Strategies for agricultural production management based on land, water and carbon footprints on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Abstract

Agricultural production consumes land and water resources, and contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. Optimizing agricultural management to reduce environmental impacts is essential for regional ecological security. An evaluation framework was applied to assess the greenhouse gas emissions, water utilization, and land use of agricultural production in a typical agricultural region of the Huangshui River Basin on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, using footprint analysis. The results showed that agricultural production released 1.73 × 109 kg carbon equivalent (CO2-eq), and used 8.39 × 108 m3 of water and 2.96 × 105 ha of land. For the carbon footprint, agricultural material inputs (such as electricity, machinery, diesel, and nitrogen fertilizer) were the largest emission sources. For the water footprint, the blue water footprint was larger than the green water footprint. In addition, suitable management options were explored by establishing six scenarios according to the key factors influencing greenhouse gas emissions and water consumption. For technical strategy management options, using cleaner electricity in irrigation can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25.53%. Comprehensive strategies, including fertilizer application optimization and technical strategy management, proved to be more effective and reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 32.41%. The results of this study help to determine optimal agricultural management options for achieving both food security and environmental sustainability in agricultural areas on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.