Evaluation of Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Maize Production in China

Abstract

Maize is an important food crop, reaching millions of people on a daily basis. In this research, the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of maize production over the period of 2003-2016 were investigated using national statistical data. During this period, total amount of GHG emissions from maize increased gradually. The cumulative contributions of different influencing factors in 14 y showed that agricultural economic development level was the major reason of increasing GHG emissions, while agricultural efficiency was the major reason of declining GHG emissions. On the other hand, spatial and temporal patterns of maize carbon footprint (CF) showed that improving crop yield could reduce food CF, and the increased total GHG emissions from maize production was mainly because of expand production. Maize CF values showed great differences among regions. The research suggested that the cropping regions of the crops with high CF and low yield per ha should be optimized to reduce GHG emissions.