By: Enrique Alvarez
A recent article published by Environmental Science and Pollution Research explores two different techniques in the harvest of rice in the Guilan province of Iran, and their respective costs to the environment. As the authors explain, agriculture is one of the world's leading causes of greenhouse gas emissions, so it is imperative that adequate measures of agro-sustainability be incorporated into existing practices.
In the rice paddies of northern Iran, two cropping systems prevail: single- and ratoon-cropping. The word ratoon is likely derived from the Latin retono, which means 'to thunder back', and ratoon-cropping is the practice of cutting down most of the above-ground portion of a crop, but leaving its roots and growing shoots intact so that the crop may regrow to produce a second harvest later in the year.
The authors made use of an agricultural methodology, life cycle assessment (LCA), to investigate the environmental costs associated with each cropping system. The LCA takes inventory of, among other things, the raw materials used (e.g. fossil fuels and chemical fertilizers) and the pollution generated in the growing process, and compares these values to a nutritional amount (in this case protein) yielded by the crops. They found that ratoon-cropping emitted less pollution; resulted in less acidification and terrestrial eutrophication; and depleted less phosphate, potash, and fossil fuels than single-cropping techniques.
Rice accounts for approximately 80% of the energy content in the diets of people in Asia. It is estimated that rice production must be increased 40% by 2030 to keep pace with the needs of the growing world population.
A recent article published by Environmental Science and Pollution Research explores two different techniques in the harvest of rice in the Guilan province of Iran, and their respective costs to the environment. As the authors explain, agriculture is one of the world's leading causes of greenhouse gas emissions, so it is imperative that adequate measures of agro-sustainability be incorporated into existing practices.
In the rice paddies of northern Iran, two cropping systems prevail: single- and ratoon-cropping. The word ratoon is likely derived from the Latin retono, which means 'to thunder back', and ratoon-cropping is the practice of cutting down most of the above-ground portion of a crop, but leaving its roots and growing shoots intact so that the crop may regrow to produce a second harvest later in the year.
The authors made use of an agricultural methodology, life cycle assessment (LCA), to investigate the environmental costs associated with each cropping system. The LCA takes inventory of, among other things, the raw materials used (e.g. fossil fuels and chemical fertilizers) and the pollution generated in the growing process, and compares these values to a nutritional amount (in this case protein) yielded by the crops. They found that ratoon-cropping emitted less pollution; resulted in less acidification and terrestrial eutrophication; and depleted less phosphate, potash, and fossil fuels than single-cropping techniques.
Rice accounts for approximately 80% of the energy content in the diets of people in Asia. It is estimated that rice production must be increased 40% by 2030 to keep pace with the needs of the growing world population.
Firouzi, S., A. Nikkhah, and H. Aminpanah. 2018. Rice single cropping or ratooning agro-system: which one is more environment-friendly?. Environmental Science and Pollution Research. 25:32246-32256
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