To achieve carbon peak before 2030 and carbon neutrality before 2060, carbon emission reduction and sequestration in agriculture and rural areas is both an important measure and a potential.

On March 3, the China Agriculture and Rural Low-Carbon Development Forum and the 31th Agricultural Environment Summit released the 2023 China Agriculture and Rural Low-carbon Development Report (hereinafter referred to as the Report). Academician Wu Kongming, member of the Party Group of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs and president of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, said that the report is the first report issued by the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and the first report on low-carbon development and continuous tracking research in the agricultural and rural fields in China, showing the phased achievements of green and low-carbon in China's agriculture and rural areas, and is a strong proof of China's agricultural and rural practice of green development.

The overall intensity of China's agricultural carbon emissions is low

To achieve green and low-carbon development in agriculture and rural areas and carbon sequestration, we must first understand the current situation. The "Report" shows that the overall intensity of China's agricultural carbon emissions is low, and the carbon emissions per unit of agricultural GDP, per capita carbon emissions and per capita agricultural population are much lower than those of the United States. Carbon intensity generally refers to carbon intensity. Carbon intensity refers to CO79 emissions per unit of GDP. In the process of crop production, the key emission link is fertilizer production and application, accounting for 7.89%~5.<>% of carbon emission intensity.

From the perspective of the temporal changes in carbon emission intensity, in recent years, China has adopted a series of policy measures and special actions to stabilize food production, of which about 1000 billion yuan is invested every year to support the construction of high-standard farmland. High-standard farmland construction can not only increase the adoption rate of new technologies such as water-saving irrigation, but also curb carbon emission intensity, and have a significant synergistic effect of increasing grain production and carbon emission reduction. Data show that after 2003, China entered a period of decoupling between food security and carbon emissions, with rapid growth in food production, steady decline in total agricultural carbon emissions, and continuous decline in carbon emission intensity per unit of grain output. In addition, the carbon emission intensity of soybeans, potatoes, sugarcane and other units of crops in China has also shown a downward trend.

In terms of emission reduction measures, China has launched a series of agricultural carbon reduction and sequestration strategies, policies and technical measures in recent years, and has basically established a strategy, policy and technical system for the green and low-carbon transformation of agriculture and rural areas. For example, a new rice cropping model of rice yield and methane emission reduction under straw return to the field has achieved significant effects of increasing rice yield by up to 8.8%, increasing nitrogen fertilizer utilization efficiency by more than 30%, increasing rice crop cost saving by 8.3%~9.7%, and reducing methane emissions by 31.5%~71.7%. In terms of breeding, China cultivates and promotes water-saving and drought-resistant rice, reducing methane emissions per mu of rice field by 90%~95%, and the annual planting area in Anhui, Hubei, Zhejiang, Hainan and other places exceeds 300 million mu. In terms of promoting the reduction and efficiency of chemical fertilizers and reducing nitrous oxide emissions in farmland, in 2020, the amount of refraction of agricultural chemical fertilizer application in China decreased by 2016.12% compared with 3, and the soil testing formula fertilized 19.3 billion mu, an increase of 2015.17% over 7. At the same time, in 2020, the comprehensive utilization rate of livestock and poultry manure in China reached 76%, and the emission reduction rate of methane and nitrous oxide exceeded 30%.

Low-carbon agriculture urgently needs a whole-chain solution

"However, there are also many problems and challenges in the low-carbon development of China's agriculture and rural areas." Mei Xurong, the publisher of the report and vice president of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, said. Generally speaking, China's low-carbon agriculture involves many production links and covers a wide range, which requires more profound adjustment and change, and requires a series of all-round rather than single-aspect solutions. The development of ecological low-carbon agriculture requires that while reducing carbon sequestration, it is also necessary to protect and improve the agricultural ecological environment, reduce the consumption and pollution of natural resources, and improve agricultural production efficiency and economic benefits. At present, the integration of China's regional applicable low-carbon agricultural comprehensive model is low, and it is difficult to achieve a real combination of planting and aquaculture, which makes it difficult to build a whole chain overall solution throughout all links of agricultural production.

The "Report" also pointed out that China's large-scale agricultural production level is low, the integration of emission reduction models is insufficient, and low-carbon development and quality improvement and efficiency improvement have not formed a synergy. Mei Xurong introduced that in terms of planting industry emission reduction, China's planting industry has a large base of greenhouse gas emissions, and lacks subversive key technologies for increasing production and reducing emissions, and it is necessary to further explore the collaborative path of pollution reduction and carbon reduction and the collaborative production mode of abundant production and emission reduction. In terms of emission reduction in the breeding industry, compared with developed countries, China's livestock and poultry breeding volume is large and in the stage of transformation and upgrading, there are many problems such as lagging livestock and poultry genetic breeding, low proportion of scale, insufficient high-quality forage, frequent outbreak of epidemics and poor combination of breeding and breeding, etc., the gap between reproductive efficiency and production level is large compared with developed countries, and the greenhouse gas emission factor per unit animal is high, and it is necessary to continuously improve the production performance of animals to achieve synergy between efficient breeding and greenhouse gas emission reduction.

In addition, the huge potential of carbon sequestration in farmland and grassland has yet to be tapped, breakthrough carbon sequestration technologies are lacking, and incentive policies and measures still need to be deepened. For example, in terms of farmland soil carbon sequestration, at present, China's farmland carbon sink technology innovation and leadership are insufficient, the investment intensity of national science and technology plans and professional research institutions is low, and mature and efficient farmland carbon sequestration technologies and products are insufficient. The research on the carbon sequestration potential and carbon sink capacity of grassland ecosystems has just begun.

Coordinate to promote abundant production and efficiency and green and low-carbon development

How can agriculture and rural areas better move towards a green and low-carbon future? The "Report" pointed out that at present, China has formulated the "Implementation Plan for Agricultural and Rural Carbon Emission Reduction and Sequestration", and compiled a list of scientific and technological innovation needs for agricultural and rural emission reduction and carbon sequestration. At present, to meticulously do a good job in various aspects of agricultural and rural carbon emission reduction and sequestration, it is necessary to form a cross-unit, interdisciplinary and cross-team cooperation mechanism, focus on bottlenecks and shortcomings, strengthen the research and development of core agricultural and rural green and low-carbon technologies and equipment such as methane emission reduction in paddy fields, low-carbon emission reduction of livestock and poultry, improvement of farmland carbon sink, green energy conservation of agricultural machinery, and renewable energy substitution, demonstrate advanced and applicable carbon emission reduction and sequestration technologies, form a green and low-carbon development model for agriculture and rural areas suitable for different regions and promote it in demonstration areas, and steadily promote the development of ecological and low-carbon agriculture.

Food security is the great thing of the country. The "Report" recommends that we should coordinate to promote abundant production and efficiency, green and low-carbon development, and reduce agricultural emission intensity. Specifically, we will implement technological innovation in methane emission reduction and yield in paddy fields, strengthen paddy water management, promote water-saving irrigation technology in paddy fields, improve fertilization management in paddy fields, and select and promote high-yield, high-quality, low-carbon rice varieties. In terms of fertilizers, we will develop nitrous oxide emission reduction and efficiency enhancement technologies on agricultural land, promote nitrogen fertilizer reduction and efficiency, promote high-efficiency fertilization technologies such as new fertilizer products and water and fertilizer integration, and promote the combination of organic fertilizer and chemical fertilizer. In terms of breeding, it is necessary to innovate the collaborative technology of efficient breeding of ruminants such as cattle and sheep and intestinal methane emission reduction, and improve the management of livestock and poultry feeding.

In terms of carbon sinks, it is necessary to improve the capacity of agricultural carbon sinks and promote the transformation of agricultural ecological value. Carry out technological innovation and demonstration of key farmland soil carbon sequestration, implement the national black soil protection project, overcome a number of key core technologies, develop a number of farmland soil carbon sequestration technology products, promote technological integration and innovation, and assemble and integrate a number of farmland soil carbon sequestration technologies applicable to different regions. In terms of planting, we will implement conservation tillage, promote technologies such as organic fertilizer application, scientific straw return, green manure breeding, grain and bean rotation, and establish a technical system for carbon sequestration in farmland soil. At the same time, technological innovation and demonstration of carbon sequestration and sequestration in artificial grassland will be carried out to further increase carbon sequestration capacity.

(Beijing, 4 April -- Yang Shu, reporter of this newspaper)

(Guangming Daily)