EFFECT OF SRI WATER MANAGEMENT ON WATER QUALITY AND GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS IN KOREA

ABSTRACT A feasibility study on the system of rice intensification (SRI) methods with respect to irrigation requirements, non-point source (NPS) pollution discharge, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and rice yields was conducted for either 2 or 3 years depending on the treatment in Korea. Large-size runoff plots were prepared, and the necessary measuring systems installed. The SRI methods were carried out with a Japonica variety of rice, Odaebyeo (Oryza sativa L.), and the results were compared with those for control plots. The data indicated the high potentiality of adoption of the SRI methods for paddy farming in Korea. The SRI methods (i.e. SRI and conventional practice with SRI water management (CS)) reduced the irrigation requirement by 50.2 and 46.0%, respectively. For the SRI and CS plots, averaged concentration reductions of typical NPS pollutants, relative to conventional practice (CT) plots, ranged between 15.3 and 42.6%. The GHG emissions from the conventional practice with two forced drainages (CD) and the CS plots, in terms of their CO2 equivalents, were reduced by 65.5 and 72.8%, respectively, compared with those from the CT plots. The rice yields from the SRI and the CS plots were not greater than those from the CT plots. Application of SRI water management methods could help to improve Korea's water resources and water quality management, and could thus contribute to mitigation of the negative effects of global warming. Copyright (c) 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.