Evaluating the sustainability of tillage and cover crop management practices in regenerative organic agriculture using life cycle assessment-based emergy analysis

文献类型： 外文期刊

第一作者： Huang, Qiliang

作者： Huang, Qiliang;Hashimi, Rahmatullah;Gong, Yingting;Dewi, Ratih Kemala;Komatsuzaki, Masakazu;Dewi, Ratih Kemala;Li, Peiran;Wang, Xiaolong;Hashimi, Rahmatullah;Komatsuzaki, Masakazu

作者机构：

关键词： Organic farming; No-tillage; Cover crop; Emergy; LCA

期刊名称：AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS （ 影响因子：6.1； 五年影响因子：7.0 ）

ISSN： 0308-521X

年卷期： 2025 年 229 卷

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收录情况： SCI

摘要： Context: Organic farming is widely regarded as a key strategy for achieving sustainable development in agriculture, with its sustainability closely linked to the management practices employed. Assessing the sustainability of organic cropping systems under varying management practices is essential to identify and promote the most sustainable options. Objective: This study investigated the effects of tillage and cover crop management on the efficiency and sustainability of a regenerative organic cropping system. It aimed to determine the most suitable combination of tillage and cover crop management for achieving high sustainability. Methods: Three tillage methods-moldboard plowing (MP), no-tillage (NT), and rotary tillage (RT)-and two cover crop strategies-fallow (FA) and rye (RY)-were evaluated in an organic soybean system. Sustainability was assessed using emergy evaluation based on life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. Soil organic matter and inorganic nutrients were included in the emergy accounting. Results and conclusions: The NT system significantly reduced nonrenewable inputs by 44.0 % and 8.2 % compared to MP and RT, respectively, though it resulted in a yield reduction of 26.9 % and 26.7 %. However, RY management mitigated this reduction, with NT-RY achieving 38.6 % higher yields compared to NT-FA. NT-RY also increased soil organic matter and potassium by 53.5 %, leading to higher total system output. NT-RY demonstrated the highest production efficiency, with the lowest unit emergy value (UEV = 3.32E + 05 sej J-1). The emergy sustainability index of NT was 4.5 % and 1.3 % higher than MP and RT, respectively, while RY further enhanced ESI across the system. Significance: LCA-based emergy evaluation is a powerful tool for comparing the sustainability of agricultural management practices. These findings identify NT-RY as a promising approach for advancing sustainable development in organic farming, offering valuable insights for organic growers striving to enhance agricultural sustainability.

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