103(3)_str33

ISSN 1392-3196 / e-ISSN 2335-8947
Zemdirbyste-Agriculture, vol. 103, No. 3 (2016), p. 259–266
DOI  10.13080/z-a.2016.103.033

Assessment of greenhouse gas emission from life cycle of basic cereals production in Poland

Elżbieta WOJCIK-GRONT, Marta BLOCH-MICHALIK

Abstract

The main objective of this study was to assess how much greenhouse gas (GHG) is emitted on average in the life cycle of basic cereals production in Poland. The crops included in the study are winter and spring wheat, winter and spring barley, winter and spring triticale, winter rye and spring oats. The data were taken from the national-scale, multi-environmental trials in 89 locations for years 2010–2015. The research also included comparison of two agro-technical intensity levels: moderate with the use of nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus fertilization, insecticides, herbicides and pre-sowing treatment – a1, and intensive with the additional use of fungicides, growth regulator and higher nitrogen fertilization rate – a2, for most cereal species. The results are expressed in the amount of greenhouse gas emitted per hectare and per kilogram of grain in cereal production and also contain the uncertainties attributed to the greenhouse gas emission calculated as propagation of error. The lowest emission for the levels a1 and a2 was estimated in the production of winter rye (0.254 ± 0.012 and 0.285 ± 0.014 kg CO2 eq. kg-1, respectively). The highest emission in the a1 level was estimated for spring triticale (0.308 ± 0.021 kg CO2 eq. kg-1) and in the a2 level for spring wheat (0.334 ± 0.016 kg CO2 eq. kg-1). The conclusion of the study was that the main source of greenhouse gas emission from cereal production in Poland is nitrogen fertilizer use. It was also found that in most crops greenhouse gas emissions per unit of produced grain increased with the crop production intensification. It happens mostly due to the plant nitrogen over-fertilization.

Key words: carbon dioxide, emission uncertainty, nitrous oxide.

Full text: 103_3_str33.pdf