• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.59-68
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• 2016

The application of the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology to assess the environmental impact of rapeseed cultivation in winter fallow after harvesting rice was investigated and compared with barley cultivation in crop rotation system. Data for input materials were collected and analyzed by 1 ton rapeseed and barley as functional unit. For the Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) the Eco-indicator 95 method has been chosen because this is well documented and regularly applied impact method. From the comparison of impact categories such as greenhouse effect, ozone depletion, acidification, heavy metals, carcinogens, summer smog, and energy resources for 1 ton of final product, emission potential from rapeseed was higher than that from barley. The range from 65 to 96% of these potential came from chemical fertilizer. On the other hand, eutrophication potential from barley was higher than that from rapeseed, mainly came from utilizing the chemical fertilizer. During the cultivation of barley and rape, environmental burden by heavy metals was evaluated by 0.5 Pt, larger than points from other impact categories. The sum of points from all impact categories in barley and rapeseed was calculated to be 0.78 Pt and 0.82 Pt, respectively. From the sensitivity analysis for barley and rapeseed, scenario 1 (crop responses to fertilization level) showed the environmental burden was continuously increased with the amount of fertilization in barley cultivation, while it was not increased only at the optimum crop responses to fertilization in rapeseed (R3). With these results, rapeseed cultivation in winter fallow paddy contributed to the amounts of environmental burden much more than barley cultivation. It is, however, highly determined that environmental weighted point resulted from evaluating both cultivation was not significantly different.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.44 no.6
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• pp.1185-1194
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• 2011

This study was carried out to estimate carbon emission using LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) and to establish LCI (Life Cycle inventory) DB for lettuce production system in protected cultivation. The results of data collection for establishing LCI DB showed that the amount of fertilizer input for 1 kg lettuce production was the highest. The amounts of organic and chemical fertilizer input for 1 kg lettuce production were 7.85E-01 kg and 4.42E-02 kg, respectively. Both inputs of fertilizer and energy accounted for the largest share. The amount of field emission for $CO_2$, $CH_4$ and $N_2O$ for 1 kg lettuce production was 3.23E-02 kg. The result of LCI analysis focused on GHG (Greenhouse gas) showed that the emission value to produce 1 kg of lettuce was 8.65E-01 kg $CO_2$. The emission values of $CH_4$ and $N_2O$ to produce 1 kg of lettuce were 8.59E-03 kg $CH_4$ and 2.90E-04 kg $N_2O$, respectively. Fertilizer production process contributed most to GHG emission. Whereas, the amount of emitted nitrous oxide was the most during lettuce cropping stage due to nitrogen fertilization. When GHG was calculated in $CO_2$-equivalents, the carbon footprint from GHG was 1.14E-+00 kg $CO_2$-eq. $kg^{-1}$. Here, $CO_2$ accounted for 76% of the total GHG emissions from lettuce production system. Methane and nitrous oxide held 16%, 8% of it, respectively. The results of LCIA (Life Cycle Impact assessment) showed that GWP (Global Warming Potential) and POCP (Photochemical Ozon Creation Potential) were 1.14E+00 kg $CO_2$-eq. $kg^{-1}$ and 9.45E-05 kg $C_2H_4$-eq. $kg^{-1}$, respectively. Fertilizer production is the greatest contributor to the environmental impact, followed by energy production and agricultural material production.