Back to news
8 Jun 2017 | Atmosphere Initiative

Emissions Study to Differentiate Characteristics of Paddy and Wheat Crop Residue Burning

As part of an Atmosphere Initiative research, Manisha Mehra, a research associate at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) and the 2016 recipient of the Atmosphere Initiative PhD Fellowship, is undertaking an emissions study in Lumbini to analyze the effects of agricultural crop residue burning.

Mehra travelled to Lumbini, in the Terai region of Nepal, to collect samples of emissions resulting from the burning of wheat residue in fields in April 2017. The first round of fieldwork for the study, where samples of emissions from the post-harvest burning of paddy were collected, was conducted in November 2016.

0 mins Read

70% Complete
Collecting samples of wheat residue burning in Lumbini. Photo: Sujan Shrestha/ICIMOD

Mehra collected wheat residue samples from the same districts, Kapilvastu and Rupendehi, where she had collected the paddy residue samples in 2016. She explains that the wheat residue, unlike paddy residue, is extensively used as cattle fodder and in paper mills. Therefore, there is less burning of wheat residue than of paddy residue.

The study is an attempt to differentiate the characteristics of paddy and wheat residue burning emissions. The experimental setup was exactly the same for both wheat and paddy residue burning campaigns.

Details about Mehra’s study and her previous fieldwork are available here.

Stay current

Stay up to date on what’s happening around the HKH with our most recent publications and find out how you can help by subscribing to our mailing list.

Sign Up

Related content

Continue exploring this topic

6 Feb 2015 News
Workshop on Glaciological Applications of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

A total of 50 participants from 15 institutions participated in the workshop, which focused on the scientific/natural hazard applications of ...

18 Jul 2019 News
Combining top–down and bottom–up: Designing a watershed management plan for Dhankuta Municipality

In the first consultation meeting with the vice mayor, there was a consensus that the conservation of water sources is ...

13 Dec 2016 News
Mountain Festival Held in Pokhara to Mark International Mountain Day

ICIMOD and others marked International Mountain Day 2016 in Pokhara at the third annual Mountain Festival. The Nepal Mountaineering Association ...

9 Aug 2017 Himalica
Regional Conference on Mountain Agriculture Kicks Off in Kathmandu, Nepal

He said, "Some messages coming out of the Himalica experience are very clear. Improving farmers', especially women farmers', access to ...

11 Feb 2019 Water
2nd Regional Upper Indus Basin Network (UIB-N) Workshop

Glaciers in the upper reaches of the Indus River basin are an important source of freshwater. However, as climate change ...

19 Jun 2018 Cryosphere
Institutional Recognition for Promoting Women in Glaciology Research in the HKH

Since its inception in 2011, the Cryosphere Initiative at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) has made a ...

21 Jun 2017 Atmosphere Initiative
ICIMOD Supports National Action Plan for SLCPs Mitigation in Nepal

As the issue if SLCPs is a recent one, Nepal does not have policies that specifically address it. The Atmosphere ...

Leveraging Collaboration for Disaster Risk Reduction in the Koshi Basin

Scientists, practitioners, and decision makers working in the Koshi Basin reached consensus on the need to further strengthen regional collaboration ...