Introduction: Climate change is a major environmental concern thatseriously threatens the well-being of humans and other living organisms on planet Earth. Agriculture is a major contributor to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, especially non-carbon dioxide (CO2) compounds such as methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O).Greenhouse gas emissions are exacerbated by economic development, population growth, increased energy consumption, and the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides to maintain and increase grain yields. Furthermore, a significant portion of nitrogen-containing fertilizers used each year are released into the environment as active nitrogen, causing a wave of environmental problems including air pollution, eutrophication, and ozone depletion. Globally, the agricultural sector accounts for about 10–12% of total greenhouse gas emissions from human activities. Total greenhouse gas emissions are expected to increase by about 50% between 2000 and 2030, with further impacts on weather and climate.
Materials and methods: For this purpose, the amount of fuel, energy and greenhouse gas emissions in wheat and potato production in Gorgan County were investigated. This research was conducted in 25 wheat and potato production farms in the 2018-2019 crop year. In the first stage, after selecting the desired farms, each agricultural operation was recorded. Also, the amount of input consumption was noted in each farm. Finally, the yield in the studied farms was recorded. In the second stage, based on the amount of fuel consumption and inputs consumed in each type of agricultural operation, greenhouse gas emissions per hectare were analyzed by considering the coefficients related to it.
Results: According to the results, 1459 and 2034 kg of carbon dioxide equivalent were emitted for each hectare of wheat and potato production, respectively. On average, 79 and 49 grams of greenhouse gases were emitted per megajoule of energy consumed per hectare of wheat and potato production, respectively, which was estimated to be 27 and 18 grams for the output energy, respectively.
Conclusion: Finally, according to the results obtained, it can be said that the use of chemical fertilizers, especially nitrogen fertilizers, as well as the use of fossil fuels, accounted for an important part of greenhouse gas emissions, and by optimizing their use, an important step can be taken in reducing greenhouse gas emissions for wheat and potato production. |
