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Optimizing the trench area proportion in rice crayfish co-culture systems balances greenhouse gas mitigation and productivity

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Abstract

The rice–crayfish co-culture system (RCS) has emerged as a cornerstone of China’s aquaculture sector, yet its greenhouse gas (GHG) emission profile remains contested. While the co-cropping field zone (RCS-Field) demonstrates considerable mitigation potential, the continuously flooded crayfish-trench zone (RCS-Trench) releases substantial methane that can offset the benefits from the field. To address this challenge, we integrated multi-source field data from rice monoculture (RM) and RCS systems across the Middle–Lower Yangtze Plain and calibrated the Denitrification-Decomposition (DNDC) model to simulate system-level GHG emissions. Using recalculated cumulative CH4 and N2O emissions as well as the rice yield, we developed a multi-objective optimization framework for determining the trench area proportions. Results showed that CH4 emissions from RCS-Trench were more than threefold higher than those from RCS-Field, whereas RCS-Field emissions were significantly lower than RM. By contrast, N2O emissions were lowest in RCS-Trench, falling below both RM and RCS-Field. The global warming potential (GWP) was highest in RCS, followed by RCS-Trench and RM, and lowest in RCS-Field. When integrating rice yield, crayfish production, and GWP, the optimal crayfish-trench proportion was identified as 7.5%–9.0%. These findings provide the first quantitative evidence that regulating trench area can simultaneously mitigate methane emissions, safeguard grain security, and enhance economic returns, thereby offering scientific support for sustainable rice–aquatic co-culture development and contributing to China’s “Dual Carbon” strategy.

Data availability

The data generated and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author (Shu-Yun Yang, [email protected]) on reasonable request.

Abbreviations

Abbreviation:

Full term

RCS:

Rice–crayfish co-culture system

RCS-Field:

Co-cropping field zone

RCS-Trench:

Crayfish-trench zone

RM:

Rice monoculture

GHG:

Greenhouse gas

GWP:

Global warming potential

CH4
:

Methane

N2O:

Nitrous oxide

DNDC:

Denitrification–decomposition model

TOPSIS:

Technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution

EWM:

Entropy weight method

WFPS:

Water-filled pore space

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Resources and Environment, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, 340104, Anhui, China

    Zheng Xu, Xia Gao-Qi, Peng-Yu Zhao, Shu-Yun Yang, Feng-Wen Wang, Zhi-Qing Cheng & Shu-Yun Yang

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  1. Zheng Xu
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  2. Xia Gao-Qi
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  3. Peng-Yu Zhao
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  4. Shu-Yun Yang
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  5. Feng-Wen Wang
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  6. Zhi-Qing Cheng
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  7. Shu-Yun Yang
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Contributions

Conceptualization and methodology: S.Y., Z.C. and F.W.; Investigation and data collection: Z.X. and G.X.; Data curation, formal analysis: Z.X. and P.Z.; Writing—original draft: Z.X.

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Shu-Yun Yang.

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Xu, Z., Xia, GQ., Zhao, PY. et al. Optimizing the trench area proportion in rice crayfish co-culture systems balances greenhouse gas mitigation and productivity.
Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-40595-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-40595-3

Keywords

  • Rice-crayfish co-culture system
  • DNDC model
  • Greenhouse gas emissions
  • Crayfish-trench proportion optimization
  • Global warming potential

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