The nexus between rotation profits and emissions: the impact of legumes?
Document Type
Conference Proceeding
Publication Date
10-2024
Conference Title
Agronomy Australia Conference 2024: Adaptive Agronomy for a Resilient Future
Place of Publication
Albany
Keywords
Modelling, Gross Margins, Emissions, Legumes
Disciplines
Agricultural Economics | Agronomy and Crop Sciences | Other Environmental Sciences
Abstract
Mitigating greenhouse gas emissions is an increasing priority for Western Australian grain producers. This study investigates the environmental and economic viability of integrating lupins and legume pastures into crop rotations at three locations in Western Australia's grainbelt. Modelling simulations using the Economic Valuation of Alternative Land Use Sequence (EVALUS) model were conducted at each location to examine the gross margins and emissions associated with including lupins and legume pastures in current rotations. Findings indicate that replacing canola with lupins consistently reduces emissions at all locations. However, retention of canola over lupins generally boosts profits, highlighting the need to develop other more sustainable and profitable alternatives to canola. Inclusion of legume pastures rather than lupins yields mixed results. A phase of pasture with legumes in the sward provides fixed nitrogen to subsequent cereal crops and thus reduces the need for applied fertiliser and educes attendant emissions. However, the trade-off is increased farm level emissions (Scope 1) from livestock grazing in the pasture phase, thus increasing overall farm-level emissions in several analysed scenarios. Modelling results demonstrate how land use diversification can support business resilience and profitability but also highlight the pressing need for technological and biological innovation to mitigate agricultural emissions. The results illustrate that continued research and policy support is needed to drive sustainable and profitable practices in dryland agriculture in Western Australia.
Recommended Citation
d’Abbadie C, Kharel S, Abadi Ghadim A, Kingwell R (2024). The nexus between rotation profits and emissions: the impact of legumes?. In: Adaptive agronomy for a resilient future. Ed. Lawes, R, Flower, K, Michael, P, Mwenda, G and Singh, B . Proceedings of the 21st Australian Society of Agronomy Conference, 21-24 October, 2024, Albany, Western Australia, Australia © 2024. (http://www.agronomyaustraliaproceedings.org/).
