Collecting the carbon data needed for Climate-Smart agriculture in Saskatchewan

Term: 4 years, beginning in 2020

Status: Ongoing

Funding Amount: $66, 607

Lead Researcher(s): Dr. Kate Congreves (University of Saskatchewan)

Funding Partners: Agriculture Development Fund - Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, Saskatchewan Canola Development Commission, Saskatchewan Oats Development Commission

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Project Description

Carbon foot printing is a now an important component of provincial, national, and international sustainability initiatives. Currently, there is no direct annual data on net carbon footprints for Saskatchewan cropping systems. Thus, the focus of this project is to provide spatially and temporally integrated data on greenhouse gas (GHG; N2O and CO2) emissions at the field scale level obtained using micrometeorological techniques that will be used to determine net ecosystem exchange and the net carbon footprint of the cropping system (canola cereal rotation). Saskatchewan might have a lower carbon footprint than other cropping regions in Canada. This research will provide the data needed to support this hypothesis. This study will measure the carbon footprint of a representative cropping system that encompasses 4R+ practices aimed at minimizing emissions using the 2-yr canola-cereal rotation over two cycles (4 years in total).This research will support the policy development for local producers as they enter the carbon economy and to ensure the competitiveness of Saskatchewan agriculture.