Crop Residue Management: A Burning Issue and the Way Out
Govindannagari Rajitha*
Dept. of Agronomy, College of Horticulture, Sri Konda Laxman Telangana State Horticultural University, Rajendranagar, Hyderabad, Telangana (500 030), India
M. Yakadri
Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University, Rajendranagar, Hyderabad, Telangana (500 030), India
M. Sai Suvidh
Dept. of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, College of Agriculture, Nashville, Tennessee State University, Tennessee (37209), USA
DOI: NIL
Keywords: Burning, Crop residues, Environmental quality, Sustainable management
Abstract
Burning of crop residues has become a significant environmental issue that endangers human health and contributes to global warming. An estimated 140 billion metric tonnes is being burnt in India every year leading to excessive air pollution because our country lacks adequate sustainable management techniques. There are many factors which contribute to burning: as a way to clear fields for the next crop, lack of alternative methods, increasing population density in the northern states of India which has led to more residues being burned. The Indian government has taken some steps to address this problem, such as banning crop residue burning in some areas, utilizing crop waste to generate electricity and providing incentives to farmers who use alternative methods of disposal in order to solve this problem. Crop residues contain significant amount of nutrients in their dry matter. Therefore, it is necessary to implement more strategies and tools to manage this priceless resource.
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Reference
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