e.g. according to the methodology available at: coolfarmtool.org
Conducting actual measurements related to greenhouse gas emissions requires a considerable amount of money, time and appropriate qualifications, so it is rarely used. This does not change the fact that an informed farmer should know where and when he is contributing to an increase or decrease in emissions, and which of his actions are beneficial and which are not. The solution may be to obtain the necessary knowledge from available calculators and from scientific and popular science publications.
One calculator available on the internet is Cool Farm Tool. While the last two words are easily translated into Polish), the word ‘cool’ in English can have two meanings. Firstly ‘cool’ means ‘cold’, which is significant in the context of the greenhouse effect. Also, ‘cool’ means ‘great, excellent’, which can be seen as a marketing incentive to use the calculator in question. The use of the calculator involves answering a number of questions, e.g. what agricultural production is carried out on the farm? What crops are grown and on what acreage? On this basis, the programme calculates the carbon footprint of the farm. The only limitation to using this very useful tool may be knowledge of English. The less linguistically proficient can use scientific publications in Polish. This form may not be as convenient as an online calculator, but it is highly recommended.
- ageconsearch.umn.edu/bitstream/198862/2/2014_3_22.pdf
- yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.baztech-dd332a7b-2098-4082-bc9b-454a5fd5be14/c/Jarosz_i_in.pdf
From 2021, both carbon footprint calculators aimed at consumers and suitable ones for calculating the carbon footprint on the farm should be available in Polish on the BNP Paribas bank website.