Greenhouse gas mitigation in Indian agriculture

Abstract

Agricultural soils contribute to the greenhouse effect primarily through the emission and consumption of greenhouse gases (GHGs) such as methane, nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide. The primary sources of methane from agriculture include animal digestive processes, rice cultivation and manure storage and handling. Soil contributes to a major amount of nitrous oxide emission. The major sources are soil cultivation, fertilizer and manure application, and burning organic material and fossil fuels. Agriculture, however, is not considered to be a major source of carbon dioxide. The inventory of GHGs emission for the year 2007 showed that Indian rice fields covering an area of 43.86 million ha emitted 3.37 million tons of CH_{4. Emission of methane from rice fields has remained constant over the years. However, emission of nitrous oxide has increased because of increased N fertilizer use. Agriculture offers promising opportunities for mitigating GHGs emissions through carbon sequestration, soil and land use management, and biomass production. For India's agricultural production systems to be viable into the future, there is a need to identify soil management systems that are climate change compatible, where soil organic C is maintained or enhanced and GHGs emission is reduced. Policy should be formulated to encourage farmers for adopting the mitigation technologies without compromising with the production and income}