Comparison of the Farming System and Carbon Sequestration between Conventional and Organic Rice Production in West Java, Indonesia

Masakazu Komatsuzaki,M Faiz Syuaib

doi:10.3390/su2030833

Masakazu Komatsuzaki, M Faiz Syuaib

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/su2030833

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Journal: Sustainability	Publication Date: Mar 22, 2010
Citations: 36	License type: CC BY 3.0

Affiliation: Ibaraki University, Bogor Agricultural University

Abstract

Organic farming provides many benefits in Indonesia: it can improve soil quality, food quality and soil carbon sequestration. This study was designed to compare soil carbon sequestration levels between conventional and organic rice farming fields in west Java, Indonesia. The results from soil analysis indicate that organic farming leads to soil with significantly higher soil carbon storage capacity than conventional farming. Organic farming can also cut some farming costs, but it requires about twice as much labor. The sharecropping system of rice farming in Indonesia is highly exploitative of workers; therefore, research should be conducted to develop a fairer organic farming system that can enhance both local and global sustainability.

Highlights

During the latter half of the 20th century, intensive agriculture increased crop yields and was successful in meeting the growing demand for food, but it degraded the natural resources upon which agriculture depends—soil, water resources, and natural genetic diversity [1,2]
The soil in the organic farming system showed higher soil carbon content than conventional soils after four years of continuous organic farming, there were no significant differences in soil bulk density between the two farming systems (Table 1)
Soil carbon storage in organic farming was significantly increased compared with conventional farming

Summary

Introduction

During the latter half of the 20th century, intensive agriculture increased crop yields and was successful in meeting the growing demand for food, but it degraded the natural resources upon which agriculture depends—soil, water resources, and natural genetic diversity [1,2]. Millennium Ecosystem Assessment [3] revealed that the overuse and mismanagement of pesticides poisons the water and soil, while nitrogen and phosphorus inputs and livestock wastes have become major pollutants of surface water, aquifers, and coastal wetlands and estuaries. These situations are serious and cause severe ecological problems in the tropical biological environment, especially in Indonesia. Organic farming provides a lot of benefits to the farming system in Indonesia, because it can improve soil and food quality, and increase the soil organic carbon (SOC) storage in the soil. This research was designed to compare soil carbon sequestration levels in conventional and organic farming systems for rice production on the island of Java, Indonesia

Study Area

Field Investigations

Soil and Crop Yield Analysis

Results and Discussion

Conclusions

Millennium Ecosystem Assessment: Ecosystems and Human Well-Being

21. UNCED Agenda 21