定可持续发展目标的重要指标。然而，当前的 WF乙出版物提供了广泛的 WF 值，但单位不一致，妨碍了 WF 的直接比较乙楷模。水足迹评估 (WFA) 方法使用静态的生理-环境-管理方程，而不是动态的，这限制了它们估计牛用水量的能力。本研究旨在推进当前用于 WF 的 WFA 方法乙通过将 WFA 公式化为系统动力学方法来进行估算，以充分描述肉牛行业的主要阶段，并提供一种工具来确定复杂用水系统的高杠杆解决方案。德克萨斯州是美国最大的牛产区之一，也是一个重要的用水户。此地理位置是 WF 的理想模板乙由于其不同的地理、管理文化、气候和自然资源，其他地区的估计。德克萨斯牛肉水足迹模型包括七个子模型（牛群、生长、营养、草料、WF乙、供应链和区域用水；1432 个状态变量）。我们模型的校准复制了初始 WF乙Chapagain 和 Hoekstra 在 2003 年 (CH2003) 进行的一项独立研究的值。这个CH2003五。德克萨斯生产情景评估模型参数和假设并估计 41-66% WF乙变化性。当前模型提供了一个有见地的工具来改进复杂、不可持续和低效的用水系统。