Abatement strategies may only be accepted if the
methane source strength of rice fields is reliably identified
and discriminated according to the various rice
ecologies and production systems and if mitigation
technologies become available that are in accordance
with increased rice production and productivity at least
at the farm level. Promising mitigation candidates are
water management, organic amendments, fertilization,
cultural practices and rice cultivars. Present knowledge
of processes controlling methane fluxes provides
a promising foundation to develop mitigation technologies
that are in accord with sustainable and increasing
rice production and productivity. Information is still
lacking on extrapolation domains and socioeconomic
feasibilities of the various mitigation opportunities
to reliably predict mitigation potentials and minimize
possible trade off.
Just to meet the projected demand for rice in the
21st century, the world’s rough rice production must
increase from 520 million tons today to at least 880
million tons by 2025, an increase of almost 70%. That
requirement may rise to one billion tons by the year
2050. This will require coordinated national and international
scientific efforts, and above all, strong political
will, determined governments and major investments
in food research in countries where rice is a
major component of staple food. Methane emission
from rice fields and mitigation options can only be
assessed within the overall context of rice cultivation.