Environmental profile of paddy rice cultivation with different straw management

Italy is the most important European country in terms of paddy rice production. North Italian districts such as Vercelli, Pavia, Novara, and Milano are known as some of the world's most advanced rice cultivation sites. In 2013 Italian rice cultivation represented about 50% of all European rice production by area, and paddy fields extended for over 216,000 ha. Cultivation of rice involves different agricultural activities which have environmental impacts mainly due to fossil fuels and agrochemical requirements as well as the methane emission associated with the fermentation of organic material in the flooded rice fields. In order to assess the environmental consequences of rice production in the District of Vercelli, the cultivation practices most frequently carried out were inventoried and evaluated. The general approach of this study was not only to gather the inventory data for rice production and quantify their environmental impacts, but also to identify the key environmental factors where special attention must be paid. Life Cycle Assessment methodology was applied in this study from a cradle-to-farm gate perspective. The environmental profile was analyzed in terms of seven different impact categories: climate change, ozone depletion, human toxicity, terrestrial acidification, freshwater eutrophication, marine eutrophication, and fossil depletion. Regarding straw management, two different scenarios (burial into the soil of the straw versus harvesting) were compared. The analysis showed that the environmental impact was mainly due to field emissions, the fuel consumption needed for the mechanization of field operations, and the drying of the paddy rice. The comparison between the two scenarios highlighted that the collection of the straw improves the environmental performance of rice production except that for freshwater eutrophication. To improve the environmental performance of rice production, solutions to save fossil fuel and reduce the emissions from fertilizers (leaching, volatilization) as well as methane emissions should be implemented.