Course Description
Recognizing the potential of rice production for climate change mitigation, rice-producing regions and different public and private enterprises are increasingly investing in the adoption and scaling of low-emission rice production practices. Accurately quantifying the benefits and impacts of these practices relies on robust monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) systems for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Building capacity for GHG emissions measurement is therefore key to establishing effective MRV systems, from determining credible baselines to measuring and reporting progress achieved through the adoption of mitigation practices.
Standard practices for GHG emissions measurement and mitigation management are available for rice systems, with several particularly tailored to the Asian context where more than 90% of the world’s rice is produced. Proper implementation of these standards, with careful consideration of the local contexts, is essential to ensure accurate and robust quantification of these benefits, as well as the effective implementation of the mitigation practices.
This training course is supported by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) of Japan. It aims to build the capacity of various actors in the rice sector to measure GHG emissions across different rice ecosystems and management practices. It will cover the current knowledge of the mechanisms and processes driving GHG emissions from rice fields, as well as the principles and approaches for quantifying and reporting emissions under different management scenarios.
The training comprises a combination of lectures, field demonstrations, and hands-on exercises. It will also provide an overview of the materials and equipment needed for field-based GHG emissions measurements, complemented by practical exercises in different field setups to demonstrate the application of GHG emissions monitoring and reporting approaches.
Course Objectives
The proposed training course is designed to provide participants with an overview of the significance of climate change and its mitigation in the rice systems; an understanding of GHG emission mechanisms in rice production and the factors influencing emissions, including the impacts of mitigation interventions on system productivity and sustainability; and step-by-step guidance on conducting experimental studies and on-farm monitoring of GHG emissions. The training will cover the entire measurement and reporting process, from developing a project data management and implementing data collection protocols, including gas sampling and laboratory analysis, to data processing, quality control, emissions calculation, and reporting.
By the end of the training course, the participants should be able to:
- Understand the principles of GHG emissions from rice systems and the different management options for climate change mitigation in rice production.
- Understand the guiding principles of different approaches to GHG quantification, including the IPCC Guidelines for National GHG Inventories.
- Understand the principles of GHG measurement standards applicable to rice systems.
- Acquire practical skills in:
- GHG sampling in a rice-based system;
- Data analysis, presentation, and reporting; and
- Data presentation, interpretation, and reporting
Key Modules:
- Climate change adaptation and mitigation in rice production
- Greenhouse gas emission mechanisms and mitigation practices in rice systems
- Global climate mitigation efforts and Monitoring Reporting and Verification Systems for carbon accounting in rice production
- Standards for GHG Measurement in rice systems
- Field setup for GHG monitoring and field sampling procedures
- Gas quantification analytics: Laboratory and in situ approaches
- Data quality assessment and GHG emissions calculations
Learning Modality
The course will be delivered face-to-face through a combination of lectures, hands-on exercises, laboratory analyses, and field-based activities and demonstrations.
Target Audience
The course is intended for researchers, students, government officers, farmers, agricultural extensionists, rural development officers, and rice carbon project agents.
