Mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions and improved yield by plastic mulching in rice production

Soil mulching technologies are effective practices which alleviate non-point source pollution and carbon emissions, while ensuring grain production security and increasing water productivity. However, the lack of comprehensive understanding of the impacts of mulching technologies on rice fields has hindered progress in global implementation due to the varying environments and application conditions under which they are implemented. This study conducted a meta-analysis based on 2412 groups of field experiment data from 313 studies to evaluate the effects of soil mulching methods on rice production, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and water use efficiency. The results show that plastic mulching, straw mulching and no mulching (PM, SM and NM) have reduced CH4 emissions (68.8 %, 61.4 % and 57.2 %), increased N2O emissions (84.8 %, 89.1 % and 96.6 %), reduced global warming potentials (50.7 %, 47.5 % and 46.8 %) and improved water use efficiency (50.2 %, 40.9 % and 34.0 %) compared with continuous flooding irrigation. However, PM increased rice yield (1.6 %), while SM and NM decreased yield (4.3 % and 9.2 %). Furthermore, analysis using random forest models revealed that rice yield, GHG emissions and WUE response to soil mulching were related to climate, soil properties, fertilizer and rice varieties. Our findings can guide the implementation of plastic mulching technology in priority areas, contribute to agricultural carbon neutrality and support the development of practical guidelines for farmers. [Display omitted] •Plastic mulching increased rice yield, but straw and no mulching reduced yield.•Mulching methods reduced CH4 emissions and GWP, but increased N2O emissions.•Mulching methods improved WUE.•SOC, MM, NFR were important variables for rice yield and GHG emissions, respectively.