| Records |
| Author |
Rusu, T. |
| Title |
Energy efficiency and soil conservation in conventional, minimum tillage and no-tillage |
Type |
Journal Article |
| Year |
2014 |
Publication |
International Soil and Water Conservation Research |
Abbreviated Journal |
International Soil and Water Conservation Research |
| Volume |
2 |
Issue |
4 |
Pages |
42-49 |
| Keywords |
No-tillage; Minimum tillage; Yield; Energy efficiency; Soil conservation |
| Abstract |
The objective of this research was to determine the capacity of a soil tillage system in soil conservation, in productivity and in energy efficiency. The minimum tillage and no-tillage systems represent good alternatives to the conventional (plough) system of soil tillage, due to their conservation effects on soil and to the good production of crops (Maize, 96%-98% of conventional tillage for minimum tillage, and 99.8% of conventional tillage for no till; Soybeans, 103%-112% of conventional tillage for minimum tillage and 117% of conventional tillage for no till; Wheat, 93%-97% of conventional tillage for minimum tillage and 117% of conventional tillage for no till. The choice of the right soil tillage system for crops in rotation help reduce energy consumption, thus for maize: 97%-98% energy consumption of conventional tillage when using minimum tillage and 91% when using no-tillage; for soybeans: 98% energy consumption of conventional tillage when using minimum tillage and 93 when using no-tillage; for wheat: 97%-98% energy consumption of conventional tillage when using minimum tillage and 92% when using no-tillage. Energy efficiency is in relation to reductions in energy use, but also might include the efficiency and impact of the tillage system on the cultivated plant. For all crops in rotation, energy efficiency (energy produced from 1 MJ consumed) was the best in no-tillage — 10.44 MJ ha− 1 for maize, 6.49 MJ ha− 1 for soybean, and 5.66 MJ ha− 1 for wheat. An analysis of energy-efficiency in agricultural systems includes the energy consumed-energy produced-energy yield comparisons, but must be supplemented by soil energy efficiency, based on the conservative effect of the agricultural system. Only then will the agricultural system be sustainable, durable in agronomic, economic and ecological terms. The implementation of minimum and no-tillage soil systems has increased the organic matter content from 2% to 7.6% and water stable aggregate content from 5.6% to 9.6%, at 0–30 cm depth, as compared to the conventional system. Accumulated water supply was higher (with 12.4%-15%) for all minimum and no-tillage systems and increased bulk density values by 0.01%-0.03% (no significant difference) While the soil fertility and the wet aggregate stability have initially been low, the effect of conservation practices on the soil characteristics led to a positive impact on the water permeability in the soil. Availability of soil moisture during the crop growth period led to a better plant watering condition. Subsequent release of conserved soil water regulated the plant water condition and soil structure. |
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2095-6339 |
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CropM, ftnotmacsur |
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MA @ admin @ |
Serial |
4637 |
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| Author |
Porter, J.R.; Wratten, S. |
| Title |
National carbon stocks: Move on to a carbon currency standard |
Type |
Journal Article |
| Year |
2014 |
Publication |
Nature |
Abbreviated Journal |
Nature |
| Volume |
506 |
Issue |
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Pages |
295 |
| Keywords |
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| Abstract |
Alongside Robert Costanza and colleagues’ plea to abandon gross domestic product as a measure of national success (see Nature 505, 283–285; 2014), we believe that there is an urgent need to change the way currencies are valued — by using a new ‘carbon standard’ that links economy to ecology. This would work in a similar way to the old gold-exchange standard, except that a country’s currency value would instead be determined by its saved and standing stocks of fossil and non-fossil carbon. Governments would need to decide whether to risk devaluing their currency by depleting carbon stocks — while still honouring a commitment to keep fossil-carbon stocks at 80% as a safeguard against extreme climate change. After the Second World War, huge investments radically altered the economies of the United States, the Soviet Union and the United Kingdom. In the face of climate change, it is now the global energy system that needs reinvention. |
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CropM |
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MA @ admin @ |
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4635 |
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Porter, J.R.; Dyball, R.; Dumaresq, D.; Deutsch, L.; Matsuda, H. |
| Title |
Feeding capitals: Urban food security and self-provisioning in Canberra, Copenhagen and Tokyo |
Type |
Journal Article |
| Year |
2014 |
Publication |
Global Food Security |
Abbreviated Journal |
Global Food Security |
| Volume |
3 |
Issue |
1 |
Pages |
1-7 |
| Keywords |
cities; food security; self-provisioning; provisioning ecosystems |
| Abstract |
Most people live in cities, but most food system studies and food security issues focus on the rural poor. Urban populations differ from rural populations in their food consumption by being generally wealthier, requiring food trade for their food security, defined as the extent to which people have adequate diets. Cities rarely have the self-provisioning capacity to satisfy their own food supply, understood as the extent to which the food consumed by the city’s population is produced from the city’s local agro-ecosystems. Almost inevitably, a city’s food security is augmented by production from remote landscapes, both internal and external in terms of a state’s jurisdiction. We reveal the internal and external food flows necessary for the food security of three wealthy capital cities (Canberra, Australia; Copenhagen, Denmark; Tokyo, Japan). These cities cover two orders of magnitude in population size and three orders of magnitude in population density. From traded volumes of food and their sources into the cities, we calculate the productivity of the city’s regional and non-regional ecosystems that provide food for these cities and estimate the overall utilised land area. The three cities exhibit differing degrees of food self provisioning capacity and exhibit large differences in the areas on which they depend to provide their food. We show that, since 1965, global land area effectively imported to produce food for these cities has increased with their expanding populations, with large reductions in the percentage of demand met by local agro-ecosystems. The physical trading of food commodities embodies ecosystem services, such as water, soil fertility and pollination that are required for land-based food production. This means that the trade in these embodied ecosystem services has become as important for food security as traditional economic mechanisms such as market access and trade. A future policy question, raised by our study, is the degree to which governments will remain committed to open food trade policies in the face of national political unrest caused by food shortages. Our study demonstrates the need to determine the food security and self-provisioning capacity of a wide range of rich and poor cities, taking into account the global location of the ecosystems that are provisioning them. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. |
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2211-9124 |
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CropM, ftnotmacsur |
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no |
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MA @ admin @ |
Serial |
4636 |
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| Author |
Kopacz, M.; Twardy, S. |
| Title |
Spatial modeling as a tool supporting the management of catchment area of retention reservoir |
Type |
Journal Article |
| Year |
2014 |
Publication |
Polish Journal of Environmental Studies |
Abbreviated Journal |
Pol. J. Environ. Stud. |
| Volume |
23 |
Issue |
3a |
Pages |
53-57 |
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CropM, LiveM |
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no |
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MA @ admin @ |
Serial |
4628 |
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Mansouri, M.; Dumont, B.; Leemans, V.; Destain, M.-F. |
| Title |
Bayesian methods for predicting LAI and soil water content |
Type |
Journal Article |
| Year |
2014 |
Publication |
Precision Agriculture |
Abbreviated Journal |
Precision Agric. |
| Volume |
15 |
Issue |
2 |
Pages |
184-201 |
| Keywords |
crop model; bayes; data assimilation; extended kalman filtering; particle filtering; variational filtering; leaf-area index; parameter-estimation; crop models; moisture; instruments; management; sensors; state |
| Abstract |
LAI of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and soil water content of the topsoil (200 mm) and of the subsoil (500 mm) were considered as state variables of a dynamic soil-crop system. This system was assumed to progress according to a Bayesian probabilistic state space model, in which real values of LAI and soil water content were daily introduced in order to correct the model trajectory and reach better future evolution. The chosen crop model was mini STICS which can reduce the computing and execution times while ensuring the robustness of data processing and estimation. To predict simultaneously state variables and model parameters in this non-linear environment, three techniques were used: extended Kalman filtering (EKF), particle filtering (PF), and variational filtering (VF). The significantly improved performance of the VF method when compared to EKF and PF is demonstrated. The variational filter has a low computational complexity and the convergence speed of states and parameters estimation can be adjusted independently. Detailed case studies demonstrated that the root mean square error of the three estimated states (LAI and soil water content of two soil layers) was smaller and that the convergence of all considered parameters was ensured when using VF. Assimilating measurements in a crop model allows accurate prediction of LAI and soil water content at a local scale. As these biophysical properties are key parameters in the crop-plant system characterization, the system has the potential to be used in precision farming to aid farmers and decision makers in developing strategies for site-specific management of inputs, such as fertilizers and water irrigation. |
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1385-2256 |
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CropM, ftnotmacsur |
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no |
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MA @ admin @ |
Serial |
4629 |
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