Which rice farming system is more environmentally friendly in Khuzestan province, Iran? A study based on emergy analysis

Hamed Eyni-Nargeseh, Mohammad Reza Asgharipour, Sajjad Rahimi-Moghaddam, Abdolali Gilani, Abdolmajid Mahdavi Damghani and Khosro Azizi

Ecological Modelling, 2023, vol. 481, issue C

Abstract: This research was conducted with the aim of (i) evaluating the sustainability of three rice production systems (DBS: dry bed seeding, TP: transplanting, and WBS: wet bed seeding) in Khuzestan province, Iran, (ii) introducing the most cost-effective and sustainable system, and (iii) providing solutions to increase the systems' sustainability and efficiency. In order to analyze the studied systems during the 2020–2021 growing season, several emergy-based and economic indicators were analyzed. The total emergy inputs supporting the systems are estimated to be 2.69E+16, 4.16E+16, and 3.17E+16 sej ha−1 yr−1 for DBS, TP, and WBS, respectively. The three studied farming systems were determined to be inefficient and unsustainable due to their reliance on purchased resources including labor, fossil fuel, and seed/transplant. According to the environmental loading ratio and modified environmental loading ratio indicators, the WBS and TP systems exerted less pressure on ecosystems and were more sustainable than the DBS system due to the greater quantity of purchased renewable flows (labor and seed/transplant). The results of the emergy renewability, emergy sustainability index, and modified emergy sustainability index indices indicated that the three investigated systems were not sustainable, indicating that high energy consumption in rice farming systems resulted in a significant environmental burden. The economic analysis of rice production systems revealed that the DBS system was economically superior due to its lower total production costs, especially labor costs, when compared with the other two systems. In light of the water scarcity crisis in Iran, the DBS method is recommended due mainly because of its ability to save 30–60% of irrigation water in the studied areas compared with the other two systems that have high water consumption. Due to the lower sustainability and greater environmental pressure of the DBS method compared with the two studied farming systems, it is also recommended to decrease the proportion of nonrenewable inputs (fossil fuel, chemical fertilizers, and herbicides) and increase the proportion of renewable inputs (organic fertilizer).

Keywords: Chemical fertilizers; Fossil fuel; Irrigation water; Renewable inputs; Rice seed yield; Soil erosion (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ecomod:v:481:y:2023:i:c:s0304380023001011

DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2023.110373

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