Several studies indicate that the use of integrated production systems, such as integrated crop-livestock-forest systems (ICLF), improves the quality of the soil and consequently the sequestration of organic carbon in the soil. In this way, this work aims to evaluate the carbon stocks in soil under different management systems in the Cerrado/Amazonia transition zone, namely: ICLF, no-tillage, pasture and eucalyptus plantation. For this, two soil sam- plings were done in 2011 and 2014, in the 0 – 5, 5 – 10 and 10 – 30 cm layers. Soil carbon and nitrogen stocks were analyzed. ICLF system was the treatment that obtained the highest percentage of carbon gain (7.8%) after three years of establishment which represents to an increase of 5.5 Mg·ha−1. Management systems, such as ICLF, with minimal soil disturbance combined with crop ro- tations that contribute to the quantity and quality of residues input, increase soil organic matter content. Carbon stock data show the potential of ICLF systems to increase soil carbon stocks.

Until 2019, the Brazilian federal government employed a number of policy measures to fulfill the pledge of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from land use change and agriculture. While its forest law enforcement strategy was partially successful in combating illegal deforestation, the effectiveness of positive incentive mea- sures in agriculture has been less clear. The reason is that emissions reduction from market-based incentives such as the Brazilian Low-Carbon Agriculture Plan cannot be easily verified with current remote sensing monitoring approaches. Farmers have adopted a large variety of integrated land-use systems of crop, livestock and forestry with highly diverse per-hectare carbon balances. Their responses to policy incentives were largely driven by cost and benefit considerations at the farm level and not necessarily aligned with federal environmental objectives. This article analyzes climate-related land-use policies in the state of Mato Grosso, where highly mechanized soybean–cotton and soybean–maize cropping systems prevail. We employ agent-based bioeconomic simulation together with life-cycle assessment to explicitly capture the heterogeneity of farm-level costs, benefits of adoption, and greenhouse gas emissions. Our analysis confirms previous assessments but suggests a smaller farmer policy response when measured as increase in area of integrated systems. In terms of net carbon balances, our simulation results indicate that mitigation effects at the farm level depended heavily on the exact type of livestock and grazing system. The available data were insufficient to rule out even adverse effects. The Brazilian experience thus offers lessons for other land-rich countries that build their climate mitigation policies on eco- nomic incentives in agriculture.

The application of liquid pig slurry (LPS) to pastures offers potential as a fertilizer but could have a direct influence on soil CO2 emissions. This study evaluated soil carbon dioxide emissions after successive LPS applications to soils under pasture cultivation. The experiment was carried out on ‘Tifton-85’ bermudagrass pasture cultivated in a red-yellow oxisol soil in the municipality of Lucas do Rio Verde-MT, Brazil. Two treatments were evaluated: the control and an application of 20 m3 ha-1 of LPS after each cut of the pasture. The CO2 emissions from the soil were determined using a high-precision infrared gas analyzer. Soil temperature and soil moisture were determined as were micrometeorological variables. The application of LPS had a significant effect on soil C-CO2 flow. The average flow of C-CO2 from the soil for the control treatment and with the application of LPS was 0.236 g C-CO2 m-2 h-1 and 0.291 g C-CO2 m-2 h-1, respectively. The application of LPS increased the accumulated CO2 emissions from the soil by 23.2%. Soil temperature and moisture are the main factors regulating the process of soil CO2 emission. These factors therefore need to be considered when evaluating the impact of LPS application on greenhouse gas emissions.

Abstract

Soils have important roles in the global budgets of the greenhouse gases. The liquid pig slurry (LPS) in pastures has high potential as a fertilizer but could have a direct influence on emission of greenhouse gasses. This study evaluated the effects of the application of LPS and inorganic mineral fertilization during the rainy and dry seasons on the emissions of CO2, CH4 and N2O in pastures planted with Tifton-85. The following treatments were tested: Control – no fertilization; LPS30 – 30 m3 ha-1; LPS60 – 60 m3 ha-1; LPS90 – 90 m3 ha-1 and inorganic mineral fertilization. Gasses were sampled using static chambers first during the months of March and April, then in June and July. Fertilization with LPS caused an increase in the flux of CO2 and CH4 during the first hours after its application, and CO2 emissions are greater during the rainy than in the dry season. However, the application of LPS in Tifton-85 pasture during rainy periods did not show high potential for emission of CO2, in contrast to application during the dry season. Fertilization with LPS increases the emission of N2O, and this varies as a function of the volume of LPS applied and the experimental conditions experimental conditions. The application of LPS in Tifton-85 pasture has a high potential for N2O emission during the rainy season, but the magnitude is similar to that resulting from inorganic mineral fertilization.

Soil carbon losses in conventional farming systems due to land-use change in T the Brazilian semi-arid region