CH sub(4) Emission in Response to Water-Saving and Drought-Resistance Rice (WDR) and Common Rice Varieties under Different Irrigation Managements

• Published in: Water, air, and soil pollution Vol. 227; no. 2; pp. 1 - 12
• Main Authors: Sun, Huifeng, Zhou, Sheng, Song, Xiangfu, Fu, Zishi, Chen, Guifa, Zhang, Jining
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 01.02.2016
• Subjects: Oryza sativa
• ISSN: 0049-6979; 1573-2932
• DOI: 10.1007/s11270-015-2741-7

A shortage in available water resources for rice production makes the evaluation of rice yield and greenhouse gas emission in response to drought caused by water scarcity vital. Here, we examined three forms of irrigation management (normal amount [NA], 70 % of NA [NA 70 %], and 30 % of NA [NA30%]) and two rice varieties (Oryza sativa L. cv. Hanyou 8 and Oryza sativa L. cv. Huayou 14) to determine their effects on CH sub(4) emission and rice yield in two rice growing seasons. Hanyou 8 is a variety of water-saving and drought-resistance rice (WDR), while Huayou 14 is a common rice variety with no known adaptation to drought conditions. NA 70 % reduced CH sub(4) emission by 30.3-53.3 %, and NA 30 % further depressed CH sub(4) emission by 51.0-76.7 % relative to NA in both seasons. However, NA 70 % and NA 30 % significantly decreased rice yield by 6.3 % (P<0.05) and 10.1 % (P<0.01), respectively, for Huayou 14 when compared with NA in the relatively dry season. Conversely, no differences in rice yield among different irrigation managements were observed for Hanyou 8 in both seasons, suggesting that Hanyou 8 is more drought-resistant than Huayou 14 in terms of rice yield. The results suggest that, to meet the water scarcity, the use of rice varieties with water-saving and drought-resistant traits may minimize rice yield loss and mitigate CH sub(4) emission in the rice-cultivated regions of the world.