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Global warming potential of wheat production in Western Australia: a life cycle assessment
Author(s) -
Biswas Wahidul K.,
Barton Louise,
Carter Daniel
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
water and environment journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.437
H-Index - 37
eISSN - 1747-6593
pISSN - 1747-6585
DOI - 10.1111/j.1747-6593.2008.00127.x
Subject(s) - greenhouse gas , tonne , environmental science , life cycle assessment , nitrous oxide , agriculture , carbon dioxide equivalent , global warming potential , environmental engineering , global warming , diesel fuel , port (circuit theory) , production (economics) , climate change , waste management , engineering , geography , chemistry , ecology , macroeconomics , organic chemistry , archaeology , economics , biology , electrical engineering
Abstract This study presents a greenhouse gas (GHG) life cycle assessment of 1 tonne of wheat transported to port in south‐western Australia, including emissions from prefarm, onfarm and postfarm stages. The prefarm stage included GHG emissions from agricultural machinery, fertiliser and pesticide production. The onfarm stage included GHG emissions from diesel use, liming and nitrous oxide (N 2 O) emissions from N fertiliser applications. The postfarm stage included grain storage and transportation to the port. GHG emissions decreased from 487 to 304 kg carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) equivalents when we used regional‐specific data for N 2 O emissions instead of the IPCC default value for the application of synthetic N fertilisers to land (1.0%). Fertiliser production in the prefarm stage contributed significantly (35%) to GHG, followed by onfarm CO 2 emissions (27%) and emissions from transportation of inputs and wheat (12%). N 2 O emissions from paddock represented 9% of the total GHGs emitted. We recommend utilising regionally specific data for soil N 2 O emissions, rather than international default values, when assessing GHG for agricultural production systems.