Science Explained/Brief
Irrigation's greenhouse gas benefits far outweigh emissions costs, study finds
A new study from Colorado State University finds that irrigating U.S. crops prevents higher greenhouse gas emissions by avoiding land conversion. According to a brief report, if irrigation were suddenly shut off, the land-use change required to make up for lost yields would produce 363 times more emissions than irrigation emits.
BriefPublished 15 September 20261 min read1 linked source · 3 checked facts
The study from Colorado State University says that irrigating U.S. crops prevents higher greenhouse gas emissions by avoiding land conversion. Agricultural irrigation allows the U.S. to grow more food on less land. If irrigation were suddenly shut off, the land-use change required to make up for lost yields would produce significantly more greenhouse gas emissions than irrigation emits—363 times more.
Our reading is that the finding highlights land conversion as a major climate factor. The 363-times figure is a single study's estimate, not a consensus.
Our view
This finding suggests irrigation's climate benefit is primarily about land sparing, but it rests on a single study's estimate.
What the reporting says: Irrigating U.S. crops prevents higher greenhouse gas emissions by avoiding land conversion, and that if irrigation were suddenly shut off, the land-use change required to make up for lost yields would produce 363 times more emissions than irrigation emits.
