Beneficial management practices which may reduce greenhouse gases (GHGs)

Many agricultural practices may be adopted to reduce greenhouse gases and improve soil health by sequestering (absorbing) carbon. Practices such as shelterbelt planting, agroforestry, marginal land conversion, forage rotation, grazing management, reduced tillage, direct seeding, manure management, irrigation land management and water use efficiencies can help reduce emissions and increase the amount of carbon stored in prairie soils. Long term adoption of these practices can help reverse the role of agricultural land use from being a source of greenhouse gases to becoming a carbon sink.

Soil conservation

Plants take carbon from the air and convert it to plant material and roots. After a plant dies much of the carbon it contained becomes incorporated into the soil as soil organic matter. Carbon is slowly released back into the atmosphere as the organic matter decays. Depending on the situation release of carbon may take months, years, or centuries. Thus, soils are a temporary sink for carbon. However conditions in the soil, and management of that soil, dictate how much carbon is stored at any one time.

Conserving soil can rebuild carbon content in the soil. Soil conservation practices such as reducing summerfallow, reduced tillage, direct seeding, and including forages in crop rotations can stabilize or increase the amount of organic matter (mostly carbon) stored in soils. Some suggested practices are:

• growing crops instead of fallow, this will increase the amount of root material and plant residues in the soil.
• reduced tillage during crop production and summerfallow results in higher soil carbon levels because the rate of breakdown of soil organic matter is reduced.
• direct seeding helps maintain carbon in the soil since less tillage is required to prepare a seedbed.
• planting cover crops helps reduce soil erosion
• including perennial forages in the crop rotation. Forages have more extensive root systems than annual crops and store more carbon in the soil than annual crops. Crop rotations also help reduce GHG production by reducing the need for additional nitrogen fertilizers.

Find out more about how you can implement soil conservation practices.

Land use conversion and land use enhancements

Permanent forage cover on marginal lands can also increase carbon sequestration. The 522,000 ha of marginal land under the Permanent Cover Program has been converted to perennial cover and has been building up soil carbon for many years. The new Greencover Initiative plans to expand the area covered by perennial forage over the next five years.

Conversion of unproductive cropland or saline land into wetland also increases its carbon content. Wetland restoration can help trap plant nutrients and enhance water quality.

Tree planting on agricultural lands and in riparian zones.

Planting trees have been shown to sequester, or capture, atmospheric carbon, thereby reducing greenhouse gas levels and is designated as a beneficial management practice by the Climate Change Action Fund (CCAF). Agroforestry plantings have been shown to reduce on-farm and rural area energy consumption (fossil fuel emissions reduction), as well as sequester carbon. Planting trees and shrubs besides creeks and lakes (buffer strips) also help reduce pollution from runoff, in addition to capture carbon.

The Shelterbelt Enhancement Program (SEP) will supply rural clients with plastic mulch and the use of mulch application equipment to control weeds in establishing shelterbelts, in addition to Tree and shrub materials and technical advice are also provided. Find out more about Shelterbelt Centre's activities concerning climate change.

Fertilizer Management

Improved fertilizer application through better timing, use of urease inhibitors and reduction of leaching, runoff and erosion losses will increase the proportion used by the crop and reduce nitrous oxide emissions. Better fertilizer use efficiency may also increase plant production which could aid in sequestering carbon.

Irrigation practices

Agricultural water management practices can influence the decaying process of plant and animal matter in the soil, thereby impacting greenhouse gas production. The amount of water retained in the soil influences the timing, nature and magnitude of this decaying process, as well as the way organisms interact in the ground. Some effective water management practices farmers can use to combat GHG emissions are:

• increasing irrigation efficiency of pumping, conveyance and application infrastructure
• improving nutrient and residue management under irrigation. improved drainage (both surface and subsurface) will prevent loss of nutrients through erosion.
• increased use of riparian management techniques (such as grassed waterways, filter strips, terraces)
• conserving, restoring and managing wetlands. Wetland restoration can help in storing nutrients as well.

Grazing Management

By effectively managing grazing resources, the GHG equation can be influenced. Practices which help build up the soil's organic matter will help sequester greenhouse gases. These include:

• improving the management of existing rangeland and seeded pasture by implementing a planned grazing system. Rangeland which is in poor condition due to frequent overgrazing may have reduced levels of soil organic matter (including carbon) compared to range in good condition.
• re-seeding of degraded pasture will slowly rebuild organic matter and carbon in the soil due to vigorous root growth of the more healthy forage.
• seeding perennial forage onto both environmentally and economically marginal land will increase soil storage of carbon through an increase in root volume.

Visit our Range Management pages for more information.

Manure & Nutrient management

Manure is a source of two main greenhouse gases (GHGs): methane and nitrous oxide. GHG emissions from manure are affected by the type of manure, its dry content;how it is stored; how it is applied on the field and the quality of the feed provided to the animals. With proper storage, management and application, manure can also enhance the organic matter (and carbon) in the soil. Find out more about manure management at ManureNet, a joint effort between PFRA and Research Branch.

In addition to helping control agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, many of the practices mentioned above can provide other environmental benefits, such as improved soil and water quality. Find out more about beneficial practices for water quality and healthy soils.