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Linking soil policy and soil management

Linking soil policy and soil management. Dr Bob Rees. Paper presented to the All Party Parliamentary Group on Agroecology, Westminster, 6 December 2012. Societal challenges. Energy. Climate change. Water. Food. Economic Turmoil. thinkquest. Land shortage. 2.

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Linking soil policy and soil management

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  1. Linking soil policy and soil management Dr Bob Rees Paper presented to the All Party Parliamentary Group on Agroecology, Westminster, 6 December 2012

  2. Societal challenges Energy Climate change Water Food Economic Turmoil thinkquest Land shortage 2 Source: Godfray / Food & Farming Futures Foresight project

  3. Our productive capacity is underpinned by our soil resource • Provide a medium for plant growth • Store carbon • Store water • Mitigate against the effects of pollution • Provide a reservoir for biodiversity • Tends to be old 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  4. Soils under threat • Between 1990-2006 275 ha/ day lost through sealing • Soil erosion affects 1.3 million km2 • Concern about soil organic matter loss JRC, 2012 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  5. Greenhouse gas mitigation APPG Agroecology, Westminster 5 DEFRA 2009

  6. The role of policy • Immediate • Long term 6 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  7. Objectives of CAP reform Sustainable management of natural resources and climate • Preserve food production • Pursue climate change mitigation and adaptation actions and wider sustainability outcomes • Maintain viable rural communities Aims The CAP towards 2020: Meeting the food, natural resources and territorial challenges of the future, EC 2010 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  8. Proposed greening of the CAP • Ecological focus areas • Three crop rotations • Preservation of permanent grassland 8 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  9. Marginal Abatement Cost Curves Expensive options, small emission savings Potentially large mitigation, high uncertainty Financial savings Moran et al, 2011. Journal of Agricultural Economics, 62, 93-118 MacLeod et al, 2011. Agricultural Systems 103, 198-209 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  10. Farming for a Better Climate • SAC demonstrating how farmers can reduce emissions and benefit the farm business • Working with 4 ‘climate change focus farmers’

  11. Why care about nitrogen? • Nitrogen is feeding the world • Nitrogen is polluting air, soil and water, threatening greenhouse balance & biodiversity • The ENA estimates the nitrogen damage cost to the EU at €70 - €320 billion per year 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  12. Nitrogen Damage Costs & Sources Nature 14 April 2011

  13. Summary of N flows in Europe N fluxes in TgN/yr Blue-anthropogenic (intentional) Yellow-anthropogenic (unintentional) Green-natural 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  14. Seven key actions for better nitrogen management • Agriculture • Improving nitrogen use efficiency in crop production • Improving nitrogen use efficiency in animal production • Increasing the fertilizer N equivalence value of animal manure • Transport and Industry • Low-emission combustion and energy-efficient systems • Waste water treatment • Recycling nitrogen (and phosphorus) from waste water systems • Societal consumption patterns • Energy and transport saving • Lowering the human consumption of animal protein 14 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  15. Farm advisory services • Agriculture needs change and innovation in order to improve efficiency • Technologies are becoming more complex • There is a need for a reliable and comprehensive farm advisory service, underpinned by good educational provision 15 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  16. Standing Committee on agricultural Research Two Narratives PRODUCTIVITY SUFFICIENCY The problem - World population 9.2 billion people in 2050 - dramatic environmental problems - no Earth capacity to support consumption. The solution - Scientific advances develop agro-ecosystems that are both productive, respectful for ecosystems and resource saving - demand increases need to be mitigated through behavioural change - • The problem - World population 9.2 billion in 2050 - agricultural productivity slowing down - rising income levels shift diets to more protein rich food and will increase energy • The solution - Scientific advances have the potential to bring forward varieties, breeds and technologies that boost productivity - massive investments into R&D 16 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  17. Improving national inventory reporting of emissions 17 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  18. DEFRA: improving N2O inventory The current inventory structure is ‘bottom up’. Data from national surveys are multiplied by default IPCC emission factors based on international literature review. At present there is little in the way of external validation of the estimated emissions. IPCC Tier 1 N Dynamics Model UK Specific Tier 3 N Dynamics Model UK Specific Tier 2 N Dynamics Model 1% 1% 1% fn{N type, Soil temp} 10% 10% N2O Emissions N2O Emissions N2O Emissions NH3 Deposition NH3 Deposition NH3 Deposition Inventory Development programme will improve structure and refine Emissions Factors via plot to field scale measurements EFDeposited EFDeposited EFDeposited fVolatilisation fVolatilisation fVolatilisation Emissions Model Soil Temperature N Type 28% 30% fn{Soil type} 2.5% 2.5% 2.5% International Reporting N Leached N Leached N Leached fLeached fLeached fLeached EFLeachate EFLeachate EFLeachate Soil Type 1.25% 0.8% fn{N type,SMC, pH} N Type National Reporting N/Manure Applied N/Manure Applied N/Manure Applied EFDirect EFDirect EFDirect 1.25% EFDirect Soil Moisture Content Soil pH 18 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  19. Precision agriculture 19 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  20. Land drainage in Scotland • Maximum drainage installation work occurred between 1940-1960 • Very low levels of grant aided installation after 1985 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  21. Agricultural R&D funding • Public funding of agricultural R&D has declined in most developed countries, but more in the UK than elsewhere Piesse and C. Thirtle, Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 2010 365, 3035-3047 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

  22. Conclusions • Soil science is critically important to address major societal challenges • We should use current opportunities to develop policies that promote better soil management • There is a need for major investment in soil and agricultural sciences in the medium to long term • There is a need to improve agricultural advice and education • There is likely to be a need to address demand side issues 22 6 December 2012 APPG Agroecology, Westminster

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