This paper conducts an assessment of the global costs for expanding, upgrading, and improving irrigation infrastructure in developing countries, along different future scenarios toward 2050. It uses the GLobal BIOsphere Management Model, a partial equilibrium model of the global agricultural and forestry sectors.
Soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration on agricultural land decreases the costs of climate change mitigation while promoting increased food security. SOC has the potential to sequester up to 3.5 GtCO2eq/yr by 2050 in a scenario consistent with 1.5 ºC warming.
Carbon price policies deliver cost-efficient mitigation across sectors, but can result in tradeoffs with food security and other sustainable development goals. Scenarios for a 1.5 °C world based on carbon prices could increase the undernourished population by 80 - 300 million in 2050.
This report is unique in presenting a high-resolution dataset of biomass use, production, feed efficiencies, and greenhouse gas emissions by global livestock. This information will allow the global-change research community in enhancing our understanding of the sustainability of livestock systems and their role in food security, livelihoods and environmental sustainability.
