Climate Smart Management for Resilient European Cropping Systems

With the 2015 Paris Agreement (PA), the international community agreed to limit the rise in global temperature to below 2 ̊C. Roughly 30% of Nationally Determined Contributions under the PA include land-based mitigation technologies and practices. There are substantial uncertainties how different soil management practices (SMPs) influence carbon content (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) in soils. In addition, we lack information on the economic profitability and social constraints. ClimateCropping aims to provide scientific evidence, mainly based on long term experiments (LTEs), on how different SMPs can have an impact on the climate, environment and society. The project follows an interdisciplinary approach to reduce GHG emissions from agriculture. This includes an in-depth study of four alternative SMPs:

1. reduced tillage,
2. cover cropping,
3. organic fertilisation and
4. crop residue retention, to climate change mitigation and adaptation in cropping systems along a North-South climate gradient across Europe.

Historical data will be complemented with measurements in LTEs in seven European countries. The project will involve an international and interdisciplinary research team that will strive towards holistic understanding of the GHG mitigation impacts of selected SMPs.

Ruralis will lead a work package that investigates the social acceptance of the 4 SMPs and provides cross-national policy recommendations. Ruralis will also arrange a final workshop in Norway with relevant stakeholders to investigate the relevance of the findings for Norwegian agriculture.