India has committed to reaching net-zero emissions by 2070. The agriculture sector, the country’s third-largest source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, is also bound by this commitment. But bringing changes in this sector, which provides livelihoods to over half of India’s working population, is a complex task. The agrarian community is fragmented and in general, resistant to changing traditional practices.
Clean energy has been the intervention of choice in planning India’s journey to net zero. Does it have a role to play in decarbonising agriculture? In this article, I argue that for the agricultural sector to reach net zero by 2070, clean energy has a strong role to play, both directly and as a catalyst for change.
Clean electricity for farms
Farms consume nearly 20 per cent of the total grid electricity produced in India. Most of this goes towards running irrigation pumps. It is estimated that India has over two crore electric pumps and 80 Lakh diesel pumps. Farm electrification alone contributes 8-10 per cent of India’s overall GHG emissions.
Replacing existing irrigation pumps with solar pumps has been high on the priority list of successive governments. The PM-KUSUM scheme launched by the current government aims to replace 35 lakh conventional pumps with solar pumps by 2026. The scheme goes a step further and envisages 10 GW of solar plants being set up on farms. Though the scheme is lagging far behind its targets (only about 5 per cent of the targeted capacity has been installed till now), it represents one pathway to net zero in agriculture – where farms become exporters of clean energy, thereby offsetting other emissions that they may create.
Clean energy as a catalyst
GHG emissions from agricultural practices have their origins in complex biological processes. Within agriculture, the largest share of GHG emissions comes from methane that is produced in the guts of livestock as they digest their food. The second largest share comes from methane generated by bacteria that thrive in the oxygen-free environment of submerged paddy fields. In the post-harvest cycle, wasted and discarded fruits and vegetables produce GHGs as they decay. All these sources put together contribute nearly 14 per cent of India’s GHG emissions.
Clean energy is by no means a direct mitigation of any of these emissions. But in its decentralised form, it can power innovations that reduce agriculture-related emissions. Take the case of livestock – with climate change, pasture lands are depleting, which means cows and goats are increasingly being fed with dry fodder and feed mixes rather than green fodder. This significantly increases the amount of methane they produce, while reducing milk yield.
A startup called Hydrogreens makes hydroponic fodder stations powered by solar energy, that grow enough green fodder to feed 4 heads of cattle every day. Dairy farmers are initially skeptical, but once they start observing the increased milk yield, they enthusiastically adopt the new product. GHG emission reduction is a happy side-effect.
AWD technique
For generations, farmers have been submerging their paddy fields in ankle-deep water. This gives them a good yield but at the cost of the environment. A technique called AWD (alternate wetting and drying) eliminates the need for stagnant water in the field but does require scientific monitoring of soil moisture. Cultyvate, a smart irrigation startup, places a network of solar-powered sensors and controllers in the field, that tell the farmer exactly when and how much they should irrigate as per AWD. This saves water, drastically cuts down GHG emissions and as icing on the cake, makes the farmer eligible to earn additional income by selling carbon credits.
Recent reports show that up to 15 per cent of produce ends up as food waste after harvest, and releases GHGs as it decays. Post-harvest processing right at the farm gate can cut this figure significantly. Innovations in this space include cold storage chambers, dryers and food processors that are powered by solar or biomass energy. A startup called New Leaf Dynamic makes a 20 MT refrigeration unit which is powered completely by zero-emission burning of straw and wood chips that are available on the farm. The produce goes into the unit within minutes of harvest, and stays fresh for days. This allows the farmer to sell at the right price, and completely eliminate wastage (along with the resultant GHG emissions).
In all these examples, clean energy acts as a catalyst to spur the adoption of innovations that reduce GHG emissions in the agricultural sector. This represents another pathway to net zero, one where the farming community voluntarily adopts climate-friendly practices, with a gentle nudge from clean energy.
The author is the Sector Lead, Climate Action at Villgro Innovations Foundation, an incubator of social enterprises.