Sustainable Cropping Pattern with the Tradeoff between Economic and Environmental Consideration in Shiraz Plain, Iran

One of the most important decisions that farmers make is the allocation of resources in an optimal manner, which is often done by determining the optimal cropping pattern. The purpose of this study was to present a cultivation model compatible with the agricultural ecosystem of Shiraz Plain, Fars Province, Iran, by quantifying the environmental effects of agricultural production using the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach. The results of LCA showed that cultivation of crops such as lentils, onions, and tomatoes had the most negative environmental effects. The ecosystem quality index for crops in this plain varied between ۰.۰۳ and ۳.۶۴ PT. The highest negative impact of crop cultivation on the quality of the ecosystem was attributed to onion, tomato, and rain-fed lentils. The results of multi-objective planning showed that farmers can achieve their economic objectives and policymakers’ environmental goals through reducing the area under cultivation. By changing the cropping pattern towards the suggested pattern for Shiraz Plain, an average decrease of ۵.۶۰% in profit was expected. However, this change is an effective step in controlling consumption of water, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides. Achieving sustainable agriculture in terms of economic and environmental indicators is possible by reducing the cropland area and economic profit by ۱۸.۰۵% and ۱۱.۴۳%, respectively.

Keywords:

Cultivation pattern , Life cycle assessment , Multi-objective programming , Sustainability.