INDIGO® palm: a method based on agro-ecological indicators to assess the environmental stability of oil palm plantations
2007
Girardin, Philippe | Caliman, Jean-Pierre | Wohlfahrt, Julie
As suggested by the Round Table for sustainable palm oil production (RSPO), the sustainability assessment of agricultural practices in oil palm plantations appears to be a key issue for the future development of this crop. CIRAD and its partners especially P. T. SMART, have decided to adapt the INDIGO® method developed by !NRA to evaluate the potential impacts of input applications (fertilizers, pesticides, organic matter) and of land management (s oil cover) on ground and surface water, air, soil, and biodiversity in oil palm plantations. The first step is the calculation of evaluation modules that estimate the impact of each agricultural technique on each environmental component. The modules are aggregated to generate an agro-ecological indicator. Then, together, the agro-ecological indicators provide a "control panel" used as a decision aid tool. As input, few variables and parameters are specific of the oil palm plantation (i. e. dates of pesticide applying, nitrogen content of palm leaves ...). The validation of the quality value of the indicators is done by comparison with measured data (i.e.: nitrate or pesticides leaching). Two agro-environmental indicators are available (I-N and I-Phy) for nitrogen and pesticides management, and, two others are in development (I-MO and!cover) for organic matter management and soil cover. In the future this environmental dashboard will also include indicators for energy, P and K management. The calculation of the indicators of INDIGO® palm method through a computer program is in development. (Résumé d'auteur)
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