Climate change when cows and buffaloes are raging!

Here domestic animals are domesticated, agricultural lime and urea are used in crops. Activities such as crop residue burning and manure management are also carried out. A lot of methane gas is emitted from it.

Methane and nitrous oxide are the main greenhouse gases emitted from animal waste. Methane is the second most influential greenhouse gas in driving climate change after carbon dioxide. Methane can remain in the atmosphere for 12.4 years without chemical reaction. Methane is more harmful to the atmosphere than carbon dioxide. Looking at the 100-year temperature increase, methane's climate change impact capacity (global warming potential) is 28 times higher than carbon dioxide. The climate change impact potential of nitrous oxide is 265 times higher than that of carbon dioxide.

According to a report by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in November 2006, more methane gas is emitted from pets' stomachs than the amount of carbon dioxide emitted from vehicles or factories to cause climate change. Livestock (cows, buffaloes, goats) play the most important role in this. Herbivorous animals like cows, buffaloes, sheep and goats chew their food. This is called instigation. They even belch occasionally. Bacteria in their stomachs help them digest food. Methane gas is released from this process.

A research published last year stated that an adult buffalo in Nepal emits 34 to 90 kg of methane gas annually. During cultivation, it was found that a pado emits 34 kg of methane per year, while an adult produces 90 kg. According to the research published in the Journal of Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 2.5 to 7.5 kg of methane is released from buffalo dung. Annually, 347.8 giga grams are emitted from buffaloes across Nepal. This means 347 thousand 800 metric tons annually. Similarly, the amount of methane released from buffalo dung is 25,600 metric tons annually. According to the third national communication report of the Ministry of Forestry and Environment, 1.26 million tons of methane is emitted annually in Nepal.

Before that, a study published in the Science of Total Environment Journal stated that local cows in Nepal produce 33 kg of methane gas and advanced breeds of cows produce 46 kg of methane gas. According to the study, it has been seen that cows produce 254,000 tons of methane gas annually while grazing. Based on the data of IPCC, it is said that 221 thousand tons of methane is emitted annually from cattle in Nepal, but this research shows that 254 giga grams are emitted 15 percent more than that. The quantity is higher because advanced breed cows eat more and produce more. According to the statistics of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, the number of cows in Nepal is more than 73 lakh.

This study can be considered to have prepared a database for Nepal. This type of research directly helps in preparing the greenhouse gas inventory of Nepal. This topic may seem new to the general public, but it should not be ignored. Governments of different countries have worked on the issue of food and nutrients fed to cows and buffaloes. New Zealand has proposed taxing agricultural farms, saying that cows and buffaloes account for a large share of emissions. There are about 1 crore cows and 2.5 crore sheep, while the population is only around 5 million.

After the opposition to the tax proposal, there was a clarification about the role of cows and buffaloes in climate change. In the US state of California, where there is a lot of methane emissions from cattle, the administration of President Joe Biden decided to grant $24 million to the dairy industry for nutrients, while $28 million was given to farmers to reduce methane emissions.

Livestock was found to account for half of California's total methane emissions. Dairy operators have put forward a plan in 2020 to reduce emissions from cattle in the state by 40 percent by 2030. In India, 90 percent of the total emissions from animal husbandry are from agriculture alone. It is mentioned in the communication report of the Ministry of Forest and Environment that it is more than 92 percent in Nepal.

Cattle's role in the world's total greenhouse gas production is 14.5 percent annually. 66 percent of them are from the agricultural sector. In 2011, 17 thousand 665 giga grams of animal feed was emitted in Nepal in the third national communication report. Methane emissions in the atmosphere have doubled since the industrial revolution, contributing 30 percent to temperature rise, according to IPCC reports.

The report recommends paying attention to the type and quality of fodder (fodder, silage, grass) used by cattle, the use of new technologies and other carbon compensation arrangements. It is important for Nepal to pay attention to nutrients in order to reduce the methane gas released during grazing. Nepal is one of the countries with very sensitive and weak safety system in terms of food safety. In the 2023 Global Hunger Index, Nepal ranks 69th among 125 countries with poor food security in the world with a score of 28.7.

Based on this fact, it seems that Nepal should increase its livestock production. Geographical structure also makes commercial animal husbandry more important than agricultural crops in terms of food security and economics. According to the data of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, commercial agriculture accounts for 45 percent of the total agricultural sector and the remaining 55 percent is dependent on pure livelihood. Although animal husbandry in these areas is economically profitable, the methane emissions from it cannot be ignored.

– Climate expert Thakuri is an associate professor at Tribhuvan University and Dean of the Faculty of Science, Technology and Engineering at Midwest University. Pokharel, conservation officer of National Nature Conservation Fund, conducts studies/research on climate, conservation and wildlife.