A comprehensive assessment of greenhouse gas emissions research in the Cerrado region, Brazil

Author(s)

Locatelli, Jorge Luiz ; Popin, Gustavo Vicentini ; Santos, Rafael Silva ; Bieluczyk, Wanderlei ; Cipriani, Leticia Thomaz ; Cherubin, Mauricio Roberto ; Cerri, Carlos Eduardo Pellegrino

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: CATENA; v. 247, p. 15-pg., 2024-12-01.

Abstract

The increasing demand for food, fiber, and (bio)energy boosted by population growth has accentuated agricultural expansion, increasing global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This scenario is valid in Brazil, where agriculture accounts for the largest part of the nation's GHG emissions, primarily associated with the expansion of agriculture over areas of native vegetation, especially in the Cerrado region. However, despite the contribution of this sector to GHG emissions, there is a limited understanding of how different systems affect these emissions, as well as the current state of the art on this topic. Therefore, we performed a comprehensive literature review to synthesize the information about GHG emissions in the region, including cropping systems where GHG was measured, methodological procedures, and the main results achieved. Our review shows that the subject of "GHG" has been poorly investigated, with a huge discrepancy compared to other related topics such as soil organic matter. Most studies (31 % of 236) only mentioned GHG-related terms but did not measure them. The studies that measured GHG (n = 39) were conducted mainly in the south-central part of the region and were mostly limited to short-term experiments (< 5 years) or monitoring periods (< 1 year), using manual static chambers. The analysis of the available GHG data indicated that converting Cerrado into agriculture increases N2O emissions by 0.45 kg ha(-1) year(-1) while decreasing CH4 influx by 3 kg ha(-1) year(-1). Despite that, notillage combined with cover crops effectively reduces N2O emissions ( -0.3 kg ha(-1) year(-1)). Our findings reveal a significant gap in monitoring GHG fluxes in the Cerrado region, particularly in the northern part where Brazil's new agricultural frontier, the Matopiba region, is located. Efforts should prioritize generating comprehensive GHG data for Cerrado agriculture by employing more robust monitoring protocols. This would help guide producers, researchers, and policymakers to enhance agricultural management practices toward greater sustainability. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 21/10573-4 - Center for Carbon Research in Tropical Agriculture (CCARBON)
• Grantee: Carlos Eduardo Pellegrino Cerri
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Research, Innovation and Dissemination Centers - RIDC
• FAPESP's process: 20/15230-5 - Research Centre for Greenhouse Gas Innovation - RCG2I
• Grantee: Julio Romano Meneghini
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Research Centers in Engineering Program
• FAPESP's process: 21/14989-0 - The role of Cerrado agriculture in mitigation of climate change: intensification of agroecosystems and soil carbon balance
• Grantee: Jorge Luiz Locatelli
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 23/18333-8 - Quantifying Soil Organic Carbon Responses to Fire at the Landscape Scale in the Amazonia
• Grantee: Wanderlei Bieluczyk
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• FAPESP's process: 19/25988-5 - Nitrogen in deep soils of Cerrado biome: environmental factor or crop management setback?
• Grantee: Gustavo Vicentini Popin
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 22/15778-6 - Prediction of net greenhouse gas emissions under agrosystems intensification and climate change scenarios in Brazilian savanna
• Grantee: Jorge Luiz Locatelli
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate