Irrigating U.S. crops prevents higher greenhouse gas emissions by avoiding land conversion, groundbreaking new research by Colorado State University shows.
Irrigating U.S. crops prevents higher greenhouse gas emissions by avoiding land conversion, groundbreaking new research by Colorado State University shows.
Agricultural irrigation allows the United States to grow more food on less land. If irrigation were suddenly shut off, the land change required to make up for lost yield would produce significantly more greenhouse gas emissions than those emitted by irrigating – 363 times more.
CSU scientists estimate the emissions saved by avoiding land-use change would equate to 363 years’ worth of today’s U.S. annual greenhouse gas emissions from irrigation.
Read More: Colorado State University
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