Carbon footprint analyses and potential carbon emission reduction in China's major peach orchards

Abstract

An excess of material input in fruit orchards has brought serious environmental problems, particularly in China. However, studies on the estimation of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in peach orchards are limited. In this study, based on questionnaire surveys in major peach-producing regions, including the North China Plain (n = 214), as well as northwest (n = 22) and southwest (n = 33) China, the carbon footprints (CFs) of these orchards were calculated by the life cycle assessment. The potential emission reduction in each region was estimated by combining the GHG emissions and CFs with plantation areas and fruit yields. The results showed that the average GHG emissions in the North China Plain, northwest, and southwest regions were 15,668 kg CO2-eq ha-1, 10,386 kg CO2-eq ha-1, and 5580 kg CO2-eq ha-1, with corresponding CFs of 0.48 kg CO2-eq ha-1, 0.27 kg CO2-eq ha-1, and 0.20 kg CO2-eq kg-1, respectively. The main contribution source of GHG emissions in these three regions was fertilizer (77-95%), followed by electricity, pesticides, and diesel. By adopting advanced farming practices with high yield and a high partial factor productivity of fertilizer, the GHG emissions could be reduced by ~13-35%, with the highest potential reduction in the North China Plain. In conclusion, the GHG emissions and their CFs were impressively high in China's major peach-producing regions, but these GHG emissions could be substantially decreased by optimizing nutrients and irrigation management, including the rational selection of fertilizer rates and types with water-saving irrigation systems or practices (e.g., mulching) for increasing fertilizer and water use efficiency, and maintaining a sustainable peach production in China or similar countries.