Wetting and Drying: Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Saving Water from Rice Production

Global rice production contributes between 500 and 800 million tons of CO2 equivalent annually, representing at least 1% of global GHG emissions. The report identifies water management techniques—such as alternate wetting and drying (AWD), single mid-season drawdowns, dry seeding, and aerobic rice production—as promising methods to reduce methane emissions by up to 90% and lower water use without necessarily compromising yields. However, adoption is hindered by limited farmer control over irrigation, lack of confidence in yield benefits, and insufficient financial incentives. Case studies from China, India, the Philippines, and the United States highlight that technical feasibility varies by region and irrigation method, with groundwater pumping areas offering the most immediate opportunities for implementation.

• Global rice production is a significant source of greenhouse gases, emitting between 500 and 800 million tons of CO2 equivalent per year, which constitutes at least 10 percent of all agricultural GHG emissions and at least 1 percent of total global GHG emissions.
• Reducing or interrupting flooding periods through techniques such as alternate wetting and drying (AWD), single mid-season drawdowns, dry seeding, and aerobic rice production can theoretically reduce emissions by up to 90 percent compared to full flooding, while generally maintaining or increasing rice yields.
• The practical potential to adopt water management techniques varies by region: farmers pumping groundwater in India, the southern United States, and parts of the Philippines have the technical ability to apply these techniques, whereas farmers in the Philippines and other Asian countries often lack the ability to drain fields during the rainy season.
• Wide-scale adoption of improved water management is obstructed by several barriers, including limited farmer control over irrigation water, a lack of information regarding cost-effectiveness in major rice-growing areas, and a lack of direct incentives for farmers.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). Wetting and Drying: Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Saving Water from Rice Production. https://www.wri.org/research/wetting-and-drying-reducing-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-saving-water-rice-production

Chicago

World Resources Institute. Wetting and Drying: Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Saving Water from Rice Production. n.d. https://www.wri.org/research/wetting-and-drying-reducing-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-saving-water-rice-production.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=Wetting and Drying: Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Saving Water from Rice Production |url=https://www.wri.org/research/wetting-and-drying-reducing-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-saving-water-rice-production |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendwetting, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{Wetting and Drying: Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Saving Water from Rice Production}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/wetting-and-drying-reducing-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-saving-water-rice-production}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }