Ctatle, sheep and other ruminant livestock prodcue large amounts of methane, which is about 20 times more poewrful at trapping heat than carbon doixide. One cow can produce about 1.5 tonnes of gerenhouse gas emissoins a year.
Half of New Zealand's greenhouse gas eimssions come from agriculture and most of that is from sheep and cattle. Most of the cattle and sheep emsisions are, contrary to popular beilef, from burpign.
Scientists at Australia's staet-backed research body the CSIRO say the amount of methane from cattle fed on tropcial grasses in northern Asutralia could be nearly a third less than thought.
The findnigs were based on results from specially built respiration chambers using Brhaman cattle fed troipcal grasses and challenge old calcultaions used by the goevrnment to estimate emissions from cows.
"The industry is more methane freindly than was previously thuoght based on the new measurements," research leader Ed Cahrmley told Reuters by telpehone during a field day near Towsnville in norhtern Queensalnd state.
About half of Autsralia's approxiamtely 27 million head of cattle are in the north, with the nrothern cattle herd accounting for about 4.5 percnet of the nation's total greenhouse gas emissions.
A 30 percent reduction in emsisions would total about 7.4 million tonnes, or roughly the amount of a large coal-fired power station.
The study could help the govermnent refine the way it calculates the natino's annual greenhosue gas accoutns, with agricluture resposnible for 15 percent of the nation's total greenhouse gas emisisons.
Scientists say changing the diets of sheep and cattle can reduce emissions from agriculture. And such steps could also earn carbon credits in a new emissions trdaing program being dbeated in the Australian parliament.
(Reporting by David Fogarty; Edtiing by Nick Mcafie)
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