• Authors:
    • Vigneault, P.
    • Belec, C.
    • Ma, B. L.
    • Wang, Z.
    • Tremblay, N.
  • Source: Precision Agriculture
  • Volume: 10
  • Issue: 2
  • Year: 2009
  • Summary: Abstract Nitrogen (N) fertilizer rates applied spatially according to crop requirements can improve the efficiency of N use. The study compares the performance of two commercial sensors, the Yara N-Sensor/FieldScan (Yara International ASA, Germany) and the GreenSeeker (NTech Industries Inc., Ukiah, California, USA), for assessing the status of N in spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and corn (Zea mays L.). Four experiments were conducted at different locations in Quebec and Ontario, Canada. The normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) was determined with the two sensors at specific growth stages. The NDVI values derived from Yara N-Sensor/FieldScan correlated with those from GreenSeeker, but only at the early growth stages, where the NDVI values varied from 0.2 to 0.6. Both sensors were capable of describing the N condition of the crop or variation in the stand, but each sensor had its own sensitivity characteristics. It follows that the algorithms developed with one sensor for variable-rate N application cannot be transferred directly to another sensor. The Yara N-Sensor/FieldScan views the crop at an oblique angle over the rows and detects more biomass per unit of soil surface compared to the Green- Seeker with its nadir (top-down) view of the crop. The Yara N-Sensor/FieldScan should be used before growth stage V5 for corn during the season if NDVI is used to derive crop N requirements. GreenSeeker performed well where NDVI values were [0.5. However, unlike GreenSeeker, the Yara N-Sensor/FieldScan can also record spectral information from wavebands other than red and near infrared, and more vegetation indices can be derived that might relate better to N status than NDVI.
  • Authors:
    • Worth, D.
    • Desjardins, R. L.
    • Dyer, J. A.
    • Vergé, X. P. C.
  • Source: Livestock Science
  • Volume: 121
  • Issue: 1
  • Year: 2009
  • Summary: In order to determine the potential of production practices for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG)emissions, it is important to quantify the GHG emissions associated with various types of production. The methodology from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) adjusted for conditions in Canada was used to calculate the GHG emissions from the Canadian pork industry for census years from 1981 to 2001. Emissions of CH4, N2O and CO2 from animals, their facilities and the crops used to feed them were estimated. The Pork Crop Complex (PCC), defined as the area used to grow the crops that feed all Canadian swine, was estimated using the recommended livestock feed rations. Fertilizer application and the use of fossil fuel were down-scaled from the national crop areas to the PCC. This study also estimated the GHG emission intensity based on the total weight of live animal production (destined for either slaughter or export). The growth of the swine population led to an increase in GHG emissions from the pork industry by 54% between 1981 and 2001. The main GHG was CH4, representing about 40% of the 6.7 TgCO2equiv. total in 2001. Nitrous oxide and fossil CO2 both accounted for about 30%. Due to changes in management practices, the GHG emission intensity of the Canadian swine industry decreased from 2.99 to 2.31 kg of CO2equiv. per kg of live market animal during the same period.
  • Authors:
    • Worth, D.
    • Desjardins, R. L.
    • Dyer, J. A.
    • Vergé, X. P. C.
  • Source: The Journal of Applied Poultry Research
  • Volume: 18
  • Issue: 2
  • Year: 2009
  • Summary: As people become more aware of the environmental footprint of different foods, consumers may modify their diets to reduce the impact of their diets on the environment. For this to occur, it is necessary to know the impact that individual food types have on the environment. This publication presents the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as well as the GHG emission intensity associated with various types of poultry production in Canada for the census years 1981 to 2006. Greenhouse gas emissions were calculated using the methodology from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change adjusted for conditions in Canada. Direct emissions of CH4, N2O, and CO2 from birds, their facilities, and the avian crop complex, corresponding to the area used to grow the crops that feed Canadian poultry, were estimated using poultry diet surveys. Between 1981 and 2006, because of the strong growth of broiler production, GHG emissions from the poultry industry increased by 40%. The main GHG was N2O, representing approximately 57% of the total emissions. Fossil fuel CO2 accounted for approximately 38%, whereas CH4 accounted for 5%. In western Canada, GHG emission intensities decreased owing to a reduction in the consumption of fossil fuels associated with the adoption of reduced- and no-tillage cropping systems, whereas in eastern Canada, the reduction was due to lower N2O emissions. The emissions of all 3 GHG from turkeys decreased because of the more rapid turnover of a marketable product (shortened life span) in later census years. Compared with other Canadian meat protein commodities in 2001, poultry emitted only 47% as much GHG per unit of live weight as pork and only 10% as much GHG per unit of live weight as beef.
  • Authors:
    • Alberta Environment
  • Year: 2009
  • Summary: The opportunity for generating carbon offsets with this protocol arises from the direct and indirect reductions of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through implementing no-till and reduced till systems on agricultural lands.
  • Authors:
    • Bremer, E.
  • Year: 2009
  • Summary: Native rangelands in Alberta contain large reservoirs of organic carbon and may be sequestering additional atmospheric CO2 through their response to elevated CO2 levels. Mitigation practices to increase atmospheric CO2 sequestration or otherwise reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions were evaluated in this report. Improving range health through the effective application of rangeland management principles may increase C storage on rangelands that are currently rated as unhealthy or healthy with problems. However, the potential to reduce GHG emissions by this mechanism is small because most native rangelands in Alberta are healthy and the few estimates of C gain due to improved range health are small and inconsistent. Conversion of annual cropland to rangeland has the potential to increase C sequestration substantially, but this practice is most appropriately considered as a mitigation practice for annual cropland. Inclusion of legumes in seeding mixes and application of compost have good potential to increase C storage when annual cropland or degraded lands is converted to rangeland, but have limited potential to reduce GHG emissions on healthy rangelands. Overall, the potential to adopt practices that reduce GHG emissions on existing Alberta rangelands is small.
  • Authors:
    • Climate Action Reserve
  • Year: 2009
  • Summary: The Forest Project Protocol (FPP) provides requirements and guidance for quantifying the net climate benefits of activities that sequester carbon on forestland. The protocol provides project eligibility rules; methods to calculate a project's net effects on greenhouse gas (GHG)emissions and removals of CO2 from the atmosphere ("removals"); procedures for assessing the risk that carbon sequestered by a project may be reversed (i.e. released back to the atmosphere); and approaches for long term project monitoring and reporting. The goal of this protocol is to ensure that the net GHG reductions and removals caused by a project are accounted for in a complete, consistent, transparent, accurate, and conservative manner and may therefore be reported to the Climate Action Reserve (Reserve) as the basis for issuing carbon offset credits (called Climate Reserve Tonnes, or CRTs).
  • Authors:
    • Climate Change Central
  • Source: ClimateCHECK
  • Year: 2009
  • Summary: From exec summary: This Consultation Report describes the development to date of the Nitrous Oxide Emissions Reduction Protocol ("NERP"), designed on the framework provided by the Right Product @ Right Rate, Right Time, Right Place™ stewardship model of the Canadian Fertilizer Institute. The process for development includes a Technical Background Document, a Science Discussion document, and a Consultation Workshop. Following the decisions of the Consultation Workshop, the main elements of the NERP are determined. The eligibility requirements of the NERP are designed according to the criteria of the Alberta Offsets System and Canada's Offset System. The GHG emissions for the baseline scenario and project condition are calculated using the country-specific methodology used in Canada's National Inventory Report. The scope of the NERP is limited to (1) on-farm reductions of (2) emissions associated with quantification categories fertilizer, manure, residues, and irrigation. The baseline is determined according to three years of farm-level data. The essential component for participation in the NERP is defined as the implementation of a 4R N stewardship plan, as assured by (1) general guidance in the NERP confirmed by third party verification, (2) detailed design instructions in the NERP, (3) conformity with a recommended predictive model, or (4) retaining services of an approved consulting professional. The fertilizer management practices comprising the Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced levels of the NERP are listed. And, the reduction modifiers associated with the levels of the NERP are proposed.
  • Authors:
    • Climate Change Central
  • Year: 2009
  • Summary: From introduction: The experts participating in the Consultation Workshop approved the main elements of the implementation of the NERP. The eligibility requirements of the NERP will be designed according to the criteria of the Alberta Offsets System and Canada's Offset System. The scope of the NERP is limited to on-farm reductions of emissions associated with quantification categories of fertilizer, manure, residues, and irrigation. The GHG emissions for the baseline will be determined using the country-specific methodology from Canada's National Inventory Report according to three years of farm-level activity data. The GHG emissions for the project condition also will be determined with the country-specific methodology from Canada's National Inventory Report, using the data from the farm after participation in the NERP. The essential component for participation in the NERP was defined as the implementation of a 4-R stewardship plan, as assured by (1) general guidance in the NERP confirmed by third party verification, (2) detailed design instructions in the NERP, (3) conformity with a recommended predictive model, and (4) retaining services of an approved consulting professional. The fertilizer best management practices (BMPs) comprising the Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced levels of the NERP were listed for western Canada conditions. Despite achieving consensus on the main elements of the NERP, the participants of the Consultation Workshop identified some gaps requiring further development. This Decision Paper is intended to facilitate consensus among scientific researchers and technical practitioners concerning the remaining decisions needed to complete the technical and operational framework of the NERP. To achieve this objective, the Decision Paper compiled the knowledge needed to address the gaps identified at the Consultation Workshop, and recorded the decisions of the Contract Steering Committee and other designated experts based on the compiled knowledge.
  • Authors:
    • Smith, D. L.
    • Ma, B.-L.
    • Rochette, P.
    • Madramootoo,C.
    • Zhou, X.
    • Mabood, F.
    • Almaraz, J. J.
  • Source: Soil Science Society of America Journal
  • Volume: 73
  • Issue: 1
  • Year: 2009
  • Summary: Agriculture has an important potential role in mitigating greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). However, practices that reduce CO2 emissions from soils and increase the soil organic C level may stimulate N2O emissions. This is particularly critical in Quebec where heavy soils and a humid climate may limit the adoption of agricultural practices designed to mitigate GHG. The objective of this work was to study the effects of two tillage and N fertilization regimes on CO2 and N2O fluxes and the seasonal variability in emissions of these gases, associated with corn (Zea mays L.) grown in southwestern Quebec. Different seasonal emission patterns of CO2 and N2O were observed. Higher N2O fluxes occurred during the spring and were associated with precipitation events, while higher CO2 fluxes occurred in mid-season and were related to temperature. Conventional tillage (CT) had greater peaks of CO2 emissions than no-till (NT) only after disking in the spring. Once corn was established, differences between tillage systems were small. Peaks of N2O emission occurred in both systems (NT and CT) following N application. Plots receiving 180 kg N ha-1 in both tillage systems had large peak of N2O emission rates during the wettest parts of the season. The CT and NT systems generally had similar cumulative CO2 emissions but NT had higher cumulative N2O emissions than CT. Our findings suggests that changing from CT to NT under the heavy soil conditions of Quebec may increase GHG, mainly as result of the increase in N2O emission. This negative effect of NT could be reduced by avoiding fertilizing when precipitation is more intense.
  • Authors:
    • Lal, R.
    • Blanco-Canqui, H.
  • Source: Soil Science Society of America Journal
  • Volume: 73
  • Issue: 2
  • Year: 2009
  • Summary: Franzluebbers (2009) is right about the need for a more intensive soil sampling, "repeated sampling with time,"and "stratified sampling" as well as for the use of multiple fields and collection of larger number of pseudoreplicates to overcome the high field variability in soil organic carbon (SOC) pools within each Major Land Resource Area (MLRA). The selected fields were representative of each MLRA in terms of soil type, slope, and management, but it is correct that a single soil would not capture all the variability in soil and management for the whole MLRA. This study was not intended to relate the data from the single soil to the whole MLRA but rather to emphasize the differences in SOC sequestration rates among the three management systems within each soil.