Affiliation:
1. Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
2. Key Laboratory of Prevention and Control of Residual Pollution in Agricultural Film, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Beijing 100081, China
Abstract
Rice, a crucial staple in China, is cultivated through various techniques, including seedling transplanting, dry direct seeding, and film mulching. Despite its significance, rice production is a considerable environmental burden. Using a life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology, this study aimed to evaluate the environmental impacts of four rice cultivation methods (transplanting rice, dry direct-seeding rice, dry direct-seeding rice with polyethylene film (PE), and dry direct-seeding rice with biodegradable film) in Northeast China. The results indicate that the magnitude of environmental impacts among treatments was consistent across years. The potential values of all environmental impacts of the four different cultivation methods of rice in the 2021 field trial were smaller than the results of the same cultivation method of rice system in the 2022 field trial. Among the four rice cultivation methods, the consumption of energy showed inconsistency over the two years, with the highest energy consumption in the first year being for dry seeding with PE film and in the second year for dry seeding without film. Additionally, transplanting exhibited the highest impact on water resource consumption and climate change. Dry direct-seeding rice displayed the highest eutrophication and ecotoxicity. Dry direct-seeding rice with a biodegradable film had the least impact in terms of acidification. Moreover, dry direct-seeding rice with a biodegradable film minimized water consumption and greenhouse gas emissions without compromising yield.
Funder
The National Key Research and Development Program of China
Key Research and Development Task Project of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region
Subject
Agronomy and Crop Science