Climate Change Mitigation in Rice Farming Should Account for Biodiversity

2026/02/01 by Néstor Pérez‐Méndez, Sebastián Echeverría‐Progulakis, Naoki Katayama +6 · 1 voice
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · #Agricultural Systems and Practices #Climate change impacts on agriculture #Rice Cultivation and Yield Improvement

paper · pdf · doi:10.1111/gcb.70754

openalex publication_date 2026/02/01 · openalex created_date 2026/02/18 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/26

Abstract

Climate change mitigation and biodiversity loss are closely linked challenges, yet agricultural strategies often address them separately. Focusing on rice farming, this article shows that widely promoted water-saving practices can reduce greenhouse gas emissions but may also harm freshwater biodiversity that depends on flooded fields. We highlight alternative management approaches and the need for spatially and seasonally targeted strategies that balance climate goals, biodiversity conservation, and food production.

Citations

• Climate Change 2021 – The Physical Science Basis
• Water‐saving strategies in rice farming entail cascading effects in prey–predator interactions across ecosystem boundaries
• Agricultural policies against invasive species generate contrasting outcomes for climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation
• Species diversity and abundance of freshwater fishes in irrigation ditches around rice fields

Discussions

• 🚨 New paper out in Global Change Biology @globalchangebio.bsky.social Climate mitigation in rice farming can’t operate in a carbon tunnel vision but needs to incorporate a spatiotemporal approach to [bsky, 5 points, 1 comments]

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