REMA seeks to reduce emissions from agric sector

Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA) is looking for $ 310,000 (approx.Rwf217 million) to prepare, within 18 months, the National Appropriate Mitigations Actions (NAMA) project, dubbed “Sustainable Fertilisers Production and Use”. The project, presented during a continental workshop on NAMAs in Kigali on Monday, was submitted to Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) for support. It aims at reducing emissions from the agriculture sector and increase production by using manure and domestically produced lime. According to Faustin Munyazikwiye, the director of climate change and international obligations, the project will also help tackle soil erosion, inspire income, income generation schemes and improve nutrition. They believe composting and fertiliser applications and efficient lime production will reduce CO2, N2O and CH4 emissions. “It will create over 600 cattle agribusiness cooperatives for organic composting of fertilisers for reductions of animal enteric green gas emissions (GHG) emissions and use of other field residues for composting, instead of burning, to sequestrate carbon that enters the atmosphere. The project will help mitigate approx. 880,000 to CO2 emissions for the period 2016 to 2030,” he said. The grant, he said, will cover investment in machinery, infrastructure and agri-business and producing finely granulated natural lime found in abundance for example in Musanze, Karongi and Rusizi districts, among others. “We will also prepare studies for low emissions lime production and best indigenous methods, gap analysis for manure and fertiliser practices,” he added. Janie Rioux, an expert from FAO, told The New Times that the idea will soon be discussed under the Mitigation of Climate Change in Agriculture (MICCA) programme. Citing the 2014 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, agriculture, forestry and land use sector is the second largest emitter of GHG emissions after energy sector. Global emissions from agriculture (crops & livestock) increased from 2.7 billion tonnes of co2 in 1961 to 5.4 billion tonnes in 2014 with Asia the first followed by Latin America and then Africa. Although the agriculture sector contributes 90 per cent of the national food needs, 70 per cent of export revenues and is the main source of income for rural households, it contributes 78 per cent of total emissions, according to a recent GHG inventory report. However, research indicates that, if good farming practices are adopted; the sector has the potential to reduce up to 6 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions by 2030. Experts say livestock, especially cattle, produce methane (CH4) as part of their digestion, representing almost one third of the emissions. The way manure from livestock is stored and exposed to oxygen and moisture also contributes to CH4 and N2O emissions. editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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REMA seeks to reduce emissions from agric sector