UPSC Prelims 2022 · Question 21 of 98
UPSC Prelims 2022 question on Rice Methane Nitrous Oxide
- ExamUPSC CSE
- Year2022
- PaperGeneral Studies Paper I
- SubjectEnvironment and Ecology
- TopicAgriculture and Environment
- DifficultyEasy
- TypeDirect
Among the following crops, which one is the most important anthropogenic source of both methane and nitrous oxide?
Show answer
Answer: B. Rice
Verdict
Correct answer: Option (b) — Rice.
Analysis
Paddy fields are anthropogenic sources of atmospheric nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4), which have been reckoned as 273 and 80-83 times more powerful than CO2 in driving temperature increase in 20 years.
Paddies are a potential source of anthropogenic N2O emission. In paddies, both the soil and the rice plants emit N2O into the atmosphere. The rice plant in the paddy is considered to act as a channel between the soil and the atmosphere for N2O emission.
Rice cultivation in flooded paddy fields is also a major anthropogenic source of methane due to anaerobic decomposition of organic matter.
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