The impact of nitrogen Fertilizer application on air Pollution: Evidence from China

Toward Low-Emission Agriculture: Synergistic Contribution of Inorganic Nitrogen and Organic Fertilizers to GHG Emissions and Strategies for Mitigation

Nitrogen (N) and organic-source fertilizers in agriculture are important to sustain crop production for feeding the growing global population. However, their use can result in significant greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, particularly carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O), which are important climate drivers. This review discusses the interactive effects, uncovering both additive and suppressive outcomes of emissions under various soil and climatic conditions. In addition to examining the effects of nitrogen and the nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), it is crucial to comprehend the mechanisms and contributions of organic fertilizers to GHG emissions. This understanding is vital for developing mitigation strategies that effectively reduce emissions while maintaining agricultural productivity. In this review, the current knowledge is utilized for the management of nitrogen practices, such as the optimization of fertilization rates, timing, and methods of application, in terms of the nitrogen use efficiency and the related GHG emissions. Moreover, we discuss the role of organic fertilizers, including straw, manure, and biochar, as a mitigation strategy in relation to GHG emissions through soil carbon sequestration and enhanced nutrient cycling. Important strategies such as crop rotation, tillage, irrigation, organic fertilizers, and legume crops are considered as suitable approaches for minimizing emissions. Even with the progress made in mitigating fertilizer-related emissions, research gaps remain, specifically concerning the long-term effect of organic fertilizers and the interactions between microbial communities in the soil and fertilization practices. Furthermore, the differences in application practices and environmental conditions present considerable obstacles to accurate emission quantification. This review underlines the importance of conducting more thorough research on the combined application of N and organic fertilizers in multiple cropping systems to evolve region-specific mitigation strategies.

Combination of water-saving irrigation and controlled-release fertilizer application reduced gaseous nitrogen loss in single-crop paddy soil

Through a paddy soil column experiment, we comprehensively evaluated the effects of three irrigation practices and three nitrogen (N) fertilizer application strategies on NH3 volatilization, N2O emissions, and rice yields during the rice growing season to identify the optimal irrigation and fertilization combination technique to reduce both NH3 and N2O losses in paddy soil while sustaining rice yield. In addition, we integrated molecular biology techniques (Quantitative PCR) to establish correlations between environmental factors and the abundance of N cycling-related soil microbial functional genes, revealing the intricate interactions between NH3 volatilization and N2O emissions under varied coupling irrigation and fertilization schemes. Our results clearly showed a trade-off relationship between N2O and NH3 emissions under water-saving irrigation practices (controlled irrigation (CI) and intermittent irrigation (II)) coupling with traditional fertilizer urea. Compared with continuous flooding (CF) practice, both CI and II treatments reduced NH3 volatilization by 36.3-73.9%, while increasing N2O emissions by 1483.2-2246.2% during the rice growing season. Notably, the combination application of CRF under CI mode (CI-CRF) significantly reduced NH3 volatilization by 65.0% during the rice growing season, compared to the conventional II-Urea approach. Although the impact on N2O emissions was modest, CI-CRF strategy still achieved a 4.6% reduction in N2O emissions, thus tackling the trade-offs between two important environmentally damaging gases under water-saving irrigation. The suppression of NH3 volatilization was primarily attributed to the CI-CRF strategy lowering NH4+-N concentrations in flooding water, while the reduction in N2O emissions was associated with an increase in soil nirS and nosZ gene abundances. Further estimates indicated that the CI-CRF strategy could potentially reduce NH3 volatilization by 259.2 Gg N yr-1 and N2O emissions by 3.1 Gg N yr-1 in single-crop paddy field in China, compared with traditional II-Urea approach. Therefore, the optimal reduction of gaseous N loss, coupled with yield enhancement, could be achieved through the synergistic strategy of CI-CRF in single-crop rice cultivation ecosystems. Future studies should focus on field-based experiments that explore the long-term effects of CI-CRF combinations under varying soil types, climates, and rice cultivation systems.