ANNOUNCEMENTS
At the United Nations Climate Change Conference, 2021 (COP-26) held in Glasgow, around 104 countries had signed the ‘Global Methane Pledge’. The signatories of the pledge are committed to reducing their methane emissions by at least 30% (by 2030). One of the largest contributors of methane emissions across the world is the agricultural sector (especially the paddy fields).
Countries across the world are focusing on reducing methane emissions in rice cultivation by developing sustainable agricultural techniques. SRI (System of Rice Intensification) is a sustainable farming technique that not only reduces the methane emissions associated with traditional rice fields but also offers several advantages to the rice farmers (including: increased yield, reduced requirement of seeds and chemical fertilizers). The aim of the study is to explore the potential of upscaling SRI (System of Rice Intensification) into a carbon offsetting programme (thereby generating carbon credits). The study focuses on analyzing thebenefits offered by SRI (System of Rice Intensification) as compared to the conventional farming techniques, shortlisting rice producing geographies globally for implementing SRI based carbon offsetting program, analyzing the potential of SRI in each of the shortlisted geographies (based on policies, presence of implementing agencies etc), carrying out a stakeholder mapping for the shortlisted geographies. The results of the study indicate that SRI technique has immense potential asa carbon offsetting programme and geographies of India, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia are ideal for developing an SRI based carbon offsetting programme.
Key words: Methane emissions, SRI, carbon offsetting, SRI Network, SRI vs Conventional farming, Global Warming Potential.
