Climate-Smart Agriculture for a Changing World

A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Farming Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2024 | Viewed by 2341

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Instituto de Ciências Agrárias, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Florestal 35690, MG, Brazil
Interests: soil organic matter; greenhouse gases; regenerative agriculture; climate change; mitigation and adaptation in agriculture

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Agriculture is a major emitter of greenhouse gases and one of the human activities most affected by the effects of climate change. The main move expected from this sector in the coming years is the adoption of production systems that are more resilient to global warming and which contribute to climate change mitigation by sequestering soil C. In this sense, climate-smart agriculture (CSA) has been put forward to synergistically achieve climate change adaptation, mitigation, and food security. Despite the notoriety that CSA has received in recent years, these practices have been adopted for decades and, certainly, there are plenty of mitigative and adaptive technologies for agriculture worldwide. However, assessing the effectiveness of a management practice for climate change mitigation and adaptation in agricultural systems is a challenge. This Special Issue aims to report on the most recent studies that demonstrate how CSA contributes to ensuring food supply in a changing world. We welcome empirical, modelling, and review contributions, including, but not limited to, integrated landscape management, soil C and greenhouse gas assessments in agricultural systems, crop diversification, fertilizers with controlled nutrient release, no-tillage, soil quality, organic amendments, and crop–livestock–forest integration.

Prof. Dr. Dener Márcio da Silva Oliveira
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • climate change
  • soil organic matter
  • agricultural systems
  • mitigation
  • adaptation
  • carbon sequestration
  • soil quality
  • greenhouse gases
  • soil management
  • climate resilience

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 787 KiB  
Article
Carbon and Nitrogen Stocks in Soil under Native Pastures in the Pantanal Wetland Biome, Brazil
by Diego Antonio França de Freitas, Marx Leandro Naves Silva, Evaldo Luis Cardoso, Dener Marcio da Silva Oliveira, Mara Regina Moitinho and Nilton Curi
Agronomy 2024, 14(9), 1994; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14091994 - 2 Sep 2024
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Abstract
The Pantanal has a high diversity of native pastures that provide food for many wild and domestic animals. Pantanal cattle raising is practiced in an extensive grazing-based system that varies according to the flood levels in the area. This study aimed to evaluate [...] Read more.
The Pantanal has a high diversity of native pastures that provide food for many wild and domestic animals. Pantanal cattle raising is practiced in an extensive grazing-based system that varies according to the flood levels in the area. This study aimed to evaluate the fractions of soil organic matter in areas of native pastures under different uses and to quantify C and N stocks in sandy soils of the Pantanal. Soil samples from three native pastures differentiated by the predominance of Hymenachne amplexicaulis, Axonopus purpusii, and Mesosetum chaseae under different land use systems (continuous grazing and no grazing for five years) were collected and used to quantify the contents of carbon, nitrogen, and humic fractions. The dynamics of SOM are modified in grazed areas of the Pantanal, with influence on C and N, including their stocks. Native pastures of Axonopus purpusii and Hymenachne amplexicaulis showed an increase in organic matter after five years without grazing, while Mesosetum chaseae showed lower soil density and nitrogen levels. The highest C stock was observed in ungrazed areas of H. amplexicaulis (127.41 Mg ha−1 in the 0–40 cm layer). The dynamics of nitrogen in Pantanal pastures are influenced by the type of vegetation and land management, with higher nitrogen content in the surface layer (0–10 cm) and an increasing C/N ratio with soil depth, indicating lower nitrogen availability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Climate-Smart Agriculture for a Changing World)
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21 pages, 695 KiB  
Article
Assessing Agricultural Impact on Greenhouse Gases in the European Union: A Climate-Smart Agriculture Perspective
by Anca Antoaneta Vărzaru
Agronomy 2024, 14(4), 821; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14040821 - 15 Apr 2024
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Abstract
With the increasing concern about climate change and its impacts on agriculture, understanding the dynamics of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the European Union (EU) agricultural sector is essential for devising effective mitigation strategies. This study aims to assess the impact of agriculture [...] Read more.
With the increasing concern about climate change and its impacts on agriculture, understanding the dynamics of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the European Union (EU) agricultural sector is essential for devising effective mitigation strategies. This study aims to assess the impact of agriculture on GHG within the EU and to examine how climate-smart agricultural practices can affect these emissions. The research investigates the complex relationship between agricultural activities and GHG emissions within the European Union during the period of 2017–2022 using structural equation modeling based on data from Eurostat and the European Commission. Furthermore, the study examines the influence of the digital economy on labor productivity in agriculture, recognizing the pivotal role of digital technologies in fostering climate-smart agricultural practices. The findings unveil significant positive influences encompassing the digital economy, agricultural productivity, agricultural output, and GHG emissions, underscoring the imperative of integrating climate-smart methodologies into agricultural frameworks. However, the influence of digital technologies is not significant as a result of opposing forces. Digital technologies exert positive indirect influences by increasing agricultural productivity and agricultural output, while they have negative influences by improving production processes through automation and precision agriculture. Digitalization and climate-smart agricultural practices have a significant potential to improve the efficiency and sustainability of the agricultural sector, contributing to food security and environmental protection by reducing GHG emissions. This study highlights the EU’s potential to achieve its environmental objectives through the reduction of GHG emissions and the enhancement of resilience within the agricultural sector, emphasizing the necessity of adopting climate-smart strategies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Climate-Smart Agriculture for a Changing World)
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