Adaptation in Agriculture for Global Climate Management

Abstract. This paper presents an overview of global climate management practices in agriculture in response to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report and the Kyoto Protocol. Agriculture is a significant net contributor to climate change through the emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs) -- nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4), and carbon dioxide (CO2). At the same time, agriculture is affected by the global rise in temperature, change in precipitation patterns and extreme weather events. To remain sustainable, agriculture must limit its impact on the global climate. The Kyoto Protocol was placed into effect February 2005. Clean development mechanism (CDM) is a flexible mechanism to reduce emission. --In agriculture, it is recognized that more work is needed to propose simplified guidelines and methodologies for small scale CDM projects. Methane recovery projects and avoidance of methane production are treated separately. Recent research summarizes global measures to agriculture including improvement of feed digestibility and rice paddy management to decrease methane emission, utility of soil as carbon sink, control of N--fertilizer application, land management, and pest and disease control. As bio--ethanol production as an alternative to the use of fossil fuel creates a demand on agricultural land, the Brazilian, American and Chinese approaches are compared. Management practices in agriculture include ecological management, hierarchical analysis, emissions balance, and climatic data management. Beyond 2012, deeper reductions in global emissions will be required. A reconstruction of the problem in the framework of biocapacity and ecological footprint can stimulate problem solving.