After the harvest season, there is as much straw as grain. In China, farmers tend to burn the waste, creating another problem: air pollution. To tackle this, the government has been testing more eco-friendly ways to dispose of crop waste.

Cainiu Farm in Liaoning Province was one of the many straw-recycling experiment areas approved by the central government. After nearly a decade, crop yield was boosted while carbon emissions were cut.

"Among the many recycling methods, we've stuck with the 'straw-returning to soil' approach. For us, it is cost-efficient and relatively easier to implement. About 10 percent increase in crop yields was achieved in the past few years, and the soil is now rich in nutrients," Zhao Yuguo, the manager of Cainiu farm told CGTN.

For decades, straw burning has been practiced in China's rural areas to clear fields and prepare for the next ploughing season. Although the straw-recycling approach has long been promoted by government at all levels, it still faces two major issues: the lack of capital and farmers' awareness.

Traditionally, Chinese farmers believed that all the crop stubble should be cleared before ploughing. So to return straw waste back to the soil didn't fit with how they had been taught to farm. But the younger generation has been more open to new farming methods, like Wang Haiquan who signaled support for the project.

"The older generation can sometimes be stubborn in accepting the straw-returning to soil approach. They often said: 'Why bother? The method of burning straw has been handed down from generation to generation.' But younger farmers are more receptive in terms of environmental awareness," said Wang.

In 2016, the central government began providing subsidies to encourage the recycling of straw in ten provinces. The program has helped Cainiu Farm invest in the machinery needed to implement the project - something not all farms can afford. Local officials understand that to achieve sustainable results requires more than just subsidies.

"We have 100,000 mu (1 mu equals about 0.067 hectare) of crop fields in our township, and we did the calculation on the return on straw-recycling machinery investments. We want our farmers to understand that this approach can bring higher crop yields in the long run, and more importantly a better environment benefits us all," said Wany Yiming, Vice Mayor of Cainiu Township.

As the United Nations climate conference continues this week, many countries are agreeing to significant commitments in the coming decade to avoid catastrophic global warming. As for the farmers in northeastern China, they are already taking action.