Location: Delta Water Management Research
Project Number: 6024-13000-004-079-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Mar 15, 2024
End Date: Mar 14, 2029
Objective:
1. Quantify soil C, N, and nutrient losses from fields managed under conventional and conservation cropping and water management practices.
2. Compare global warming potential from conventional and conservation cropping systems.
3. Asses the impacts of conservation practices on crop yields under climate-smart cropping practices.
Approach:
Emerging climate-smart practices such as reduced irrigation, cultivar selection and efficient N management have been recommended to minimize environmental degradation in irrigated crops. Losses of C, N and other nutrients have been recognized in many farmers fields because of minimal adoption to new climate-smart farming. This study will assess the feedback of integrated environment-smart cropping in attaining agricultural sustainability. We will use the vented flux chamber technique to measure fluxes of carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and methane from row crop fields. Samples collected with static vented chambers will be analyzed for atmospheric gases using a gas chromatograph equipped with three detectors for quantifying atmospheric trace gas concentrations. These measurements will take place in long-term fields under irrigated practices. Losses of C, N, and other nutrients will be measured from the field using published chemical and soil analyses. Crop yields will be estimated from harvest area using manual method and machine harvester.
