Approaches to Promote China＇s Low Carbon Agricultural Development

Low carbon agriculture is a new production mode of green agriculture development to face the challenge of the global climate change, and a kind of innovation on developing circular agriculture. Up to n...     

Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation in Agriculture

Mitigation and adaptation are two principle strategies for managing human-induced climate change. Agriculture plays a duet role in climate change. It has been a major source of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. It is also one of the sectors most vulnerable to the risks and impacts of global climate change. This paper first indentified the mitigative and adaptative options and potential in agriculture, then addressed the integrated analysis of mitigation and adaptation and its benefits for agriculture. Finally, it discussed the implications to Chinese agriculture in dealing with the global climate change.     

Challenges to increasing the soil carbon pool of agro-ecosystems in China

Climate change will place agro-ecological systems and food security at serious risk. At the 21 st Conference of the Parties(COP21) in Paris in December of 2015, parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change(UNFCCC) reached a historic agreement(Paris Agreement) to combat climate change and to accelerate and intensify the actions and investments needed for a sustainable low carbon future. An initiative named the "4‰ initiative: Soils for food security and climate" was proposed by the French Minister of Agriculture, and this initiative was launched officially at the COP21 and adopted by many global organizations. The aim of this initiative was to increase carbon sequestration in soil to mitigate fossil fuel combustion emissions of greenhouse gasses. The present study found that China has high CO_2 emissions but a low soil carbon pool, and indicates that 4‰ increments of the soil carbon pool will not be sufficient to offset national CO_2 emissions. The current soil carbon sequestration rate would also not reach the mean level requested by the initiative. Therefore, China faces big challenges to achieve this initiative. An integrated use of straw technology may be used more widely to improve carbon sequestration, and other opportunities include improved fertilizer use efficiency and greenhouse gas mitigation through the waste management project under construction in China. This paper suggests that China may put forward the biomass treatment centered high yield and fertilizer-carbon sequestration project to enhance resilience of agro-ecosystems to climate change.     

The Impact of Climate Change on Agriculture in Asia

Asian agriculture is responsible for two thirds of global agricultural GDP. There have been numerous studies exploring the impact of climate change on crops in specific locations in Asia but no study has yet analyzed crops across the entire continent. This study relies on a Ricardian study of China that estimated climate coefficients for Chinese crops. These coefficients are then used to interpolate potential climate damages across the continent. With carbon fertilization, the model predicts small aggregate effects with a 1.5℃ warming but damages of about USS84 billion with 3℃ warming. India is predicted to be especially vulnerable.     

SEQUESTERING ORGANIC CARBON IN SOILS THROUGH LAND USE CHANGE AND AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES: A REVIEW

Climate change vigorously threats human livelihoods, places and biodiversity.To lock atmospheric CO₂ up through biological, chemical and physical processes is one of the pathways to mitigate climate change. Agricultural soils have a significant carbon sink capacity. Soil carbon sequestration(SCS) can be accelerated through appropriate changes in land use and agricultural practices.There have been various meta-analyses performed by combining data sets to interpret the influences of som...     

藏北高原草地生态系统研究进展(英文)

With the aggravation of global change, the response and adaptation of the unique ecosystem in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau to global change have been increasingly concerned by scientific community day by day, which makes the sensitivity and fragility of this ecosystem in response to global change widely recognized by scholars. On the basis of introducing the present research process on the degenerate mechanisim, measures of and approaches to recovery, carbon cycle and primary productivity toward global change, we put forward several propositions on studying the alpine grassland ecosystem in Northern Tibetan Plateau.     

Financing Sustainable Agriculture Under Climate Change

Agriculture is facing great challenge in meeting global food security and is expected to face even greater challenge under climate change. The overall goal of this paper is to examine how finance can be used to achieve the joint objectives of development, mitigation of and adaptation to climate change in agriculture in developing world based on literature review. The results show that agriculture is much under invested and foreign aid also has not increased appropriately to assist developing countries to maintain sustainable agriculture under climate change. There are a wide range of areas in mitigation of and adaptation to climate change that need substantial investment. Major areas and successful cases mitigation of and adaptation to climate change in agriculture that have worked in developing countries are examined. A list of areas that have worked, could work and be scaled up or transferred is identified and discussed. This study concludes that mainstreaming agricultural mitigation and adaptation into agricultural development programs, enhancing local capacity, and considering different stakeholders＇ needs are major experiences for successfully financing sustainable agriculture under climate change.     

Adaptation Strategies to Climate Change in China-A Case Study of Heilongjiang Province

Climate change is one of the most significant environment issues in the whole world today. And it is one of the most complex challenges of the humanities faced in the 21st century. Climate Change is impacted on our global; nobody can avoid the influence of climate change. The local adaptation strategies on climate change are very important to contribute the mitigation and poverty stricken situation, both in China and in the world. We chose a typical China’s province as a case to analyze the impact of climate change on the region (such as agricultural, natural ecosystems, water resources, as well as local people healthy condition), and how the local government and local residences face the impact of the climate change influence, and summarized several strategies on climate change of the area in a sustainable development way.     

Characterization of Some Typical Soils of the Miombo Woodland Ecosystem of Kitonga Forest Reserve,Iringa, Tanzania： Physico-Chemical Properties and Classification

Despite the fact that miombo woodland soils have significant implications in global climate change processes, few studies have been done to characterize and classify the soils of the miombo woodland ecosystem of Tanzania. The current study was carried out to map and classify soils of Kitonga Forest Reserve, which is a typical miombo woodland ecosystem, in order to generate relevant information for their use and management. A representative study area of 52 km2 was selected and mapped at a scale of 1：50,000 on the basis of relief. Ten representative soil profiles were excavated and described using standard methods. Soil samples were taken from genetic soil horizons and analyzed in the laboratory for physico-chemical characteristics using standard methods. Using field and laboratory analytical data, the soils were classified according to the FAO-World Reference Base （FAO-WRB） for Soil Resources system as Cambisols, Leptosols and Fluvisols. In the USDA-NRCS Soil Taxonomy system the soils were classified as Inceptisols and Entisols. Topographical features played an important role in soil formation. The different soil types differed in physico-chemical properties, hence exhibit differences in their potentials, constraints and need specific management strategies. Texture varied from sandy to different loams; pH from 5.1 to 5.9; organic carbon from 0.9 g/kg to 20 g/kg; and CEC from 3 cmol/（＋）kg to 24 cmol/（＋）kg. Sustainable management of miombo woodlands ecosystem soils requires reduced deforestation and reduced land degradation.     

CHALLENGES PROVIDING MULTIPLE ECOSYSTEM BENEFITS FOR SUSTAINABLE MANAGED SYSTEMS

Since humans started practicing agriculture at the expense of natural forests,8000 years ago, they have affected atmospheric CO₂ concentrations. Their impact on atmospheric CH₄ started about 5000 years ago, as result of the cultivation of paddy rice. A challenge of modern agricultural practices is to reverse the impact cropping has had on greenhouse gas emissions and the global climate. There is an increasing demand for agriculture to provide food security as well as a rang...