2 August 2017: The majority of methane emissions in agriculture comes from two sources: paddy rice production and enteric methane emitted by ruminants. Countries with large agricultural sectors, like Vietnam and Uruguay, face the challenge to develop Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs) to reduce these emissions.

Moving from Paddy Rice Science to Mitigation Policy in Vietnam

Vietnam has the highest methane emissions from paddy rice production in the Southeast Asia region. In its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement, the country committed to reducing its GHG emissions by 8%. Achieving this objective will require significantly reducing agricultural methane emissions. In partnership with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), a member of the CGIAR System Organization, Vietnam recently held a policy workshop with the theme, ‘NAMA Formulation in Support of NDC Implementation in the Rice Sector of Vietnam,’ to discuss the results of two IRRI projects.

The first project titled, ‘Reducing Methane Emissions from Paddy Rice Production in Vietnam,’ produced an online kiosk that makes available management strategies, data on the suitability of farming technologies, and practices and policy actions from Bangladesh, Colombia and Vietnam. The second project aims to support policy makers in making informed decisions on, among other issues, climate-change adaptation policies that provide institutions and decision makers with data and tools to identify vulnerable geographic areas and implement suitable climate-smart technologies.

Conducted as a pilot project in Vietnam and Myanmar, the project’s recommendations will be made available to policy makers in other member countries of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN). In reviewing the results of these projects, workshop participants highlighted the need to identify opportunities to fund rice-focused NAMAs and establish innovative financing mechanisms and incentives for projects within NAMAs.

The Workshop was held on 20 June 2017 in Hanoi, Vietnam. [CGIAR Press Release. Stakeholder Workshop][Project Webpage. GHG Mitigation in Rice][Project Webpage. Linking Climate Change Science and Policy in Southeast Asia]

Reducing Emissions of Enteric Methane from Dairy and Beef Production in Uruguay

In Uruguay, methane emissions from beef production account for 55% of the country’s GHG emissions. Uruguay’s NDC therefore includes a specific target to reduce enteric methane intensity per kilogram of beef by 33% to 43% by 2030. To achieve this reduction, the country is partnering with the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases (GRA) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) to implement the project titled, ‘Reducing Enteric Methane for Improving Food Security and Livelihoods.’ The project aims to transform the ruminant production systems of resource-poor framers to increase livestock productivity, while reducing GHG emissions. These dual objectives can be achieved through a combination of herd and health management, nutrition and feeding management strategies, and genetics. These measures are estimated to reduce emissions intensity by 23%-42%. The approach contributes both to climate action (SDG 13) and to improving food security and promoting sustainable agriculture (SDG 2).[CCAC Press Release][FAO Project Website – Reducing Enteric Methane for improving food security and livelihoods]