green technologies for agriculture - agropolis international › pdf ›...
TRANSCRIPT
Gre
en te
chn
olog
ies
8
Green technologies for agriculture
Investigaciones Agropecuarias (Chile), Finnish Environment Institute (Finland), etc.
The UMR’s main scientific facilities include: a 200-m² optical laboratory: optical
sensors, spectrometers (ultraviolet (UV)/visible/near-infrared), hyperspectral and multispectral vision test benches; a platform for the study of pesticide
sprays and their impacts on the environment and health (1,600 m²): a large-scale experimental wind
tunnel; an under-boom patternator; a laser particle sizer and velocity
sensor; full metrological gear to evaluate
sprayers. an LCA software package; an electronic and mechanical
prototyping platform (300 m²).
Reduction in pesticide pollution through a study of spraying techniques, from the nozzle to the transport of pesticides over an entire watershed or territory, making use of unique experimental means. As a reference centre for the assessment of pesticide application technologies, keen to reduce their impact on the environment and human health, it hosts a team from the Institut Français de la Vigne et du Vin (IFV) [French Vine and Wine Institute], with whom it is working closely under the ECOPHYTO 2018 plan.
Eco-assessment and eco-designthrough the development of toolsto evaluate the environmental andsocial impact of products, processesand industries based on life cycleassessment (LCA). The chosen areas of study are water and land use management. This UMR formed the kernel of the Environmental Lifecycle and Sustainability Assessment cluster (ELSA, cf. p. 32), France’s largest group of LCA researchers.
It is also part of LabEx Agro and the regional platform “Environmental technologies for agro-bioprocesses” (EcoTech-LR, cf. p. 43). It works in partnership with French private sector stakeholders such as Pellenc SA, Pellenc ST, Ondalys, Envilys, etc.) and scientific researchers (National Institute of Agricultural Research [INRA], Centre for International Cooperation in Agricultural Research [CIRAD], École des Mines d’Alès [EMA], Montpellier Laboratory of Informatics, Robotics and Microelectronics [LIRMM], etc.).
Abroad, it has collaborated, in particular, with the Instituto de Investigación y Tecnología Agroalimentaria and the Autonomous University of Barcelona (Spain), the international private group GEOSYS, the Universities of Turin and Florence (Italy), Talca (Chile), Sydney (Australia), the Instituto de
Develop green technologies for sustainable agricultural production
In order to design green technologies for more sustainable agro- and bioprocesses and for environment-related services, the Joint Research Unit (UMR) “Information-Technologies-Environmental Analysis-Agricultural Processes” (UMR ITAP, Montpellier SupAgro/IRSTEA) develops scientific and technical baselines for:
Characterization of agro-ecosystems through the development of optical sensors (mainly hyperspectral artificial vision and near-infrared spectroscopy). Because of the special properties of the environments being studied (optically scattering media, objects with identical spectral characteristics, presence of water), the research topics include the understanding of radiation-matter interaction and data processing methods (chemometrics, analysis of hyperspectral images).
Modelling for agroenvironmentaldecision-making through the development of decision support systems to diagnose system condition or through the implementation of lower-impact precision farming approaches. Various methodologies are under review: fuzzy logic, discrete event systems, geostatistics. The chosen implementation field is wine-growing.
The main teamUMR ITAP
Information/Technologies/Environmental Analysis/Agricultural Processes
(Montpellier SupAgro/IRSTEA)27 scientists
Other team involved in this topic
UPR Recycling and Risk (CIRAD)
13 scientists
Collection network
Air emissions
Resource consumption
Waste, sludge, leachate…
Water discharges
WWTP
NH3NOXN2OCO2...
Performance levelSecond discharge
to soil, air, waterN, P, ETM, CTO, DBO5...
The sanitation system LCA answers the question What environmental costs for what
discharge intensity? [ongoing endeavour of ONEMA (French National Agency for Water and
Aquatic Environments) and IRSTEA].
Gre
en te
chn
olog
ies
9
In the face of more and more frequent water shortages and growing environmental degradation, irrigated agriculture
must now avoid overuse of water resources as well as water and soil pollution while maintaining excellent performance levels. At the level of the agricultural plot, the subsurface drip irrigation (SDI) technique is a recent innovation adopted for field crops by a growing number of farmers subject to water restrictions. Water and dissolved nitrogen are supplied close to the roots by polyethylene tubing buried 35 to 40 cm deep and equipped with emitters spaced 15 to 50 cm apart that deliver flow rates from 0.5 to 3.0 l/h under a pressure of 0.5 to 1.5 bars. IRSTEA has for some years now been doing agronomic tests to measure the hydraulic and agronomic performance of SDI compared to gun irrigation.
After four years operating the equipment, SDI’s watering uniformity coefficient remains above 95%. When tested on maize crops, SDI had better agronomic performance than gun irrigation: depending on the gap between tubes (80, 120 or 160 cm), the productivity of irrigation water varies from 3.50 to 4.25 kg of grain produced per m3 of water delivered, as against only 2.70 to 3.20 in the gun irrigation model, or an average improvement of 18%; nitrogen productivity in 2011 (fertigation) was between 30 and 38 kg of grain produced per unit of nitrogen applied, as against only 19 to 23 kg in the case of spraying (+60%). On the economic front, even though some authors concede better performance is obtained, it is recommended, given its relatively high sunk costs (between €3,000 and €5,000/ha), that SDI be introduced only when crops are rotated, with particular attention to whether high-added-value crops (vegetables) are involved.
Contact: Patrick Rosique, [email protected]
Subsurface drip irrigation a proven innovative solution for field crop irrigation
© Patrick Rosique (IRSTEA) & Jean-Marie Lopez (CIRAD)
Filtration and fertigation station. Subsoiler suitable for duct burial.
Gre
en te
chn
olog
ies
9
Gre
en te
chn
olog
ies
10
LEVEL 1 – OBJECTS
ISARD projectgreening of agricultural production systems through waste recycling
Composted poultry litter.
R. C
ayro
l © R
égio
n Ré
unio
n
Organic waste products (OWPs) generated through human activity are constantly increasing. Farming produces them in great quantities (livestock, agro-industries). Wastewater production too increases owing to urban growth and denser urban populations. Wastewater or sludge from wastewater treatment is often spread on agricultural land on the outskirts of cities. These OWPs are sources of organic matter that may increase soil fertility and, as a corollary, allow sustainable agricultural production to be carried on. In studying how best to use them, a number of things need to be taken into account, viz. the many types of waste and the wide variation in where they are found and what they can be used for.
The ISARD project is developing a comprehensive approach to the integration of applied knowledge in this field. Where it breaks new ground is in considering the organic matter produced by agricultural and other activities. That consideration is at two organizational levels: the first level deals with the OWPs, the soils on which they are used and the crops
grown; the processes studied are essentially the biogeochemical cycles; the second level looks at units producing, processing and using organic matter, as
well as stakeholder groups; the processes studied are the transformations and flows of organic matter, regulations and costs.
At both levels, many tools exist to ensure a timely response to the needs of integrated management. The project makes use of those tools, with the goal of improving them by taking into account the risk/benefit ambiguity and by defining helpful indicators.
The project involves nine partners in four areas: the Versailles plain (France), Réunion Island, the Dakar metropolitan area (Senegal), and the Mahajanga region (Madagascar). Its attention to the situation in developing countries affords a more nuanced view of the composition of OWPs, treatment facilities, societal demands and existing regulatory frameworks.
Contact: Hervé Saint Macary, [email protected]
Industrial waste/OM
Pre-processing
Urban waste
Agricultural OM
Agricultural OM
Animal feed, fertilizer, minerals
LEVEL 2 - TERRITORY
Infl owGas discharge
Runoff
Soil interaction
Leaching
Absorption by plant
Advice, guidance, decision support
Understanding, diagnosis, indicators
Material fl ows of value to agriculture
Polluant fl ows
Green technologies for agriculture
Representation of recycling systems in ISARD.
A workflow is a model of a working process, generally taking the form of a software package or information system. The Mildium® workflow was developed by INRA, UMR “Vineyard Health and Agroecology” (INRA, Bordeaux Sciences Agro) and the French National Research Institute of Science and Technology for Environment and Agriculture (IRSTEA, UMR ITAP). It sets out how to decide whether, and when, a fungicide against powdery mildew should be applied. The decision-making process was mapped using the Statecharts computer language. The decision is based on information collected for specific vegetative stages on the plot and on an expert assessment of local bioclimatic risk.
Over a number of years, in various regions, the experiments done under the Mildium workflow have shown that the system is effective in reducing pesticide treatments at plot level (by 30 to 50% depending on the diseases and situations encountered). That result was obtained by comparing the treatments done and the health status of a plot managed under Mildium and those of a similar plot, nearby, that was managed in a “conventional” manner by the same establishment.
As a modelling specialist, UMR ITAP was also involved in experiments with its partners on how best to benefit from feedback and guide theoretical choices with respect to formal representation. It is also working with Arvalis to develop workflows for fungicide protection in wheat.
The Mildium workflow provides plot-level decision support. Research is underway on how to manage an entire operation. The workflow process also involves knowledge consolidation. In providing a service that reduces the number of crop protection applications, the workflow acts as an environmental technology suited to a sustainable approach to agriculture.
Contact: Olivier Naud, [email protected]
A decision workflow to reduce fungicide treatments on grapevines
Gre
en te
chn
olog
ies
11
The Mildium workflow reduces pesticide treatments on grapevines.
Photo from MorgueFile
Automation (workflow) & variables
Tactical and thresholds described in phases
POD
Strategic principles broken down into tactical phases based on epidemiology and expertise
Obj
ectiv
es
Spec
ifica
tion