Mr Zhihao Tan1, Dr Daniel Rodriguez1
1The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
Biography:
I am a PhD student at UQ. My research interests are in agricultural systems and sustainable farms.
Abstract:
The challenges of environmental and economic sustainability are intensified by a burgeoning population and escalating resource constraints. It has become imperative to find a balance between agricultural productivity and environmental conservation. This necessitates a paradigm shift towards scientifically informed crop rotation and management practices. We introduce a conceptual framework for a Net Zero farm, aimed at enhancing productive and sustainable food production on Australia’s broadacre farms. This framework is designed to augment land-use efficiency, mitigate environmental impacts, and boost farmer incomes by exploring the interplay between emission reduction and agricultural productivity, and assessing the sustainability impact of diverse agricultural strategies. Our Net Zero farm framework was developed through discussions with expert researchers and an analysis of pertinent literature. It is anchored in the APSFarm NextGen model, which provides a comprehensive farm-level dynamic simulation of crop production and emissions for broadacre agriculture. We examine six distinct scenarios, each characterized by unique management strategies and emission goals: (i) Plastic, (ii) Rigid, (iii) Net Zero, (iv) Agroecology, (v) Polluter, and (vi) Conservation. Our aim is to quantify the efficacy of these crop rotation strategies in terms of their ability to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, enhance farmer profitability, and improve resource utilization. The trade-offs associated with each scenario were assessed based on five criteria: sustainability (crop intensity, emissions, nitrogen balance, carbon balance, crop cover), efficiency (emission intensity, water-use intensity), risk (economic risk, emission risk), and profit (returns, yield).