Reducing nitrous oxide emissions from agricultural soils of Western Australia
Nitrous oxide, a highly active greenhouse gas, is released from pastures and crops using nitrogen fertilisers. However, nitrous oxide emissions from Western Australian broadacre soils are low and unlikely to warrant investment for emission mitigation alone. Reducing nitrogen loss via nitrous oxide has the potential to reduce fertiliser costs and may increase agricultural productivity. Why consider nitrous oxide from pastures? Nitrous oxide is nearly 300 times more active as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Agriculture releases about 80% of Australia's nitrous oxide emissions. However, the total amount of nitrous oxide emissions in Australia is relatively low compared to the total of all greenhouse gas emissions. Sources of nitrous oxide Nitrous oxide emissions from the soil result from biological and chemical processes that use inorganic nitrogen compounds (ammonium, nitrite and nitrate). The processes that…