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Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of Silage Maize in Relation to Regenerative Agriculture

Author

Listed:
  • Martin Dědina

    (Research Institute of Agricultural Engineering, p.r.i., Drnovská 507, 161 01 Prague, Czech Republic)

  • Petr Jevič

    (Research Institute of Agricultural Engineering, p.r.i., Drnovská 507, 161 01 Prague, Czech Republic)

  • Pavel Čermák

    (Institute of Animal Science, p.r.i., Přátelství 815, 104 00 Prague, Czech Republic)

  • Jan Moudrý

    (Department of Agroecosystems, Faculty of Agriculture and Technology, University of South Bohemia in Ceske Budejovice, Branišovská 1645/31A, 370 05 Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic)

  • Chisenga Emmanuel Mukosha

    (Department of Agroecosystems, Faculty of Agriculture and Technology, University of South Bohemia in Ceske Budejovice, Branišovská 1645/31A, 370 05 Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic)

  • Tomáš Lošák

    (Department of Agroecosystems, Faculty of Agriculture and Technology, University of South Bohemia in Ceske Budejovice, Branišovská 1645/31A, 370 05 Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
    Department of Environmental Science and Natural Resources, Faculty of Regional Development and International Studies, Mendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 1, 613 00 Brno, Czech Republic)

  • Tadeáš Hrušovský

    (Department of Environmental Science and Natural Resources, Faculty of Regional Development and International Studies, Mendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 1, 613 00 Brno, Czech Republic)

  • Elizaveta Watzlová

    (Department of Water Resources, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Prague, Czech Republic)

Abstract

The demand for agricultural products is growing and is resulting in significant environmental impacts due to the overuse of fertilizers (and pesticides in some cases). There is a continued need to find sustainable methods in agricultural systems without harming the environment. Regenerative agriculture can be considered as one of the best methods of sustainable agriculture. The aim of this comparative life cycle assessment (LCA) study was to quantify the environmental impacts associated with the production of silage maize at different doses of fertilizers and pesticides under conventional agriculture and without the use of fertilizers and pesticides under regenerative agriculture. The input data were obtained from the experimental fields and supplemented by background process databases of Ecoinvent, World Food Live Cycle Assessment Database (WFLCD), and the French database AGRIBALYSE. The results of the study were related to six midpoint impact categories: global warming, marine eutrophication, freshwater eutrophication, freshwater ecotoxicity, marine ecotoxicity, and terrestrial ecotoxicity. Although the variant of growing silage maize without the use of fertilizers and pesticides according to the principle of regenerative agriculture showed the lowest burden on the environment, the yields of the cultivated silage maize were 43–55% lower than those of the fertilized variants.

Suggested Citation

  • Martin Dědina & Petr Jevič & Pavel Čermák & Jan Moudrý & Chisenga Emmanuel Mukosha & Tomáš Lošák & Tadeáš Hrušovský & Elizaveta Watzlová, 2024. "Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of Silage Maize in Relation to Regenerative Agriculture," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(2), pages 1-15, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:2:p:481-:d:1313771
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Tom O’Donoghue & Budiman Minasny & Alex McBratney, 2022. "Regenerative Agriculture and Its Potential to Improve Farmscape Function," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-25, May.
    2. Benjamin Leon Bodirsky & Susanne Rolinski & Anne Biewald & Isabelle Weindl & Alexander Popp & Hermann Lotze-Campen, 2015. "Global Food Demand Scenarios for the 21st Century," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 10(11), pages 1-27, November.
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