This presentation focuses on agricultural practices that potentially mitigate climate change, the influence of crop production on climate change and conclusions that can be drawn.

1. Systems of agricultural
production
- global changes of climate
Chojnicki J., Dmuchowski W., Lenart S., Sosulski T.
Warsaw University of Life Sciences, 02-776 Warszawa, 159/37
Nowoursynowska Street , Poland, email: jozef_chojnicki@sggw.pl
Global Landscapes Forum
Warsaw, 16-17 November 2013

2. Annual GHG emissions from agriculture are expected to
increase in the coming decades due to escalating
demands for food and shifts in diet.
However, improved management practices and emerging
technologies may permit a reduction in emissions per
unit of food (or of protein) produced.

3. Agricultural practices that potentially mitigate
GHGs:
•
•
•
•
•
•
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cropland management;
grazing land management/pasture improvement;
management of agricultural organic soils;
restoration of degraded lands;
livestock management;
manure/bio-solid management;
bio-energy production.

4. Influence of crop production
on climate change
Main processes:
 Strengthening of warming – emission of N2O (GHG)
N2O is generated by the microbial transformation of
nitrogen in soils and manures and is often enhanced
when available nitrogen exceeds plant requirements,
especially under wet conditions
 Reduction of warming – carbon sequestration in soil

5. Emission of N2O in Poland in 2011
(KOBIZE, 2013)
Sources
Gg
%
Total
87.9
100
Energy production
6.8
8.7
Industrial processes
3.5
4.0
Sewage
3.6
4.1
Agriculture
73.6
83.7

6. Properties of greenhouse gases
Gas
Life duration
in air / years
Strengthening of
warming
CO2
50-200
1
CH4
12
43
N2O
115
250
CFC-11
45
15 000
CFC-12
102
19 000
HCFC-22
12
13 000

7. Concentration of GHGs in the troposphere
Gas
Before 1750
Now
part in
warming
(Start of industrial
revolution)
CO2
280 ppmv
378 ppmv
1.46
CH4
0.70 ppmv
1.78 ppmv
0.48
N2O
0.27 ppmv
0.32 ppmv
0.18
O3
0.025 ppmv
0.034 ppmv
0.35
CFC, HCFC,
HFC
0 pptv
3-544 pptv
0.34

8. Productivity and environmental impact of
different farming systems
High-input
farming system
Productivity
Precision
agriculture
Integrated
system
Low-input farming
system
Organic system
Favourable impact on environment

9. Agricultural land on certified organic and
integrated farms in Poland in 2011
Farms
Agricultural land
in thousand ha
%
Total
15442.4
100
organic
605.5
3.9
integrated
10.7
0.1

10. Emission of N2O (kg ha-1) in different crop
production systems within 1996-2005
(Stalenga & Kawalec 2007)
Source of emission
ORG
CON
INT
N synthetic fertilizer
-
1.78
0.89
Organic fertilizer
0.32
-
0.40
N-fixing crop
0.20
-
0.14
total
0.52
1.78
1.43
ORG – organic; CON – conventional; INT - integrated

11. Nitrogen balance in different farming
systems in kg N/ha (Jończyk et al. 2007)
Farming system
Input
Output
Balance
Organic
95
85
11
Integrated
147
112
36
Conventional
167
119
49
Wheat
monoculture
192
121
71

12. Nitrogen losses from soil in various fertilization
systems of rye monoculture (calculated using the
balance method)
0
Mineral-organic
system
Organic
system
50%
Mineral
system
57%
20
kg·ha-1
40
35%
60
80
NPK
NPK + manure
Manure
Sosulski 2005, Department of
Agricultural Chemistry, SGGW

13. Effect of mineral, mineral-organic and organic
fertilization on N2O emissions from soil under rye
monoculture (monthly average)
16
(g N-N 2 O·ha -1 ·day -1 )
12
NPK
8
NPK+manure
manure
4
0
August
September
October
unpublished data, Sosulski T.,
Department of Agricultural Chemistry,
SGGW

14. Conclusions
• Crop production has significant influence on GHG emission
(N2O) in Poland (87% total emission) and is correlated with
the usage of mineral N fertilizers
• The level of nitrogen release depends on the applied
agricultural system:
ecological < inegrated < conventional < conventional –
monoculture
• Manure fertilization increases N2O emission more
significantly than mineral fertilization

15. • The level of organic carbon sequestration in soil depends
on the system of agriculture production: ecological >
inegrated > conventional > conventional – monoculture
• Ecological farming is most favourable in mitigation of
climate changes; however, its influence is insignificant due
to the small area covered by such farming
• Technologies applied in integrated and precision
agriculture will potentially have the largest influence on
mitigation of climate change