Agriculture could play an important role in reducing greenhouse gases and meeting carbon dioxide targets, according to a new UN report.
The report claims that agriculture could make a significant difference as emissions from farming account for 11 per cent of the global total. This includes nitrous oxide from applying fertiliser and CO2 from ploughing fields.
The report outlined measures that contribute to climate-change mitigation and improve the sector's environmental sustainability. It also cited other benefits such as higher yields, lower fertilizer costs and extra profits from wood supply.
One of the recommendations included no-tillage practices, referring to the elimination of ploughing by direct seeding under the mulch layer of the previous season's crop. The report said this would reduce emissions from soil disturbance and use of farm machinery.
The UN cited the example of Argentina where 100 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions have been avoided by a shift to conservation tillage that took place in the 1990s.
It also advocated innovative cropping practices to reduce methane and nitrous oxide emissions and agroforestry regimes to deliberately include woody perennials on farms, as they increase the uptake and storage of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in biomass and soil.
The report was compiled by the United Nations Environment Programme (Unep), and was run by 44 scientific groups in 17 countries.
Unep executive director Achim Steiner said the stepping stone of the 2020 target can still be achieved by strengthening current pledges. He also said more international cooperation initiatives are needed in areas such as energy efficiency, fossil fuel subsidy reform and renewable energy.
He added: 'Even agriculture can contribute, as direct emissions from this sector are currently responsible for 11 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions-more if its indirect emissions are taken into account.'
The report said that emissions should be a maximum of 44 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide by 2020. Total global greenhouse gas emissions in 2010 were already 50.1 gigatonnes, highlighting the scale of the task ahead.
Scientists agree that the risks of irreversible damage to the environment would increase significantly should the global average temperature rise above 2°C.
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