Agricultural greenhouse gas studies
Last updated on September 10, 2026
30 Agricultural BMPs for Climate Mitigation in B.C. (2026)
These two companion reports summarize research led by the University of British Columbia on Beneficial Management Practices (BMPs) that can help reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agriculture in British Columbia while supporting farm resilience, productivity, and environmental sustainability. Together, these reports provide a foundation for understanding how agricultural BMPs can contribute to B.C.’s climate targets and inform the design of evidence-based programs and policies.
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Report 1: Assessment of Benefit Potential and Research Gaps
This synthesis report identifies and prioritizes 30 agricultural BMPs with the strongest potential to reduce GHG emissions in B.C. It provides a province-wide assessment of their estimated climate benefits, co-benefits, uncertainties, and adoption scenarios, and highlights key knowledge gaps to guide future research and program development. - Report 2: Benefits, Uncertainty, and Challenges
This companion report provides detailed summaries for each of the 30 BMPs, describing how the practices work, where they are most effective, their estimated emission reductions, implementation considerations, costs, co-benefits, and remaining uncertainties.
The analysis follows from the recommendations of analysis done by UBC in 2021 (below) that provided a baseline understanding of GHG emissions from B.C. agriculture and identified potential GHG reduction opportunities.
Opportunity Assessment of Agricultural GHG Reductions and Carbon Sinks (2021)
Project summary report
This report provides a short summary of the results from three technical reports, including quantifying potential net GHG reductions resulting from the adoption of a preliminary list of 13 BMPs assessed. The report highlights possible next steps to support development of agricultural pathways for GHG reduction and carbon sequestration.
Technical reports
Technical report 1
Report 1 builds on existing national and provincial GHG inventory data to analyse sources and sinks of agricultural GHG emissions and trends over time.
Technical report 2
Report 2 examines the climate benefits and feasibility of adopting BMPs using a multi-criteria framework (MCF). In addition to GHG reduction potential, the MCF also considers environmental co-benefits, costs, and adoptability. This report considers a preliminary list of BMPs, including: rotational grazing, cover crops, planting woody perennials, preserving forests, electric tractors, 3NOP cattle feed additive, anaerobic digestion, manure composting, greenhouse retrofits, nitrification inhibitor, and 4R nutrient management.
Technical report 3
Report 3 evaluates forty-nine GHG models that could be adapted for modelling B.C. agricultural GHG emissions and informing policy and program development. This report recommends the top five models based on suitability and effectiveness.
B.C. provincial inventory of GHG emissions
B.C.'s Provincial Inventory reports annual GHG emissions and removals each year from 1990 onwards. The information is provided in a detailed Excel workbook. The Provincial Inventory is based on the Government of Canada's National Inventory Report (NIR).