Environmental Sustainability of Global Food
Lead Research Organisation:
University College London
Department Name: Bartlett Sch of Env, Energy & Resources
Abstract
This research is to provide critical improvements in our understanding of the multiple environmental impacts of agriculture by accounting for different practices and local conditions on a global scale. The research continues the already established work conducted by Dr Carole Dalin (funded by a NERC Independent Research Fellowship, grant number NE/N01524/1) and her team at University College London Institute for Sustainable Resources (UCL-ISR), via:
1. Investigating different ways of designing environmental sustainability indicators of agricultural products, particularly for fertilisers and land-use;
2. Integrating these newly designed indicators with those developed and in place (on water and GHGs) by UCL-ISR and;
3. Objective three will be determined by the findings of one and two. If the results identify heterogeneity with specific hotspots for environmental impact, then a case study will assess strategies to improve food sustainability in one of the regions identified as particularly relevant. If the results identity general global homogeneity, future scenarios will project food sustainability by estimating the four indicators under biophysical (including climate change) and socio-economic changes.
1. Investigating different ways of designing environmental sustainability indicators of agricultural products, particularly for fertilisers and land-use;
2. Integrating these newly designed indicators with those developed and in place (on water and GHGs) by UCL-ISR and;
3. Objective three will be determined by the findings of one and two. If the results identify heterogeneity with specific hotspots for environmental impact, then a case study will assess strategies to improve food sustainability in one of the regions identified as particularly relevant. If the results identity general global homogeneity, future scenarios will project food sustainability by estimating the four indicators under biophysical (including climate change) and socio-economic changes.
Organisations
Studentship Projects
| Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EP/N509577/1 | 01/10/2016 | 24/03/2022 | |||
| 1920804 | Studentship | EP/N509577/1 | 01/10/2017 | 24/09/2021 | Mark Jwaideh |
| Description | Recently I have written my first manuscript which has been sent out for review. Within this manuscript, I present my study on the aquatic biodiversity impact of fertiliser use for crop production worldwide. Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) methodologies are commonly used to assess the environmental impact of fertiliser use on specific crops. However, current LCIA methodological limitations make it difficult to assess and compare the emission of fertilisers from soils and the quantity that reach receptor environments. Often studies only consider the emission of fertilisers at the field edge and lack consideration for nutrient transportation to receptor environments and their associated aquatic biodiversity impact. In addition, studies that use current and innovative methods to quantify aquatic impacts for crop products have been limited to nutrient type, crop type or spatial-scale. To date, no study to my knowledge has utilised the most current spatially-explicit LCIA methods to analyse both nitrogen and phosphorus fertiliser emissions from major crops worldwide, or related emissions to aquatic biodiversity impacts within freshwater and marine receptors together. As such, our study provides significant progress to fill key research gaps by: 1. Improving current LCIA methodologies, through developing a consistent spatially-explicit fate and transport model for nitrogen and phosphorus, commonly referred to as the Fate Factor within LCIA methodologies. I then applied this model to quantify the amount of nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) applied on cropland that reach freshwater bodies and coastal waters, and their persistence within these environments. I provide uniformity within my method across nutrient types, recommended by many international initiatives aiming to provide global and consistent guidance, such as LEAP and UNEP/SETAC. Our model has been developed for three different land use types (arable, grassland and natural) and facilitates future spatially-explicit and comparable LCIA research. My method is also more robust than previous methods because I use globally-validated nutrient (IMAGE-GNM) and hydrological (PCR-GLOBWB 2) models for the basis of our Fate Factor model. 2. Identifying the biodiversity impact of fertiliser use and crop production through a globally spatially-explicit LCIA model; biodiversity impacts from fertiliser use remains absent from many large-scale studies. Greater consideration of the impacts, trade-offs and synergies between biodiversity and agriculture is essential for the sustainable maintenance of food production. My study identifies regional hotspots for biodiversity loss and crops with the greatest negative impact. I additionally assess aquatic biodiversity impact per unit of dry mass of crop. This helps inform the trade-off between the amount of food produced and biodiversity impact, whilst fairly comparing performance across various crop types and regions. |
| Exploitation Route | Here we provide improved Fate Factors for use in LCA methodologies. Our research can be used by other LCA practitioners to conduct LCA research from diffusive soil sources. Additionally, the large-scale biodiversity assessments I conduct can aid policy and decision makers to meet the criteria of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. |
| Sectors | Agriculture, Food and Drink,Education,Environment,Government, Democracy and Justice |