Huaiyu
Wang^a*, Ruifa Hu^a, Xiaoxue Chen^a, Xuhua Zhong^b,
Zuting Zheng^a, Nongrong Huang^b and Chunling Xue^c

International
Journal of Agricultural Sustainability 

doi: org/10.1080/14735903.2017.1398627

Abstract

Overuse
of nitrogen fertilizer represents a considerable environmental problem globally,
but especially in China. Recently, a recent approach on an experimental scale
based on the diffusion of the so-called Three-Control Technology (TCT) successfully
alleviated the overuse of nitrogen fertilizer in southern China villages in the
Guangdong Province, serving as a reference point for other rice-producing countries
tackling similar challenges. Here, we assessed the correlation between rice yields
and reduction in the use of nitrogen fertilizer following the introduction of TCT.
Our study was based on the collection of primary data from 248 households randomly
selected from four rice-growing areas of Guangdong Province, China. Our results
show that TCT significantly improved the efficiency in the use of nitrogen. Crucially,
participating farmers, including both full adopters and partial adopters, were
found to fundamentally change their application practices of nitrogen fertilizer,
resulting in major improvements in the local soil and water systems.

附件：Reduction in nitrogen fertilizer use results in increased rice yields and improved environmental protection