Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Grassland Ecosystems of the Central Lithuania: Multi-Criteria Evaluation on a Basis of the ARAS Method
Author(s) -
Ligita Baležentienė,
Albinas Kusta
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
the scientific world journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.453
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 2356-6140
pISSN - 1537-744X
DOI - 10.1100/2012/908384
Subject(s) - environmental science , greenhouse gas , biomass (ecology) , grassland , pasture , agroecosystem , agriculture , life cycle assessment , vegetation (pathology) , ecosystem , agroforestry , agronomy , ecology , medicine , macroeconomics , pathology , production (economics) , economics , biology
N 2 O, CH 4 , and CO 2 are potential greenhouse gas (GHG) contributing to climate change; therefore, solutions have to be sought to reduce their emission from agriculture. This work evaluates GHG emission from grasslands submitted to different mineral fertilizers during vegetation period (June–September) in two experimental sites, namely, seminatural grassland (8 treatments of mineral fertilizers) and cultural pasture (intensively managed) in the Training Farm of the Lithuanian University of Agriculture. Chamber method was applied for evaluation of GHG emissions on the field scale. As a result, soil chemical composition, compactness, temperature, and gravimetric moisture as well as biomass yield of fresh and dry biomass and botanical composition, were assessed during the research. Furthermore, a simulation of multi-criteria assessment of sustainable fertilizers management was carried out on a basis of ARAS method. The multicriteria analysis of different fertilizing regimes was based on a system of environmental and productivity indices. Consequently, agroecosystems of cultural pasture (N 180 P 120 K 150 ) and seminatural grassland fertilizing rates N 180 P 120 K 150 and N 60 P 40 K 50 were evaluated as the most sustainable alternatives leading to reduction of emissions between biosphere-atmosphere and human-induced biogenic pollution in grassland ecosystems, thus contributing to improvement of countryside environment.
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