● Carbon reduction potential of manure treatment technologies was summarized.

The rapid growth of the livestock and poultry production in China has led to a rise in manure generation, which contributes to the emissions of GHGs (greenhouse gases including CH₄, N₂O and CO₂) and other harmful gases (NH₃, H₂S). Reducing and managing carbon emissions has become a critical global environmental imperative due to the adverse impacts of GHGs. Unlike previous reviews that focused on resource recovery, this work provides an unique insight of transformation from resource-oriented manure treatment to integration of resource recovery with pollution reduction, carbon accounting and trading, focusing on the sustainable development of manure management system. Considering the importance of accounting methodologies for carbon emission and trading system toward carbon neutrality society, suggestions and strategies including attaching high importance to the development of more accuracy accounting methodologies and more practical GHG emission reduction methodologies are given in this paper. This work directs the establishment of carbon reduction methodologies and the formulation of governmental policies for livestock and poultry manure management system in China.

● Livestock is major greenhouse gas source in agriculture in China.

Animal husbandry is a major source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in agriculture. Mitigating the emissions from the livestock sector is vital for green development of agriculture in China. Based on National Communication on Climate Change of United Nations, this study aims to investigate the characteristics of GHG emissions of animal husbandry during 1994 to 2014, introduce major emission reduction technologies and their effectiveness, and investigate options for emission reduction for the livestock sector in China. It proposes that control of pollution and carbon emissions can be realized through increased animal productivity, improved feed quality and recycling of animal manure. This paper thus concludes with suggestions of green and low-carbon development of animal husbandry, including the research and development of new technology for emission reduction and carbon sequestration of the livestock sector, enhancement of monitoring and evaluation, and establishment of emission reduction and carbon sequestration standards.

● The contribution of fungal necromass C to SOC increased with aggregate sizes.

The interactions of soil microorganisms and structure regulate the degradation and stabilization processes of soil organic carbon (SOC). Microbial necromass is a persistent component of SOC, and its magnitude of accumulation dependent on management and aggregate sizes. A meta-analysis of 121 paired measurements was conducted to evaluate the management effects on contributions of microbial necromass to SOC depending on aggregate fractions. Results showed that the contribution of fungal necromass to SOC increased with aggregate sizes, while bacterial necromass had a higher proportion in silt and clay. Cropland management increased total and fungal necromass in large macroaggregates (47.1% and 45.6%), small macroaggregates (44.0% and 44.2%), and microaggregates (38.9% and 37.6%). Cropland management increased bacterial necromass independent of aggregate fraction sizes. Greater fungal necromass was increased in macroaggregates in response to manure (26.6% to 28.5%) and no or reduced tillage (68.0% to 73.5%). Cover crops increased bacterial necromass by 25.1% in small macroaggregates. Stimulation of microbial necromass was proportional to the increases of SOC within soil aggregates, and the correlation was higher in macroaggregates. Increasing microbial necromass accumulation in macroaggregates can, therefore, be considered as a central component of management strategies that aim to accelerate C sequestration in agricultural soils.

● Either increasing C input to or reducing C release from soils can enhance soil C sequestration.

Climate change vigorously threats human livelihoods, places and biodiversity. To lock atmospheric CO₂ up through biological, chemical and physical processes is one of the pathways to mitigate climate change. Agricultural soils have a significant carbon sink capacity. Soil carbon sequestration (SCS) can be accelerated through appropriate changes in land use and agricultural practices. There have been various meta-analyses performed by combining data sets to interpret the influences of some methods on SCS rates or stocks. The objectives of this study were: (1) to update SCS capacity with different land-based techniques based on the latest publications, and (2) to discuss complexity to assess the impacts of the techniques on soil carbon accumulation. This review shows that afforestation and reforestation are slow processes but have great potential for improving SCS. Among agricultural practices, adding organic matter is an efficient way to sequester carbon in soils. Any practice that helps plant increase C fixation can increase soil carbon stock by increasing residues, dead root material and root exudates. Among the improved livestock grazing management practices, reseeding grasses seems to have the highest SCS rate.

● Establishment of a rapid tool for monitoring soil carbon sequestration in farmer fields.

In 2015, 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were approved, including SDG13, which addresses actions to increase carbon capture (CO₂-C storage) for climate change mitigation. However, no analytical procedures have been defined for quantifying soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration. This paper presents a rapid tool for guiding farmers and for monitoring SOC sequestration in farmer fields. The tool consists of multiconstituent soil analyses through near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and an SOC mineralization model. The tool provides forecasts of SOC sequestration over time. Soil analyses by NIRS have been calibrated and validated for farmer fields in European countries, China, New Zealand, and Vietnam. Results indicate a high accuracy of determination for SOC (R²≥ 0.93), and for inorganic C, soil texture, and soil bulk density. Permanganate oxidizable soil C is used as proxy for active SOC, to detect early management-induced changes in SOC contents, and is also quantified by NIRS (R² = 0.92). A pedotransfer function is used to convert the results of the soil analyses to SOC sequestration in kg·ha⁻¹ C as well as CO₂. In conclusion, the tool allows fast, quantitative, and action-driven monitoring of SOC sequestration in farmer fields, and thereby is an essential tool for monitoring progress of SDG13.

● To achieve food security, Chinese agriculture– food system could not achieve C neutrality.

The agricultural sector, a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, and emissions from agriculture must be reduced substantially to achieve carbon (C) neutrality. Based on a literature analysis and other research results, this study investigated the effects and prospects of C reduction in agricultural systems under different scenarios (i.e., methods and approaches) in the context of China’s dual C goals, as those working in the agricultural sector have yet to reach a consensus on how to move forward. Different views, standards, and countermeasures were analyzed to provide a reference for agricultural action supporting China’s C neutrality goal.

● A provincial stage-specific greenhouse gas (GHG) accounting model for the Chinese food system was developed.

In China, there has been insufficient study of whole food system greenhouse gas (GHG) accounting, which limits the development of mitigation strategies and may preclude the achievement of carbon peak and carbon neutrality goals. The paper presents the development of a carbon extension of NUFER (NUtrient flows in Food chain, Environment and Resources use model), a food system GHG emission accounting model that covers land use and land-use change, agricultural production, and post-production subsectors. The spatiotemporal characteristics of GHG emissions were investigated for the Chinese food system (CFS) from 1992 to 2017, with a focus on GHG emissions from the entire system. The potential to achieve a low-carbon food system in China was explored. The net GHG emissions from the CFS increased from 785 Tg CO₂ equivalent (CO₂-eq) in 1992 to 1080 Tg CO₂-eq in 2017. Agricultural activities accounted for more than half of the total emissions during the study period, while agricultural energy was the largest contributor to the GHG increase. In 2017, highest emitting regions were located in central and southern China (Guangdong and Hunan), the North China Plain (Shandong, Henan and Jiangsu) and Northeast China (Heilongjiang and Inner Mongolia) and contributed to over half of the total GHG emissions. Meanwhile, Xinjiang, Qinghai and Tibet are shown as carbon sink areas. It was found that food-system GHG emissions could be reduced to 355 Tg CO₂-eq, where enhancing endpoint mitigation technologies, transforming social-economic and diet conditions, and increasing agricultural productivities can contribute to 60%, 25% and 15%, respectively. Synergistic mitigation effects were found to exist in agricultural activities.

● Microbial fermentation in the rumen is a main source of methane emissions.

Within the agricultural sector, animal production contributes to 14.5% of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions and produces around 37% of global CH₄ emissions, mainly due to ruminal fermentation in ruminants. Over 90% of CH₄ is synthesized by methanogens in the rumen during carbohydrate fermentation. According to different substrates, methanogenesis pathways can be divided into four categories: (1) hydrogenotrophic pathway; (2) acetoclastic pathway; (3) methyl dismutation pathway; and (4) methyl-reducing pathway. Based on the principle of biochemical reactions in the methanogenesis pathways, this paper reviews the latest publications on CH₄ decreases in ruminants and described three nutritional strategies in terms of dietary nutrient manipulation (feeding management, feed composition, forage quality and lipids), microbial manipulation (ionophore, defaunation, methanogen inhibitors and probiotics), and chemical manipulation (nitrate, organic acids, plant secondary metabolites and phlorotannins, or halides in seaweeds). For each mitigation strategy, the review discusses effectiveness for decreasing CH₄ emissions, application prescription, and feed safety based on results from in vitro and in vivo studies. This review summarizes different nutritional strategies to mitigate CH₄ emissions and proposed comprehensive approaches for future feeding interventions and applications in the livestock industry.

● Gaseous N emissions from orchards, vegetables and tea plantations (OVT) are reviewed.

Nitrogen fertilizer application has accelerated the agricultural soil N cycle while ensuring food security. Gaseous reactive N emissions from orchards, vegetables and tea plantations (OVT) are less understood than those from cereal crops. This paper presents a compilation of data on soil ammonia, nitrous oxide, and nitric oxide emissions from 1454 OVT systems at 184 unique experimental locations worldwide aiming to investigate their emission characteristics, emission factors (EF), and contribution to total farmland emissions. NH₃ and N₂O emissions from orchards and N₂O and NO emissions from vegetable production were significantly higher in China than in the rest of the world, regardless of fertilizer application, while N₂O emissions from tea plantations were lower than for vegetables. The EF of NH₃ for vegetables was close to the global mean value with urea application but significantly higher than that of orchards. The EF of N₂O in orchards and vegetables was comparable to the global median value, while in tea plantations, the value was 2.3 times higher than the global median value. Current estimates suggest that direct emissions of NH₃, N₂O, and NO from OVT systems are equivalent to approximately a quarter, two thirds and a half of the total farmland in China, respectively. Future research needs to strengthen observational field studies in establishing standard sampling methods for gaseous N emissions and implementing knowledge-based management measures to help achieve the green development of agriculture.

● The source and sink status of ditches and ponds was studied in an upland area in the Jinglinxi catchment, China.

As the common features of agroecosystems, ditches and ponds benefit the irrigation and drainage, as well as intercepting non-point source pollutants. However, most ditch-pond studies have been conducted in lowland areas. To test this source-sink assumption in upland areas, this study made observations on the ecological function of the ditch and pond system in a typical catchment in China. First, the changes in ponds in the catchment were analyzed using high-resolution remote sensing data. Then, the migration of agricultural pollutants in ditches and ponds were analyzed by field sampling and laboratory detection. The results showed that over the past 15 years the length of ditches in the catchment and the number of small ponds (< 500 m²) have increased by 32% and 75%, respectively. The rate of change in nutrient concentrations in the ditches and ponds were mostly from −20% to 20%, indicating ditches and ponds can be both sources and sinks for agricultural pollutants. Lastly, the contributing factors were explored and it was found that ditches and ponds are important sinks in dry season. However, during the rainy season, ditches and ponds become sources of pollutants, with the rapid drainage of ditches and the overflow of ponds in upland areas. The results of this study revealed that the ditches and ponds could be used for ecological engineering in upland catchments to balance drainage and intercept pollutants.

● An expert survey highlighted the most effective strategies for GHG and ammonia mitigation.

Agriculture is essential for providing food and maintaining food security while concurrently delivering multiple other ecosystem services. However, agricultural systems are generally a net source of greenhouse gases and ammonia. They, therefore, need to substantively contribute to climate change mitigation and net zero ambitions. It is widely acknowledged that there is a need to further reduce and mitigate emissions across sectors, including agriculture to address the climate emergency and emissions gap. This discussion paper outlines a collation of opinions from a range of experts within agricultural research and advisory roles following a greenhouse gas and ammonia emission mitigation workshop held in the UK in March 2022. The meeting identified the top mitigation priorities within the UK’s agricultural sector to achieve reductions in greenhouse gases and ammonia that are compatible with policy targets. In addition, experts provided an overview of what they believe are the key knowledge gaps, future opportunities and co-benefits to mitigation practices as well as indicating the potential barriers to uptake for mitigation scenarios discussed.

● Erhai Lake basin faces the duel challenge of enhancing water protection and increasing farmer income.

Pollution of high-altitude lake basins by agriculture and rural activities, and the control of this pollution, have received increasing attention from academic research and government policy in China. Series of restrictions and regulations have been implemented to protect the surface water quality. These restrictions and regulations have greatly impacted and transformed the agricultural systems and rural livelihoods surrounding these lake basins. Using Erhai Lake basin in Yunnan Province as a case study, three main challenges were identified for concurrently decreasing pollution in the lake and increasing farmer income. It is contended that scientifically-sound environmental protection policies and agricultural green development practices are key to reversing the current situation. This will help to protect the lake from pollution while smallholder farmers will be able to produce healthy food in an environmentally sustainable manner, and with a fair remuneration for all the services farmers provide to the society.

● 0.98 Mg·ha⁻¹·yr⁻¹ C_org accumulation under miscanthus over 26 years.

Miscanthus× giganteus may play an important role in replacing fossil energy resources by bio-based alternatives. One further advantage of miscanthus production is the generally high soil organic carbon (C_org) enrichment in soils. Due to declining yields, miscanthus stocks are commonly reintegrated into crop rotation after approximately 20 years. Currently there is only few information, whether these high amounts of C_org can be conserved while intensifying soil tillage and crop management after reintegration. Therefore, we monitored C_org stocks in a control with more than 20 years of continuous miscanthus and in a treatment with reintegration of a 20-years old miscanthus stock into an organic crop rotation. Based on δ¹³C soil values, we calculated an annual C_org enrichment of 0.98 Mg·ha⁻¹·yr⁻¹ C under miscanthus. More than 95% of the miscanthus-C was determined in the upper 0.25 m of soil. Continuing miscanthus cultivation did not affect yields during the first five extension years and C_org stocks increased further. Following reintegration, C_org stocks remained constant during five years, which was mainly attributed to the humification and/or stabilization of high amounts of destroyed roots and rhizomes. A significant decrease in C_org (−5.7 Mg·ha⁻¹ C) compared to the continuing miscanthus cultivation was at first measured six years after reintegration into crop rotation, underlining the need of long-term investigations. Our data also show, that miscanthus production cycles can be extended in our region, and that sowing of the alfalfa grass mixture after rhizome/root destruction was efficient in preserving C_org stocks for at least first five years after reintegration.

● Full time-space governance strategy for AGNPS pollution was proposed.

Ensuring food safety while reducing agricultural non-point source pollution is quite challenging, especially in developing and underdeveloped countries. Effective systematic strategies and comprehensive technologies need to be developed for agricultural non-point source pollution control at the watershed scale to improve surface water quality. In this review, a proposal is made for a full time-space governance strategy that prioritizes source management followed by endpoint water pollution control. The 4R chain technology system is specifically reviewed, including source reduction, process retention, nutrient reuse and water restoration. The 4R chain technology system with the full time-space governance strategy was applied at the scale of an administrative village and proved to be a feasible solution for reducing agricultural non-point source pollution in China. In the future, a monitoring system needs to be established to trace N and P transport. Additionally, new smart fertilizer and intelligent equipment need to be developed, and relevant governance standards and supportive policies need to be set to enhance the efficacy of agricultural non-point source pollution control.

● The carbon footprint of the nitrogen fertilizer chain has decreased significantly over the last decade.

Globally, the reduction of excessive N losses and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is a central environmental challenge in the 21 century. China has huge associated emissions during both production and land application phases. In addition, 70% of N fertilizer in China is produced and land applied as urea, which has high associated emissions. This study utilized life cycle analysis to compare the carbon emission capacity of different N fertilizers and quantified GHG emissions from different N fertilizer chains within China. This enabled a new innovative reform model to be proposed, which aims to decrease the carbon footprint and increase the net ecosystem carbon budget of China. The results showed that the carbon footprint of the N fertilizer industry was about 229 Tg·yr⁻¹ CO₂-eq in 2020. Through changes away from urea through the production and land application of a mix of newly emerging fertilizers, liquid fertilizers and standard fertilizer reductions to 174–182 Tg·yr⁻¹ CO₂-eq. Through the upgrading of mineral N fertilizer production technology, the carbon footprint of N fertilizer chain can be reduced by 34.8 Tg·yr⁻¹ CO_2-eq. Such reductions would reduce China’s total GHG emissions to 140–147 Tg·yr⁻¹ CO₂-eq.

● An automatic weighing system for monitoring bodyweight of broilers was developed.

Bodyweight is a key indicator of broiler production as it measures the production efficiency and indicates the health of a flock. Currently, broiler weight (i.e., bodyweight) is primarily weighed manually, which is time-consuming and labor-intensive, and tends to create stress in birds. This study aimed to develop an automatic and stress-free weighing platform for monitoring the weight of floor-reared broiler chickens in commercial production. The developed system consists of a weighing platform, a real-time communication terminal, computer software and a smart phone applet user-interface. The system collected weight data of chickens on the weighing platform at intervals of 6 s, followed by filtering of outliers and repeating readings. The performance and stability of this system was systematically evaluated under commercial production conditions. With the adoption of data preprocessing protocol, the average error of the new automatic weighing system was only 10.3 g, with an average accuracy 99.5% with the standard deviation of 2.3%. Further regression analysis showed a strong agreement between estimated weight and the standard weight obtained by the established live-bird sales system. The variance (an indicator of flock uniformity) of broiler weight estimated using automatic weighing platforms was in accordance with the standard weight. The weighing system demonstrated superior stability for different growth stages, rearing seasons, growth rate types (medium- and slow-growing chickens) and sexes. The system is applicable for daily weight monitoring in floor-reared broiler houses to improve feeding management, growth monitoring and finishing day prediction. Its application in commercial farms would improve the sustainability of poultry industry.

● Methane production from fresh straw was 7.50% higher than dry straw.

Dry corn straw (DCS) is usually used in anaerobic digestion (AD), but fresh corn straw (FCS) has been given less consideration. In this study, the thermophilic AD of single-substrate (FCS and DCS) and co-digestion (straw with cattle manure) were investigated. The results show that when FCS was used as the single-substrate for AD, the methane production was 144 mL·g⁻¹·VS⁻¹, which was 7.5% and 19.6% higher than that of single DCS and FCS with cattle manure, respectively. In addition, the structure of FCS was loose and coarse, which was easier to be degraded than DCS. At the hydrolysis and acidification stages, Clostridium_sensu_stricto_1, Clostridium_sensu_stricto_7 and Sporosarcina promoted the decomposition of organic matter, leading to volatile fatty acids (VFAs) accumulation. Methanosarcina (54.4%) activated multifunctional methanogenic pathways to avoid the VFAs inhibition, which was important at the CH₄ production stage. The main pathway was hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis, with genes encoding formylmethanofuran dehydrogenase (K00200-K00203) and tetrahydromethanopterin S-methyltransferase (K00577-K00584). Methanosarcina also activated acetotrophic and methylotrophic methanogenesis pathways, with genes encoding acetyl phosphate (K13788) and methyl-coenzyme M reductase (K04480, K14080 and K14081), respectively. In the co-digestion, the methanogenic potential of FCS was also confirmed. This provides a scientific basis for regulating AD of crop straw.

● Four highlights are identified for agriculture and water from the multi-pollutant perspective.

Agriculture is an important cause of multiple pollutants in water. With population growth and increasing food demand, more nutrients, plastics, pesticides, pathogens and antibiotics are expected to enter water systems in the 21st century. As a result, water science has been shifting from single-pollutant to multi-pollutant perspectives for large-scale water quality assessments. This perspective paper summarizes and discusses four main highlights related to water pollution and agriculture from the multi-pollutant perspective. These highlights reveal the spatial and temporal distribution and main sources of multiple pollutants in waters. Based on the highlights, a scientific agenda is proposed to prioritize solutions for sustainable agriculture (UN Sustainable Development Goal 2) and clean water (UN Sustainable Development Goals 6 and 14). This agenda points out that when formulating solutions for water pollution, it is essential to take into account multiple pollutants and their interactions beyond biogeochemistry.

● This paper examines the historical evolution of crop-livestock integration in China with a specific focus on its role in mitigating non-point source pollution.

This paper examines the historical evolution of crop-livestock integration in China with a specific focus on its role in mitigating non-point source pollution. Extensive examination of existing literature has unearthed the roots of crop-livestock integration dating back to the Western Zhou Dynasty (1046 to 771 BCE), ultimately culminating in a multifaceted and intricately interwoven system of rural development policies seen in contemporary China. This paper identifies and characterizes four distinct stages in the historical trajectory of crop-livestock integration: the era of self-sufficient subsistence production in traditional times (1046 BCE to 1948); the period where crop-livestock integration emerged as a pivotal strategy for augmenting grain and meat production under collectivist policies (1949‒1977); the phase marked by the industrialization and expansion of the livestock sector during the early years of economic reforms (1978‒2011); and the present era in which crop-livestock integration is harnessed as a mechanism for pollution control and ecological preservation in contemporary China (2012 to present). This paper illuminates the diverse contributions of crop-livestock integration in different epochs of rural development within China, which contributes to a nuanced and more theoretically grounded comprehension of circular agriculture. This understanding has the potential to be leveraged to promote sustainable rural development in broader contexts.

● A new MARINA-Nutrients model was developed to assess air and water pollution in Europe.

Nutrient pollution of air and water is a persistent problem in Europe. However, the pollution sources are often analyzed separately, preventing the formulation of integrative solutions. This study aimed to quantify the contribution of agriculture to air, river and coastal water pollution by nutrients. A new MARINA-Nutrients model was developed for Europe to calculate inputs of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) to land and rivers, N emissions to air, and nutrient export to seas by river basins. Under current practice, inputs of N and P to land were 34.4 and 1.8 Tg·yr^–1, respectively. However, only 12% of N and 3% of P reached the rivers. Agriculture was responsible for 55% of N and sewage for 67% of P in rivers. Reactive N emissions to air from agriculture were calculated at 4.0 Tg·yr^–1. Almost two-fifths of N emissions to air were from animal housing and storage. Nearly a third of the basin area was considered as pollution hotspots and generated over half of N emissions to air and nutrient pollution in rivers. Over 25% of river export of N ended up in the Atlantic Ocean and of P in the Mediterranean Sea. These results could support environmental policies to reduce both air and water pollution simultaneously, and avoid pollution swapping.

● Gasification of cow dung was evaluated using Aspen Plus software.

In this study, a biomass gasification model was developed and simulated based on Gibbs free energy minimization by using software Aspen Plus. Two reactors, RYIELD and RGIBBS, were moslty used. The biomass feedstock used was cow dung. The model was validated. The composition, H₂/CO ratio and low heating value (LHV) of the resulting synthetic gas (also known as syngas) was estimated by changing the operating parameters of gasification temperatures, steam and biomass ratios and pressures. Simulation results showed that increased gasification temperature helped to elevate H₂ and CO content and H₂ peaked at 900 °C. When steam increased as the gasification agent, H₂ production increased. However, the steam/biomass (S/B) ratio negatively affected CO and CH₄, resulting in lower LHV. The optimal S/B ratio was 1.5. An increase in pressure lead to a decrease in H₂ and CO content, so the optimal pressure for gasification was 0.1 MPa.

● NH₃ dispersion from a multi-floor pig building was compared to a single-floor building.

Multi-floor buildings for raising pigs have recently attracted widespread attention as an emerging form of intensive livestock production especially in eastern China, due to the fact that they can feed a much larger number of animals per unit area of land and thus alleviate the shortage of land available for standard single-floor pig production facilities. However, this more intensive kind of pig building will pose new challenges to the local environment in terms of pollutant dispersion. To compare the dispersion air pollutants (ammonia as a representative) emitted from multi- versus single-floor pig buildings, ammonia dispersion distance and concentration gradients were investigated through three-dimensional simulations based on computational fluid dynamics. The validation of an isolated cubic model was made to ensure the simulation method was effective. The effects of wind direction, wind speed and emission source concentration at 1.5 m (approximate human inhalation height) during summer were investigated. The results showed that the ammonia dispersion distance of the multi-floor pig building was far greater than that of the single-floor building on a plane of Z = 1.5 m. When the wind direction was 67.5°, the wind speed was 2 m·s⁻¹ and the emission source concentration was 20 ppmv, the dispersion distance of the multi-floor pig building could reach 1380 m. Meanwhile, the ammonia could accumulate in the yard to 7.68 ppmv. Therefore, future site selection, wind speed and source concentration need to be given serious consideration. Based on the simulation used in this study with source concentration is 20 ppmv, the multi-floor pig buildings should be located 1.4 km away from residential areas to avoid affecting residents. The results of this study should guidance for any future development of multi-floor pig buildings.

● Using visual analysis to predict the trend of natural product pest resistance.

To help in the prevention of large-scale loss of agricultural production caused by crop pests, a visual analysis was performed on the main research areas, key countries, organizational cooperation, citation sources and current trends in pest research by searching the literature of Web of Science database and using CiteSpace 5.8.R3 and VOSviewer 1.6.18 software. Additionally, the effects and mechanisms of natural products with anti-insect activity were summarized through visual analysis. According to the bibliometric analysis, keywords such as mortality (232 occurrences), natural enemy (232 occurrences) and spinosad (110 occurrences) were common, and insecticides and natural enemies of pests were the main methods for killing pests. However, pesticide use exhibits numerous limitations. Co-occurring terms in visualization analysis mainly included residue (193 occurrences), detection (153 occurrences), degradation (133 occurrences), recovery (103 occurrences), pyrethroid (97 occurrences) and pesticide residues (65 occurrences). Thus, pesticides cannot fundamentally solve food security; pesticides also pollute the environment and endanger human health. Therefore, green and efficient pesticides that can replace synthetic pesticides are urgently needed. Natural products have recently gained attention in Brazil, China, the USA and other countries because they are green and pollution-free, and new natural pesticides have been developed. This visual analysis combined data mining with literature review and summarize the anti-pest activities and mechanisms of action of natural products. This information provides a foundation and ideas for researchers to study the application and development of natural products in pest control.

● A target-threshold indicator evaluation system is proposed to measure China’s agriculture transformation.

China has initiated a green transformation plan in 2015, which was soon applied to agriculture, known as the agriculture green development (AGD) initiative, with the goals of achieving food security, high resource use efficiency, and an ecofriendly environment. To assess the agricultural transformation from 1997 to 2020, this paper proposes a national-scale indicator system consisting three dimensions (socioeconomic, food production and eco-environmental) and ten sub-dimensions to quantify the AGD score. This study showed that AGD score in China was at a moderate level during 1997–2010, scoring 40 out of 100. During this stage, decreased scores in the sub-dimensions of resource consumption, environmental quality, and environmental cost have offset the improvement in the socioeconomic dimension, resulting in fluctuated scores around 40. In the second stage (2011–2020), China’s AGD score improved but still at moderate level, scoring an average of 46.3, with each dimension increasing by 5.3%–25.0%. These results indicate that China has made progress in the agricultural transformation, transitioning from conceptualization to actions through the implementation of various policies and projects. However, the study emphasizes the need for more effort to address the insufficient and unbalanced development, along with the growing eco-environmental challenges, especially the trade-offs among dimensions.

● Low-value biowaste including wood chip and potato peel was valorized to syngas.

Potato is the fifth largest agricultural crop in Canada and contributes to the generation of an abundant amount of potato peel. However, disposal/recycling this peel remains a challenge due to the stringent environmental regulations. Consequently, there is a lack of an appropriate recycling and valorization methods of potato peel. Gasification is an effective technology for producing syngas and an ecofriendly waste disposal approach. Syngas is an important industrial intermediate to produce synthetic fuels and chemicals. To develop an ecofriendly and cost-effective valorization approach for potato peel, this study used a mixture of woody biomass (i.e., wood chips) and potato peel to produce syngas by co-gasification using O₂ as the gasifying agent at a constant equivalence ratio of 0.3 using Aspen Plus simulation software. The influences of gasification temperature and wood chip/potato peel weight ratio on the carbon conversion efficiency (CCE), and product gas composition (molar fraction) and lower heating value (LHV) of product gas were investigated. This simulation indicated that a positive synergistic interaction occurs between wood chips and potato peel in co-gasification process in terms of an increase in CCE by comparing the arithmetic value and real value at all simulated wood chip to potato peel weight ratios (44.9% to 85.8%, 46.5% to 76.2%, and 48.1% to 78.6% at ratios of 25:75, 50:50, and 75:25, respectively, for wood chips to potato peel). While the molar fraction of H₂ and CO decreased continuously with increase in the weight percentage of wood chips in the wood chip-potato peel mixture from 0 wt% to 100 wt% (H_2, at 42.1 mol% to 41.4 mol%; and CO at 44.0 mol% to 40.4 mol%), accompanied by a decrease of the LHV of the product gas (10.3 to 9.78 MJ·Nm⁻³). The study concluded that co-gasification for producing syngas is feasible and environmental-friendly option to recycle and valorize potato peel.

● The water environment of Erhai Lake has shown satisfactory, declining and improving.

Elucidating the spatiotemporal pattern of water quality and algal biomass is crucial for accurately tracing pollution sources and reducing the risk of algal blooms in lake systems. This study analyzed the spatiotemporal variability of water quality and algal biomass in Erhai Lake from 1994 to 2021 using water quality index (WQI), Mann-Kendall test and Sen’s slope combined methods. The potential causes of water quality deterioration and algal biomass dynamics were also elucidated. The results showed that the historical changes in the water environment of Erhai Lake mainly had three stages: satisfactory (1994‒2001), deteriorating (2002‒2010) and improving (2011‒2021). The changes in water quality and algal biomass were primarily affected by total nitrogen, total phosphorus and chemical oxygen demand in different stages. The water environment of Erhai Lake is currently improving significantly, starting in the southern area that is furthest from the sources of agricultural pollution, especially in summer and autumn. This is attributed to the implementation of control measures resulting in lower pollutant loads at particular times and places. Therefore, it is necessary to continue to promote standardized livestock farming, to strengthen rural wastewater collection and to investigate measures such as the interruption of the endogenous cycle.

● Transport stress declined the level of leukocytes including lymphocytes in rat serum.

Transport stress is commonly suffered by animals with gastrointestinal dysfunction a common symptom. Currently, the mechanisms of transport stress-induced intestine impairment are largely unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of transport stress on the expression of neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) and the distribution of nNOS-positive neurons of the intestines in rats and to explore the neuroendocrine mechanism of transport stress. In this study, Sprague Dawley rats (n = 6) were subjected on a constant temperature shaker for 1 (S1d) or 3 d (S3d). Rats exhibited increased serum glucose and diminished total number of leukocytes, in which lymphocytes level was also decreased in the S1d group (P < 0.05). Also, normal intestinal morphology was disrupted in the S1d rats, and the thickness of muscle layers was decreased in duodenum, jejunum and colon of S3d rats. In addition, it was found that nNOS expression, as well as the number of nNOS-positive neurons in the myenteric plexus were downregulated in duodenum, jejunum and colon of S3d rats compared with that of unstressed rats (P < 0.05). These data reveals that transport stress induced intestinal damage and uncovers potential action mechanisms that nNOS-positive neurons and nNOS expression might be involved in modulating this process.