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Cambodia - Scaling up integrated rice straw management for reducing black carbon emissions

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RATIONALE

This project responds to a request made by the Ministry of Environment and the Department of Agricultural Engineering (DAEng) of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Cambodia to support the implementation of integrated rice straw management for reducing black carbon emissions, accompanied by demonstration projects focused on adapting and scaling up mechanization-based solutions for crop residue management in Cambodia.          

 

The project objective is to apply and optimize agricultural machinery to improve current practices and provide suitable alternatives to burning straw residue to scale up crop residue management in Cambodia. The project will establish 24 pilot sites in 3 provinces to adapt and scale up mechanization-based solutions such as square baler, paddy rice straw chopper combined with rotary tiller for dry field and rotary tiller for wet field while strengthening local capacities and catering to the needs of smallholders and women farm workers through machinery and equipment demonstration, workshop and exchange visit. The criteria for the selection of the pilot sites in the 3 target provinces should be based on (1) the level of paddy rice cultivation (2) areas where there is most burned rice straw (3) availability of 2-3 rice crop cultivations per year. Generally, the average farm plot is 1ha.

 

In Southeast Asia, air pollution exposure is a particular problem, with 99.9% of the population – around 656 million people – living in regions where fine particulate matter (PM2.5) pollution exceeds the WHO guideline level. A major source of PM2.5 exposure in Southeast Asia is the open burning of agricultural residues, which is associated with adverse health impacts.  According to the Centre for Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization (CSAM), Cambodia has the third highest fire count among countries in Southeast Asia, with around a quarter of these fires due to agricultural residue burning and around 62% of the fires due to slash and burn methods and timber harvesting.  

 

Between 2 and 8 million tons of rice straw are subjected to burning yearly in Cambodia, producing high air pollutant concentrations with severe impacts on public health. Furthermore, in January 2021, thousands of illegal burn sites were identified across Cambodia, indicating the urgent need for mechanization solutions and making Cambodia an ideal place to demonstrate what can be achieved across mainland Southeast Asia to reduce air pollution caused by biomass burning.  

 

Implementation of modern agricultural machinery can promote the transition to sustainable and integrated management of agricultural residues, for example using baler machinery to compress and transport straw as bales for use as livestock feed/bedding, bioenergy, mushroom substrate, or industry material.  

 

This project will align with and contribute to the implementation of the following policies:  

 

The outputs of this project will support the implementation of Cambodia’s Clean Air Plan with targeted measures to prevent and reduce the ambient air Pollution. The project will also support the implementation of the Paris Agreement, and the attainment of the targets laid out in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 1 (No Poverty) target 1.4 (poor have equal access to appropriate new technology), SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) target 2.4 (ensure sustainable food production systems, SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) target 12.2 (promote efficient use of natural resources), and SDG 13 (Climate Action) target 13.1 (strengthening adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards).  

 

This project builds on the on-going CCAC funded project on deliver training programme for the implementation of decrees for reducing open waste burning and air pollution, and the UNESCAP funded project Strengthening mechanization-based solutions for climate-smart crop residue management in Cambodia, Indonesia and Nepal.  This project responds to a request made by the Ministry of Environment of Cambodia to address black carbon emissions in the transport sector by strengthening the enforcement of vehicle emissions regulations, with a focus on applying globally recognized methodologies for on-road and periodic vehicle emissions inspections while expanding capacity for Euro 6 implementation planning.

Activities

Outcome 1: Farmers (at least 30% female) in the 3 targeted provinces have increased capacity to adopt technologies and practices for integrated straw residue management in targeted provinces by the end of the project.  

 

Indicator: Number of SLCP mitigation tools, technologies, or practices adopted  

 

  • Output 1.1: Mapping of farm plots in Takeo, Prey Veng, and Banteay Meanchey Provinces to be selected for training and demonstration activities with the Provincial Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries in each province.
  • Output 1.2: Deliver training to farmers in Takeo, Prey Veng, and Banteay Meanchey Provinces on the use of alternative technologies and practices for rice residue management to reduce black carbon emissions. These include the use of square baler, paddy rice straw chopper combined with rotary tiller for dry field and rotary tiller for wet field equipped/mounted with 4 wheels tractor.  

Outcome 2: Implementation plan for mitigation strategies on selected farms and corresponding monitoring framework are approved by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF)/Department of Agricultural Engineering (DAEng) by the end of the project.  

 

Indicator: Number of action plans, roadmaps, strategies, or other future plans with SLCP targets or mitigation measures formally adopted, endorsed, and/or implemented  

 

  • Output 2.1: Implementation plan for mitigation strategies and monitoring framework to track emission reduction over one year that includes:  
    • Identification of mitigation measures to be demonstrated for reducing black carbon from agricultural burning from existing assessments and pilot projects.  
    • Baseline assessment of black carbon emissions and financial and economic analysis of selected farms conducted to identify specific entry points to scale up alternatives to agricultural residue burning.  
    • Economic and impact analysis of black carbon mitigation in the agriculture sector  
    • Safeguard assessment of farm plots  

 

  • Output 2.2: Training of Trainers (ToTs) trainings delivered to personnel at the provincial level on survey methods for black carbon inventory development using county data; and mitigation potential assessment development.  

Outcome 3: The Government of Cambodia endorses project proposals/ initiatives for integrated rice residue management using Takeo, Prey Veng and Banteay Meanchey Provinces as pilots for submission to public and private funding sources by the end of the project.  

 

Indicator: Amount of external funding (“catalysed funding”) for SLCP actions    

 

  • Output 3.1: Drafting of at least 5-7 appropriate projects/initiatives with business potential in integrated rice straw management supported by the public and private sector based on the findings of output 2.1. The drafting of the projects/initiatives should include:  
    • Project name    
    • Sector  
    • Description    
    • Outcomes    
    • Implementing entities    
    • Stakeholders    
    • Link to policies, plans  
    • General timeline for Development, Financing,    
    • Implementation, and    
    • Operation    
    • Mitigation potential    
    • Co-benefits    
    • Investment needs    
    • Potential business model, financing strategy  
    • Gaps and barriers to implementation and proposed enabling mechanisms  
    • Financial sustainability    
    • Potential financing partners    
    • Enabling, Capacity Building and Technical Assistance Needs    
    • Information and MRV Needs    
  • Output 3.2: Stakeholders convened and engaged on selection of at least 3 projects/ initiatives to identify financial opportunities.  
  • Output 3.3: Design a plan to support three selected projects in coordination with public and private institutions. This plan should include the identifications for financial opportunities.  
  • Output 3.4: Workshop delivered to key stakeholders, from the financial sector, local and national governments, private sector to identify ways to make financial instruments available to finance integrated rice residue management projects. 

 

Cambodia – Scaling up integrated rice straw management for reducing black carbon emissions [KH-25-009]