Background nitrous oxide emissions in agricultural and natural lands: a meta-analysis

• Published in: Plant and soil Vol. 373; no. 1-2; pp. 17 - 30
• Main Authors: Kim, Dong-Gill, Giltrap, Donna, Hernandez-Ramirez, Guillermo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer-Verlag 01.12.2013; Springer; Springer Netherlands; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Agricultural land; Agricultural soils; Agroecosystems; Agrology; Agronomy. Soil science and plant productions; Air temperature; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Biological and medical sciences; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Boreal forests; bulk density; correlation; Crop fields; Ecology; ecosystems; Emission measurements; emissions; Emissions (Pollution); Environmental aspects; fallow; field experimentation; Forest soils; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; General agronomy. Plant production; Grassland soils; Land use; Life Sciences; Meta-analysis; nitrogen; Nitrous oxide; Organic carbon; Plant Physiology; Plant Sciences; Pollutant emissions; production technology; Regular Article; riparian areas; Riparian soils; soil associations; Soil ecology; soil organic carbon; Soil science; Soil Science & Conservation; Soil sciences; Soil-plant relationships. Soil fertility; Soil-plant relationships. Soil fertility. Fertilization. Amendments; vegetable crops; wilderness; Agricultural lands; Background nitrous oxide emissions; Negative nitrous oxide flux; Natural lands; Land-use type; Meta-analysis; Nitrogen oxide; Gas emission; Nitrogen compounds; Flux; Farmland; Agricultural soil; Land use; Metaanalysis; Natural environment; Type; Arable land; Rural area; Agriculture; Nitrogen protoxide; Soil plant relation
• ISSN: 0032-079X; 1573-5036
• DOI: 10.1007/s11104-013-1762-5

AIM: This study aimed at better characterising background nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions (BNE) in agricultural and natural lands. METHODS: We compiled and analysed field-measured data for annual background N₂O emission in agricultural (BNEA) and natural (BNEN) lands from 600 and 307 independent experimental studies, respectively. RESULTS: There were no significant differences between BNEA (median: 0.70 & mean: 1.52 kg N₂O − N ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹) and BNEN (median:0.31 & mean:1.75 kg N₂O − N ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹) (P > 0.05). A simultaneous comparison across all BNEA and BNEN indicated that BNEs from riparian, vegetable crop fields and intentional fallow areas were significantly higher than from boreal forests (P < 0.05). Correlation and regression analyses supported the underlying associations of soil organic carbon (C), nitrogen (N), pH, bulk density (BD),and/or air temperature (AT) with BNEs to a varying degree as a function of land-use or ecosystem type (Ps < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Although overall BNEN tended to be lower than BNEA on median basis, results in general suggest that land-use shifts between natural and managed production systems would not result in consistent changes in BNE.