Greenhouse gas assessment of agro-silvo-pastoral system of the Mediterranean coast: the case of Castelporziano Reserve
Author(s)
Grossi, Giampiero
Date Issued
July 22, 2020
Type
Doctoral Thesis
Abstract
Despite some deniers still persist, the evidences of climate change (CC) are currently growing before our eyes, and global warming is one of the major threats to public global health. The world is way behind on its commitment to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and in the next decades, nations must make an unprecedented effort to cut their levels of GHG to avoid climate chaos. By providing food to about 7.7 billion of people, agriculture contributes to a significant share (11-12%) of the global GHG emissions, especially because of methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions sources. However, if it is true that agriculture is a part of the CC problem, it is equally true that agriculture could be a part of the solution. Carbon sequestration in the agriculture sector is the capacity of agricultural lands and forest to remove CO2 from the atmosphere. Specifically, CO2 is absorbed by trees, plants and crops through photosynthesis, and stored as cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin in tree trunks, branches, foliage, roots and soils. As a result, soils are the largest terrestrial carbon sink in the planet. Therefore, if on one hand a release of just 0.1% of the soil organic carbon (SOC) currently stocked in European soils would be equal to the annual emissions from 100 million cars, on the other hand, a small increase of its content would significantly reduce the CO2 concentration in atmosphere. The dynamics (i.e., increase and decrease) of SOC are highly influenced by agricultural practices, climate and soil. In this context, by employing farming practices that involve minimal disturbance of the soil and the use of organic fertilizers, farmers may be able to increase the amount of SOC in their fields, and thus contribute to both soil fertility maintenance, and global GHG mitigation. However, although SOC sequestration could be a great ally in the fight against CC, the sustainability of the agricultural sector cannot be achieved by focusing solely on the upstream processes of the system, and GHG mitigation opportunities must be identified also at later stages of the supply chain. In this regard, by allowing the evaluation of the overall environmental impacts generated along a product/service life cycle (i.e., from raw material acquisition, through production and utilization phases, to waste management), the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a useful tool that could help in defining effective mitigation strategies. Nowadays, the need for verified and credible information on GHG emissions is increasing, with pressure coming from a wide range of interest groups (e.g., governmental and nongovernmental organizations) aimed on reducing greenwashing. In this respect, the environmental labels based on LCA studies are valuable tools to establish credible green marketing claims.
This thesis is composed of three studies which have used the LCA approach to investigate the GHG emissions arising from different systems involving anthropogenic activities. In the first study, the LCA approach was used to quantify the overall GHG emissions (from cradle-to-grave) generated by a local organic beef supply chain. The study identifiesthe main GHG hotspots, and suggests some mitigation practices that could be applicable along the short supply chain.
In the second study, the LCA approach allowed the evaluation of the GHG emissions (from cradle-to-farm-gate) arising from a farm that rears native beef cattle within a Mediterranean natural reserve of Italy. Specifically, in this study different agronomic practices, grazing management and
climate scenarios were evaluated for their contribution on the soil GHG emissions and sinks, and
thus the overall farm carbon footprint. Finally, the third and last study aimed at developing a standard (LCA-based) guideline to be followed when assessing the GHG emissions (from cradle-to-grave) generated by all the common activities taking place within a National park. Particularly, the feasibility and applicability of the guideline proposed, was tested using a Mediterranean natural reserve of Italy as case study. Although GHG hotspots and mitigation strategies were discussed within the paper, the final aim of the work was to propose a widely accepted LCA-based guideline to be followed in order to obtain an environmental declaration for natural parks.
The results of this PhD thesis provide interesting insights about the GHG emissions arising from typical beef systems of the Mediterranean area, and about some possible related mitigation
strategies. Although the livestock and soil emissions resulted as the main GHG hotspots of the beef supply chain, home consumption and retail phases have also shown potential room for improvement. The adoption of conservation tillage practices and the use of organic fertilizers were
shown to be effective in mitigating the GHG emissions arising from the beef farm system. While,
by providing a granular picture of the Mediterranean natural reserve’ GHG emission sources and
hotspots, the proposed LCA-based guideline shown to feasible and suitable in achieving the
planned objectives.
Additional information
Dottorato di ricerca in Scienze delle produzioni vegetali e animali
Subjects
File(s)![Thumbnail Image]()
Name
ggrossi_tesid.pdf
Size
2.29 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
785941f759f0be4b5b6acb3e4fd0add0