Agricultural Greenhouse Gases Program — Approved Projects

Agricultural Greenhouse Gases Program (AGGP) focuses on projects that fall under one or more of four priority areas: livestock systems, cropping systems, agricultural water use efficiency, and/or agroforestry. The following is a list of funded projects by priority area:

• Livestock Systems
• Cropping Systems
• Agricultural Water Use Efficiency
• Agroforestry
• Multiple Priority Areas

Priority Area: Livestock Systems

• University of Alberta: Grassland Soil Organic Carbon, Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions, Water Infiltration and Biodiversity under Grazing Management Practices in Canadian Grasslands
  This project will assess the environmental footprint of different cattle grazing systems.
• University of Manitoba: Integration of Feeding, Animal and Manure Management Practices to Reduce GHG Emissions and Improve Nutrient Utilization in Cow-Calf Operations
  This Project will study strategies for reducing greenhouse gases on Canadian cattle farms.
• University of Guelph: Effect of Nitrification Inhibition on Nitrous Oxide Emissions from Hog Manure Applied at Various Fall Timings
  This project will develop technologies, practices and processes that can be adopted by farmers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with hog manure application to cropland.
• University of Lethbridge: Assessment of the Potential for Adding Biochar to Beef Cattle Diets to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Agriculture
  This project will determine if beef cattle performance is improved and greenhouse gas emissions are reduced when biochar is added to Canadian beef cattle diets.

Priority Area: Cropping Systems

• University of Alberta: Annual vs. Perennial Cereal Crops – Assessing Carbon Sequestration, Greenhouse Gas Emission Reductions, and Grain Productivity
  This project will provide new science-based knowledge on net greenhouse gas emissions of perennial cereal crops relative to annual cropping systems with the goal of increasing soil carbon sequestration and reducing nitrous oxide emissions.
• Canadian Forage and Grassland Association: High Performance Management Systems to Reduce Greenhouse Gases in Canada's Forage and Grasslands
  This project will demonstrate to farmers the “carbon sequestration (sink)” potential of their farmlands.
• Dalhousie University: Assessing Cropping Systems for Soil Health, Carbon Storage Capacity, and Soil Nitrogen Supply as a Basis for Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Planning
  This project will develop technologies, practices, and processes to select optimum nitrogen fertilizer application rates that can be adopted by farmers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
• University of Guelph: Aerial Sensors to Assess Soil Organic Carbon Levels, Rapidly, Cost Effectively, and Representatively
  Using aerial sensors this project will investigate ways to develop a rapid, cost-effective, and representative method for farmers to measure Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) levels in their fields.
• McGill University: Management Strategies for Nutrient Use Efficiency and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction from Biosolids-amended Soils in Canada
  This project will investigate management practices for use of municipal biosolids as a crop fertilizer and quantify the effect of these practices on greenhouse gas emissions.
• University of British Columbia: Quantification and Mitigation of Greenhouse Gas Emissions From High Value Agricultural Production Systems in British Columbia:
  This project will determine carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas emissions, and develop beneficial management practices for increasing the efficiency of fertilizer use in blueberry, potato and forage crops.
• University of Saskatchewan: Strategies For Improving Nutritional Value Of Grazed Forages: Impact On GHG Emissions And Carbon Sequestration:
  This project is studying different pasture management practices, and testing different mixtures of forage plants, that will reduce the amount of greenhouse gases released into the air.

Priority Area: Agricultural Water Use Efficiency

• University of British Columbia: Understanding the Impact of Irrigation on Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Storage, and Associated Greenhouse Gas Emissions
  This project will identify irrigation practices that can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while increasing nitrogen, and carbon storage in soil.
• McGill University: An Integrated Socio-Economic and Biophysical Framework for Mitigating Greenhouse Gas Emissions under Agricultural Water Management Systems
  This project will investigate the effects of different beneficial water management systems on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the adoption of systems by farmers to reduce GHG emissions.
• University of Saskatchewan: Better BMPs - Budgeting And Minimizing Greenhouse Gases:
  This project is looking at ways to reduce greenhouse gases released from water storage reservoirs as part of an overall on-farm water management plan.

Priority Area: Agroforestry

• University of Alberta: beneficial management practices (BMPs) to Enhance Carbon Sequestration and Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Agroforestry Systems
  The project will assess the environmental benefits of shelterbelts and hedgerows.
• University of Guelph: Riparian Buffer Plantings as an Agroforestry Land-use for Greenhouse Gas Mitigation
  The project will develop technologies, practices and processes that can be adopted by farmers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in riparian agroforestry settings.
• Eastern Townships Forest Research Trust: Factors Affecting Carbon and Excess Nutrient Capture in Hybrid Poplar and Multi-Species Agroforestry Systems
  This project will identify effective ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions on farms involved in agroforestry.
• East Prince Agri-Environment Association: Planting Willow Riparian Buffers to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions
  This project will demonstrate the effects that planted willow riparian buffers have in sequestering carbon and nutrients passing through a riparian area, and determine if greenhouse gas emissions are reduced.
• University of Saskatchewan: Development of a Management Support Toolbox for Carbon Sequestration Strategies Using Agroforestry Shelterbelt Systems in Saskatchewan:
  The results of this project will help farmers decide on the best options for planting shelterbelts, including both farmyard and field shelterbelts, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Multiple Priority Areas

• University of Waterloo: Valuing Diversity in Agro-Ecosystems
  The project will examine greenhouse gas emissions associated with agricultural activities and the potential benefits of alternative land use practices and BMPs.