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Nitrous oxide (N2O) has a global warming potential that is 300 times that of carbon dioxide on a 100-y timescale, and is of major importance for stratospheric ozone depletion. The climate sensitivity of N2O emissions is poorly known, which makes it difficult to project how changing fertilizer use and climate will impact radiative forcing and the ozone layer. Analysis of 6 y of hourly N2O mixing ratios from a very tall tower within the US Corn Belt—one of the most intensive agricultural regions of the world—combined with inverse modeling, shows large interannual variability in N2O emissions (316 Gg N2O-N⋅y−1 to 585 Gg N2O-N⋅y−1). This implies that the regional emission factor is highly sensitive to climate. In the warmest year and spring (2012) of the observational period, the emission factor was 7.5%, nearly double that of previous reports. Indirect emissions associated with runoff and leaching dominated the interannual variability of total emissions. Under current trends in climate and anthropogenic N use, we project a strong positive feedback to warmer and wetter conditions and unabated growth of regional N2O emissions that will exceed 600 Gg N2O-N⋅y−1, on average, by 2050. This increasing emission trend in the US Corn Belt may represent a harbinger of intensifying N2O emissions from other agricultural regions. Such feedbacks will pose a major challenge to the Paris Agreement, which requires large N2O emission mitigation efforts to achieve its goals.
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Tall Tower Ammonia Observations and Emission Estimates in the U.S. Midwest
Abstract Atmospheric ammonia (NH3) has increased dramatically as a consequence of the production of synthetic nitrogen (N) fertilizer and proliferation of intensive livestock systems. It is a chemical of environmental concern as it readily reacts with atmospheric acids to produce fine particulate matter and indirectly contributes to nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions. Here, we present the first tall tower observations of NH3within the U.S. Corn Belt for the period April 2017 through December 2018. Hourly average NH3mixing ratios were measured at 100 and 56 m above the ground surface and fluxes were estimated using a modified gradient approach. The highest NH3mixing ratios (>30 nmol mol−1) occurred during early spring and late fall, coinciding with the timing of fertilizer application within the region and the occurrence of warm air temperatures. Net ecosystem NH3exchange was greatest in spring and fall with peak emissions of about +50 nmol m−2 s−l. Annual NH3emissions estimated using state‐of‐the‐art inventories ranged from 0.6 to 1.4 × the mean annual gross tall tower fluxes (+2.1 nmol m−2 s−1). If the tall tower observations are representative of the Upper Midwest and broader U.S. Corn Belt regions, the annual gross emissions were +720 Gg NH3‐N y−1and +1,340 Gg NH3‐N y−1, respectively. Finally, considering the N2O budget over the same region, we estimated total reactive N emissions (i.e., N2O + NH3) of approximately 1,790 Gg N y−1from the U.S. Corn Belt, representing ~23% of the current annual new N input.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1640337
- PAR ID:
- 10453328
- Publisher / Repository:
- DOI PREFIX: 10.1029
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences
- Volume:
- 124
- Issue:
- 11
- ISSN:
- 2169-8953
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- p. 3432-3447
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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