Agricultural MeteorologyThen and Now:
Paradigm Shift to Sustainable Science
Raymond Desjardins C.M., FRSC, PhD.
Presented Nov. 20th 2019CMOS chapter in Ottawa, Canada
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Outline•Development and evolution of Agricultural Meteorology 1950s, 1960s and 1970s
•Adoption of a multidisciplinary research approach 1980s and 1990s
•A paradigm shift to sustainable science 2000s and 2010s
•Development and evolution of Agricultural Meteorology 1950s, 1960s and 1970s
•Adoption of a multidisciplinary research approach 1980s and 1990s
•A paradigm shift to sustainable science 2000s and 2010s
In 1950 there were many meteorological stations at Agriculture Canada research stations but no scientist with meteorological experience
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George Robertson (1951-1969)
• Crop development and weather• Project F.1.8.2- An investigation of the growth and development
of the main crops in relationship to their meteorological environments for eight locations (1953-57)
• “A Biometeorological Time Scale for Cereal Crop Involving Day andNight Temperatures and Photoperiod” by George W. Robertson, International Journal of Biometeorology (1968) 12:191–223
• Thomas Sinclair wrote in Crop Science vol. 58, Dec. 2018: George Robertson provided key concepts used yet today to describe the pace of plant development.
• http://cmosarchives.ca/History/History_Agrometerology_Robertson_1989.pdf
• CAgM under the World Meteorological Organization was established in 1953 4
Wolfgang Baier (1964-1983)
Crop weather analysis
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Developed models for estimating evapotranspiration and soil moisture (versatile soil moisture budget).
Developed models to better understand the factors influencing crop production
President of the CAgM, WMO (71-79)
1965 – present1965-1980 Agrometeorological studies
carried out by a few groups in Canada
1981-2000 Quantifying mass and energy exchange at a wide range of scales for some of the main ecosystems using a multidisciplinary approach
2001-2019 Sustainability metrics-Quantifying the carbon and water footprints of agricultural products 6
Agrometeorological studies (1965 – 1980)• Williams, G. D. V. and Robertson, G. W. 1965. Estimating most probable prairie wheat
production from precipitation data. Can. J. Plant Sci. 45: 34-47.• Baier, W. and Robertson, G. W. A. 1966. A new versatile soil-moisture budget. Can J.
Plant Sci. 46: 299-315.• Ouellet, C. E. and Sherk. L. C. 1967. Woody ornamental plant zonation. III. Suitability
map for the probable winter survival of ornamental trees and shrubs. Can. J. Plant Sci. 47: 351-358.
• Robertson, G. W. 1968. A biometeorological time scale for a cereal crop involving day and night temperatures and photoperiod. Int. J. Biometeorol. 12: 191-223.
• Baier, W. 1973. Crop-weather analysis model: Review and model development. J.
Appl. Meteorol. 12: 637-347.• Desjardins, R.L. (1974). A technique to measure CO2 exchange under field conditions.
International Journal of Biometeorology, 18(1): 76-83. • Desjardins, R.L. and Ouellet, C.E. 1980. Determination of the importance of various
phases of wheat growth on final yield. Agr. Meteorol. 22: 129-136.
• Other small teams: Mukammal CMS, King Guelph Univ, Douglas MacDonald College 7
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1981 - 2000 Quantifying mass and energy exchangeAircraft-based measurements of fluxes of CO2, & H2O by crops
6 CO2+ 6 H2O + light energy = C6H12O6 + 6 O2.
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National and international projects using a multidisciplinary approach (1980s - 1990s)
CODE
NOWES
SGP
SMEX
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CO2 Fluxes (kg CO2 ha-1 h-1)
Carbon dioxide exchange as measured over a 15 x 15 km grassland site using the Canadian aircraft,
flying a grid pattern at 90 m above the surface. The data is superimposed on a satellite image.
Carbon dioxide exchange as measured over a 15 x 15 km grassland site using the Canadian aircraft,
flying a grid pattern at 90 m above the surface. The data is superimposed on a satellite image.
International project (FIFE) provided measurements at a wide range of scales using a multidiscplinary approach
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Measurements of evapotranspiration using the Twin Otter aircraft over the Konza Prairies during FIFE
Desjardins, R.L., Schuepp, P.H., MacPherson, J.I. and Buckley, D.J. 1992. Spatial and temporal variation of the fluxes of carbon dioxide and sensible and latent heat over the
FIFE site. J. Geophys. Res. 97: 18467- 19476.
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BOreal Ecosystem Atmospheric Study
1994-1996 BOREAS A multidisciplinary project to improve our understanding of the role of the boreal forest biome in climate change. (Mesoscale transfer, VOCs, Albedo)
Desjardins, R.L., MacPherson, J.I., Mahrt, L., Schuepp, P.H., Pattey, E., Neumann, H., Baldocchi, D., Wofsy, S., Fitzjarrald, D., H. McCaughey and D.W. Joiner. 1997. Scaling up flux measurements for the boreal forest using aircraft-tower combinations. J. Geophys. Res. 102: 29,125-29,134.
•.
Sun, J., Lenschow, D.H., Mahrt, L., Crawford, T.L., Davis, K.J., Oncley, S.P., MacPherson, J.I., Wang, Q. and R.L. Desjardins. 1997. Lake-induced atmopheric circulations during BOREAS. J. Geophys. Res. 102: 29,155 – 29,166
Radiative forcing due to differences in albedo
13-50
0
50
100
150
Janu
aryFeb
ruary
March
April
May
June Ju
ly
Augus
tSep
tembe
rOcto
ber
Novem
ber
Decem
ber
Net
Rad
iatio
n (W
m-2
)
Coniferous forestGrassOld AspenGrass - Coniferous forestGrass - Old Aspen
Differences in annual average net radiation of 14 and 3 Wm-2
Source: Betts, & Desjardins 2007)
Relationship between radiative forcing due to albedo differences and C sequestration (kg/m2 = 10t/ha)
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Requires this much
C uptake or avoided
emissions to break
evenThis much albedo cooling
Atmosphere
CH4 CH4 N2O
Soil
CO2
Main sources and sinks of the three primary greenhouse gases associated with agroecosystems.
Shift from Agricultural Meteorology to the Sustainability of Agricultural Practices2000 to 2019
Measuring and modelling mass and energy exchange
1 hour
1 Day
1 Month
1 Year
AircraftEC & REA
Open-path Laser bLS
1 m2 1 Hectare 1 km2
Representative Area of Measurements10 km2
Chamber/ WindTunnel
Rep
rese
ntat
ive
Tim
e of
Mea
sure
men
t
Tall Tower/ Flask
Atmospheric
Inversion
FluxTowerEC,FG,
REA
Closed-path Laser
• Models
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Model development
Model development
MesureGHG emissions
MesureGHG emissions
Partially verified model
Partially Partially verified verified model model
timetime
. . .
Measuring and modeling GHG emissions
It is an unending processIt is an unending process
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Percent contribution of various sectors of the economy to Canada’s GHG emissions in 2016
Canada produces about 1.5% of the world GHG emissions with 0.5% of the global population
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Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Canadian Agriculture 2015
Source: Desjardins et al. (2019)
The carbon footprint of agricultural products in Canada
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Carbon footprint of agricultural products
We have now calculated the carbon footprint of most agricultural products
For example, in order to calculate the carbon footprint of beef, we need to count
all the GHG emissions per kg of live weight from birth until it leaves the farm
Diesel
For beef production:
Manure
Buildings
Equipment
Electricity
Production of Fodder and
grain
Field work
Fertilizers and agro-chemicals
Heating fuel
CH4
N2OCO2
CH4
N2O
CO2
CO2
CO2
N2O
CO2 = Carbon dioxideCH4 = methaneN2O = nitrous oxide
CO2
CO2
CO2
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Greenhouse gas emissions intensity for major livestock products in Canada, 1981‐2011.
Note: In these calculations the changes in soil organic carbon are not included
GHG emissions for different animal products
Since the primary functions of animal products is to provide protein for growth, expressing the carbon footprint per unit of protein is the best way to compare emissions between animal products.
Since the primary functions of animal products is to provide protein for growth, expressing the carbon footprint per unit of protein is the best way to compare emissions between animal products.
Dyer, J.A., X.P.C. Vergé, R.L. Desjardins and D.E. Worth. 2010. The protein-based GHG emission intensity for livestock products in Canada. Journal of Sustainable Agriculture. 34(6):618-629. Doi:10.1080/10440046.2010.493376
GHG emissions associated with protein productionGHG emissions associated with protein production
Source: Dyer and Verge (2015)
Pulses and soybeans represent a far less carbon intensive method of producing protein, as compared to ruminant and non-ruminant sources. For example, the amount of feed input for ruminants equate to 15 to 30 times the mass of the final meat product.
Pulses and soybeans represent a far less carbon intensive method of producing protein, as compared to ruminant and non-ruminant sources. For example, the amount of feed input for ruminants equate to 15 to 30 times the mass of the final meat product.
An example of the importance of knowing the carbon footprint of a crop
Primary canola growing region
Carbon footprint of canola – a 50% reduction in GHG emissions is at 492Changes in soil organic carbon are included
Net soil carbon change in agricultural soils in Canada
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Climate crisis--- Even with all the commitments to reduce GHG emissions, the emissions keep increasing (Gt CO2e)
Beef Production
Pork Production
Impact of consumers on the GHG emissions from the agriculture sector eg. a 10% shift from beef to porc
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Vergé, X.P.C., Maxime, D., Desjardins, R.L., and VanderZaag, A.C. (2016). "Allocation factors and issues in agricultural carbon footprint: a case study of the Canadian pork industry.", Journal of Cleaner Production, 113, pp. 587-595. doi : 10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.11.046
World Meteorological Organization (1953-2020)
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The end of the Commission of Agricultural Meteorology of WMO
Agricultural and Forest Meteorology Vol. 142 (2-4)
As of April 2020 WMO
will have only two commissions :
1) service
2) infrastructure
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Thanks to slightly older colleagues
Thanks to many other colleagues
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Acknowledge all the technical staff, students and post- doctoral fellows that have helped with this research
Thank the present and past organizers of these CMOS meetings!