Ziang Zhao’s research while affiliated with Jilin University and other places

Straw burning can cause serious environmental pollution, whereas returning straw to the fields, as a green production method, can improve the rural environment and strengthen the sustainable development of agriculture. According to statistics, China produced 797 million tons of straw in 2020, but the current straw return technology still needs to be improved; the ability of farmers to choose the correct amount of straw to be returned to the field and their awareness of environmental protection still need to be strengthened. Straw is still openly burned in some areas, causing environmental pollution and the waste of resources, which are contrary to the concept of sustainable development in China. In this study, we estimated the amount of straw resources in Heilongjiang Province, a major grain-producing province in China, by quantifying the production of major crops between 2011 and 2020. We then identified and analyzed the current problems in terms of policy support and other aspects. We used an integrated AHP-fuzzy evaluation method to evaluate the comprehensive benefits of different straw return amounts, and we determined the amount of straw that should be returned to the soil to produce the best comprehensive benefits. We provide suggestions for the current main problems regarding the amount of crop straw to return to the soil in Heilongjiang Province, arguing that choosing a reasonable straw return amount will help farmers increase profit, reduce environmental pollution, and contribute to the sustainable development of the environment.