Year-round Intermittent Irrigation Improves Farmers' Profits and Reduces Greenhouse Gas Emissions
―LCA evaluation of the benefits of alternate wetting and drying technology in the Mekong Delta―

JIRCAS conducted an evaluation of the benefits to farmers and reductions in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from implementing alternate wetting and drying (AWD) technology in rural areas of the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. 
 
The results of this study showed farmers who implemented AWD increased their profits by 14% for early wet season crops, 3% for late wet season crops, 1% dry season crops, and 6% throughout the year as compared to farmers who did not implement AWD. The GHG emissions based on life cycle assessment (LCA) also revealed that farmers implementing AWD could reduce GHG emissions by 40% for early wet season crops, 37% late wet season crops, 35% dry season crops, and 38% for the entire year. Even taking into account the differences in farmland management by cropping season, AWD-farmers were able to demonstrate the benefits of implementing AWD throughout the year, enabling a significant reduction of GHG emissions while gaining benefits in terms of profits, as compared to non-AWD farmers.
 
The implementation of year-round AWD is an agricultural system with co-benefit that both increases farmers' profits and reduces environmental impacts from agriculture, and is expected to be a promising mitigation and adaptation measure for climate change in the Asia-Monsoon region.

The results of this research have been published in the online edition of Journal of Cleaner Production, an international, transdisciplinary journal focusing on cleaner production, environmental, and sustainability research and practice.  (April 4, 2022 JST).

Authors

A Leon, T Izumi

Title

Impacts of alternate wetting and drying on rice farmers’profits and life cycle greenhouse gas emissions in An Giang Province in Vietnam

Journal

Journal of Cleaner Production
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2022.131621

JIRCAS President :  KOYAMA Osamu
Program Director :  HAYASHI Keiichi 

Principal Investigators :  LEON Ai (Social Sciences Division)
　　　　　　IZUMI Taro (Rural Development Division)
Press Coordinator :  OMORI Keisuke (Head, Information and Public Relations Office)    
　　　　　　E-mail：koho-jircas@ml.affrc.go.jp