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Warming and redistribution of nitrogen inputs drive an increase in terrestrial nitrous oxide emission factor

Publication Type : Journal Article

Source : Nature Communications volume 13, Article number: 4310 (2022)

Url : https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-022-32001-z

Campus : Amritapuri

Center : Amrita Center for Wireless Networks and Applications (AmritaWNA)

Verified : No

Year : 2022

Abstract : Anthropogenic nitrogen inputs cause major negative environmental impacts, including emissions of the important greenhouse gas N2O. Despite their importance, shifts in terrestrial N loss pathways driven by global change are highly uncertain. Here we present a coupled soil-atmosphere isotope model (IsoTONE) to quantify terrestrial N losses and N2O emission factors from 1850-2020. We find that N inputs from atmospheric deposition caused 51% of anthropogenic N2O emissions from soils in 2020. The mean effective global emission factor for N2O was 4.3 ± 0.3% in 2020 (weighted by N inputs), much higher than the surface area-weighted mean (1.1 ± 0.1%). Climate change and spatial redistribution of fertilisation N inputs have driven an increase in global emission factor over the past century, which accounts for 18% of the anthropogenic soil flux in 2020. Predicted increases in fertilisation in emerging economies will accelerate N2O-driven climate warming in coming decades, unless targeted mitigation measures are introduced.

Cite this Research Publication : E. Harris, L. Yu, Y-P. Wang, J. Mohn, S. Henne, E. Bai, M. Barthel, M. Bauters, P. Boeckx, C. Dorich, M. Farrell, P. B. Krummel, Z. M. Loh, M. Reichstein, J. Six, M. Steinbacher, N. S. Wells, M. Bahn & P. Rayner "Warming and redistribution of nitrogen inputs drive an increase in terrestrial nitrous oxide emission factor", Nature Communications volume 13, Article number: 4310 (2022)

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