Agricultural and Land Use Software (ALU)

Stephen M. Ogle, Ph.D.

Colorado State UniversityNatural Resource Ecology

LaboratoryFort Collins, Colorado USA

Acknowledgements:ALU Software Programmers/Testers: Shannon Spencer (lead programmer), Mark Easter, Fadi Wedyan, Prasanna Venkatesh, Shilpa Halvadar, Hussein Al-Rousan, Stephen Williams, Lacey Hood and Amy Swan

What is ALU? • Greenhouse Gas Inventory Software

Program – Developed for LULUCF and Agricultural

Sectors– Based on IPCC methods (96 GL and GPG)

• Emphasis on incorporation of good practices

– Accommodates IPCC Tier 1 and 2 methods

• User-interface guiding compiler through inventory process with an underlying relational database structure – Activity data entry, emission factor assignment

and emission/stock change estimation

• Digital archive for inventory data– Institutional memory

GHG Sources in Agriculture and LULUCF

From 2006 IPCC GHG Inventory Guidelines

Some Key Features of ALU• Flexibility with choice of activity data

– Option to use Approach 1, 2 or 3 activity data

• May import activity data from remote-sensing imagery, and combine with forestry statistics and agricultural census data– Complete and consistent representation of land

• Option to use default or region-specific factors – Tier 1 and 2 method

• Explicit Quality Assurance/Quality Control steps– Activity data entry, factor assignments and

calculations

• Produces tabular results and maps for LULUCF– All calculations provided for transparency

Relevance to Capacity-Building Projects

• Develop inventory with IPCC good practices– Explicit Quality Assurance/Quality Control Steps

• Activity data entry, factor assignments and calculations

– Complete and consistent representation of land use and management for all associated emission sources

– Facilitate application of Tier 2 approaches for key sources in Agriculture and LULUCF - Flexibility• Many options for incorporating country-specific data• Country-specific emission factors

– Facilitate recalculation of emissions across inventory time series

Relevance (continued)

• Data management capability– Activity data, factor files, emission results– Utilize GIS-based data on land use and land

use change derived from remote sensing imagery - Option

• Digital archive of all data and results– Self-contained database with activity data,

documentation references and results – Institutional memory for long-term

sustainability of GHG inventory

• Support reporting to the UNFCCC through capacity-building project

Module I, Primary Data: Enter activity data on land use change

Spatial Data (Digital)

climate,soil,lutype,areaTRM,HAM,CRO,2919894.20TRM,HAM,FOR,3359760.83TRM,HAM,GRA,1041601.15TRM,HAM,SET,3877.62TRM,HAM,WET,143290.34TRM,LAM,CRO,566015.12TRM,LAM,FOR,2786199.48TRM,LAM,GRA,92800.60TRM,LAM,SET,3816.94TRM,LAM,WET,73629.06TRM,VOL,CRO,40697.90TRM,VOL,FOR,127249.06TRM,VOL,GRA,4463.06TRM,VOL,WET,1821.44TRM,WET,CRO,21314.42TRM,WET,FOR,24314.44TRM,WET,GRA,27586.35TRM,WET,SET,315.95TRM,WET,WET,7699.40TMM,HAM,CRO,20028.59TMM,HAM,FOR,75022.50TMM,HAM,GRA,1685.64TMM,LAM,CRO,3131.15TMM,LAM,FOR,7102.60TMM,LAM,GRA,159.96TMM,LAM,WET,472.70TMM,VOL,CRO,11870.78TMM,VOL,FOR,49932.65TMM,VOL,GRA,899.75

Sources: Remote Sensing Imagery, National Scale Mapping Projects (e.g., soils), Land Use Surveys

Export

Text File(Import to ALU)

Approach 2/3 Activity Data

Climate and Soil

QA/QC for Primary Data

Review activity data entry to check for errors

May export activity data and send to experts for additional review

QA/QC Items

Module I, Secondary Data: Enter additional activity data related to deforestation

Enter previous forest types and age classes before deforestation

Insert area deforested during the year and area cleared by burning

Module II: Enter stock change factors for deforestation

Factors needed to loss of biomass C from deforestation

Compiler has option to assign defaults or country-specific values

Module III: Program calculates emissions and stock changes using equations from IPCC GL and GPG

Calculation to estimate changes in biomass C stocks from deforestation

Review results for biomass C stock loss due to deforestation

Equation and Legend

Module IV: Inventory compiler exports results into spreadsheets for reporting

Module I-Primary Data: Enter Livestock Statistics

Select Climate Region

Enter basicanimal population numbers

QA/QC for Primary Data

Review activity data entry to check for errors

May export activity data and send to experts for additional review

QA/QC Items

Confirm data complete

Module I-Secondary Data: Additional Livestock Management Statistics

Factors/Data needed to estimate gross energy intake

Compiler has option to enter additional values

Other factor files available

Calculations

Review results for daily gross energy intake

Equation and Legend

Module II: Enter Emission Factors for Enteric Methane

QA/QC for Secondary Data

Factors needed to estimate enteric methane emissions

Compiler has option to enter additional values

Other factor files available

CalculationsReview results for enhanced enteric methane emission factor

Equation and Legend

Module III: Estimate Emissions for Enteric Methane

QA/QC for Emission Factors

Calculation

Review results for enteric methane emissions

Equation and Legend

Export results into spreadsheets for reporting

Additional Refinements• ALU could be refined to address

uncertainty

• Develop a mitigation module for projections of GHG trends with various mitigation options

Web Site:http://www.nrel.colostate.

edu/projects/ghgtool/