Environmental Impact Assessment of Rapeseed Cultivation by Life Cycle Assessment

BACKGROUND: High input to the arable land is contributed to increasing productivity with causing the global environmental problems at the same time. Rapeseed cultivation has been forced to reassess its positive point for utilization of winter fallow field. The Objective of this study was performed to assess the environmental impact of rapeseed cultivation with double-cropping system in paddy rice on Yeonggwang district using life cycle assessment technique. METHODS AND RESULTS: For assessing each stage of rapeseed cultivation, it was collected raw data for input materials as fertilizer and pesticide and energy consumption rate by analyzing the type of agricultural machinery and working hours by 1 ton rapeseed as functional unit. Environmental impacts were evaluated by using Eco-indicator 95 method for 8 impact categories. It was estimated that 216 kg CO₂-eq. for greenhouse gas, 3.98E-05 kg CFC-11-eq. for ozone lazer depletion, 1.78 kg SO₂-eq. for acidification, 0.28 kg PO₄-eq. for eutrophication, 5.23E-03 kg Pb-eq. for heavy metals, 2.51E-05 kg B(a)p-eq. for carcinogens, 1.24 kg SPM-eq. for smog and 6,460 MJ LHV for energy resource are potentially emitted to produce 1 ton rapeseed during its whole cultivation period, respectively. It was considered that 90% of these potential came from chemical fertilizer. For the sensitivity analysis, by increasing the productivity of rapeseed by 1 ton per ha, potential environmental loading was reduced at 22%. CONCLUSION(s): Fertilization affected most dominantly to the environmental burden, originated from the preuse stage, i.e. fertilizer manufacturing and transporting. It should be included and assessed an indirect emission, which is not directly emitted from agricultural activities. Recycling resource in agriculture with reducing chemical fertilizer and breeding the high productive variety might be contribute to reduce the environmental loading for the rapeseed cultivation.