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

Harris, Eliza; Yu, Longfei; Wang, Ying‐Ping; Mohn, Joachim; Henne, Stephan; Bai, Edith; Barthel, Matti; Bauters, Marijn; Boeckx, Pascal; Dorich, C.; Farrell, Mark; Krummel, P. B.; Loh, Zoë; Reichstein, Markus; Six, Johan; Steinbacher, Martin; Hipsey, Matthew; Bahn, Michael

doi:10.1038/s41467-022-32001-z

Cited by 43 publications

(36 citation statements)

References 119 publications

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“…Since the inversion model estimates EFs based on observed changes in atmospheric N 2 O concentrations, it accounts for both direct and indirect emissions. Indirect emissions were not included in our study but account for about one‐third of total cropland N 2 O emissions (Harris et al., 2022). Comparing our findings with the IPCC Tier 1 defaults, significant increases in EFs were found in Russia, Myanmar and some areas dominated by acidic soils and single cropping systems (e.g., wheat and maize) (Figure 4b), while the increase was trivial in East India and Pakistan, probably due to the vast expansion of double cropping systems (e.g., rice‐upland crops and upland‐upland crops) with shorter fallow durations (Sacks et al., 2010; Waha et al., 2020), alongside the prevalence of alkaline soils in Pakistan.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Global cropland nitrous oxide emissions in fallow period are comparable to growing‐season emissions

Shang,

Cui,

van Groenigen

et al. 2024

Global Change Biology

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Croplands account for ~ one‐third of global anthropogenic nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions. A number of recent field experiments found substantial fallow‐period N2O emissions, which have been neglected for decades. However, the global contribution of the fallow‐period emissions and the associated drivers remain unclear. Based on 360 observations across global agroecosystems, we simulated the ratio of the fallow to the whole‐year N2O emissions (Rfallow) by developing a mixed‐effect model and compiling cropping‐system‐specific input data. Our results revealed that the mean global gridded Rfallow was 44% (15%–75%, 95% confidence interval), with hotspots mainly in the northern high latitudes. For most cropping systems, soil pH was the dominant driver of global variation in Rfallow. Global cropland emission factors (i.e., the percentage of fertilizer N emitted as N2O, EFs) in EF‐based models doubled to 1.9% when the fallow‐period N2O emissions were included in our simulation, similar to EFs estimated by process‐based and atmospheric inversion models (1.8%–2.3%). Overall, our study highlights the importance of fallow‐period N2O emissions in annual totals, especially for single cropping systems and croplands in acidic areas. To accurately estimate N2O emissions for national greenhouse gas inventories, it is crucial to update current EFs with full consideration of the fallow‐period N2O emissions in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Tier 1 method.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Global cropland nitrous oxide emissions in fallow period are comparable to growing‐season emissions

Shang,

Cui,

van Groenigen

et al. 2024

Global Change Biology

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“…Warming and acidification are crucial factors affecting N 2 O emissions, , and a profound understanding of associated mechanisms regarding N 2 O production and reduction is of great significance to project the sources and sinks of N 2 O in aquatic ecosystems. Previous studies have reported that bacteria and fungi show different resilience to warming and acidification, ,, thereby leading to different N 2 O production.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Acidification Offset Warming-Induced Increase in N₂O Production in Estuarine and Coastal Sediments

Li,

Qi,

et al. 2024

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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Global warming and acidification, induced by a substantial increase in anthropogenic CO 2 emissions, are expected to have profound impacts on biogeochemical cycles. However, underlying mechanisms of nitrous oxide (N 2 O) production in estuarine and coastal sediments remain rarely constrained under warming and acidification. Here, the responses of sediment N 2 O production pathways to warming and acidification were examined using a series of anoxic incubation experiments. Denitrification and N 2 O production were largely stimulated by the warming, while N 2 O production decreased under the acidification as well as the denitrification rate and electron transfer efficiency. Compared to warming alone, the combination of warming and acidification decreased N 2 O production by 26 ± 4%, which was mainly attributed to the decline of the N 2 O yield by fungal denitrification. Fungal denitrification was mainly responsible for N 2 O production under the warming condition, while bacterial denitrification predominated N 2 O production under the acidification condition. The reduced site preference of N 2 O under acidification reflects that the dominant pathways of N 2 O production were likely shifted from fungal to bacterial denitrification. In addition, acidification decreased the diversity and abundance of nirS-type denitrifiers, which were the keystone taxa mediating the low N 2 O production. Collectively, acidification can decrease sediment N 2 O yield through shifting the responsible production pathways, partly counteracting the warming-induced increase in N 2 O emissions, further reducing the positive climate warming feedback loop.

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“…For instance, the isotope data of N 2 O from 1940 to 2020 obtained by Harris et al. (2022), integrating this isotope data with the process model emerges as a promising direction for future. Consequently, quantification of denitrification N losses is crucial not only for understanding variation in soil N retention within soil but also for addressing a notable scientific challenge in N cycling.…”

Section: Limitations and Future Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modeling denitrification nitrogen losses in China's rice fields based on multiscale field‐experiment constraints

Zhang,

Adalibieke,

et al. 2024

Global Change Biology

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Denitrification plays a critical role in soil nitrogen (N) cycling, affecting N availability in agroecosystems. However, the challenges in direct measurement of denitrification products (NO, N2O, and N2) hinder our understanding of denitrification N losses patterns across the spatial scale. To address this gap, we constructed a data‐model fusion method to map the county‐scale denitrification N losses from China's rice fields over the past decade. The estimated denitrification N losses as a percentage of N application from 2009 to 2018 were 11.8 ± 4.0% for single rice, 12.4 ± 3.7% for early rice, and 11.6 ± 3.1% for late rice. The model results showed that the spatial heterogeneity of denitrification N losses is primarily driven by edaphic and climatic factors rather than by management practices. In particular, diffusion and production rates emerged as key contributors to the variation of denitrification N losses. These findings humanize a 38.9 ± 4.8 kg N ha−1 N loss by denitrification and challenge the common hypothesis that substrate availability drives the pattern of N losses by denitrification in rice fields.

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

Cited by 43 publications

References 119 publications

Global cropland nitrous oxide emissions in fallow period are comparable to growing‐season emissions

Global cropland nitrous oxide emissions in fallow period are comparable to growing‐season emissions

Acidification Offset Warming-Induced Increase in N₂O Production in Estuarine and Coastal Sediments

Modeling denitrification nitrogen losses in China's rice fields based on multiscale field‐experiment constraints

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

Cited by 43 publications

References 119 publications

Global cropland nitrous oxide emissions in fallow period are comparable to growing‐season emissions

Global cropland nitrous oxide emissions in fallow period are comparable to growing‐season emissions

Acidification Offset Warming-Induced Increase in N2O Production in Estuarine and Coastal Sediments

Modeling denitrification nitrogen losses in China's rice fields based on multiscale field‐experiment constraints

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Acidification Offset Warming-Induced Increase in N₂O Production in Estuarine and Coastal Sediments