2 results
11 - Nitrogen flows and fate in rural landscapes
- from Part III - Nitrogen flows and fate at multiple spatial scales
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- By Pierre Cellier, INRA, France, Patrick Durand, INRA, France, Nick Hutchings, University of Aarhus, Ulli Dragosits, Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Mark Theobald, Technical University of Madrid/Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Jean-Louis Drouet, INRA, France, Oene Oenema, Wageningen University and Research Centre, Albert Bleeker, Energy Research Centre of the Netherlands, Lutz Breuer, Institute for Landscape Ecology and Resources Management, Tommy Dalgaard, Aarhus University, Sylvia Duretz, INRA, France, Johannes Kros, Alterra, Wageningen University and Research Centre, Benjamin Loubet, UMR Environm & Grandes Cultures, Joergen Eivind Olesen, Aarhus University Department of Agroecology and Environment, Philippe Mérot, INRA, France, Valérie Viaud, INRA, France, Wim de Vries, Wageningen University and Research Centre, Mark A. Sutton, Centre for Ecology and Hydrology
- Edited by Mark A. Sutton, NERC Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, UK, Clare M. Howard, NERC Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, UK, Jan Willem Erisman, Gilles Billen, Albert Bleeker, Peringe Grennfelt, Hans van Grinsven, Bruna Grizzetti
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- Book:
- The European Nitrogen Assessment
- Published online:
- 16 May 2011
- Print publication:
- 14 April 2011, pp 229-248
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- Chapter
- Export citation
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Summary
Executive summary
Nature of the problem
The transfer of nitrogen by either farm management activities or natural processes (through the atmosphere and the hydrological network) can feed into the N cascade and lead to indirect and unexpected reactive nitrogen emissions.
This transfer can lead to large N deposition rates and impacts to sensitive ecosystems. It can also promote further N2O emission in areas where conditions are more favourable for denitrification.
In rural landscapes, the relevant scale is the scale where N is managed by farm activities and where environmental measures are applied.
Approaches
Mitigating nitrogen at landscape scale requires consideration of the interactions between natural and anthropogenic (i.e. farm management) processes.
Owing to the complex nature and spatial extent of rural landscapes, experimental assessments of reactive N flows at this scale are difficult and often incomplete. It should include measurement of N flows in the different compartments of the environment and comprehensive datasets on the environment (soils, hydrology, land use, etc.) and on farm management.
Modelling is the preferred tool to investigate the complex relationships between anthropogenic and natural processes at landscape scale although verification by measurements is required. Up to now, no model includes all the components of landscape scale N flows: farm functioning, short range atmospheric transfer, hydrology and ecosystem modelling.
16 - Integrating nitrogen fluxes at the European scale
- from Part III - Nitrogen flows and fate at multiple spatial scales
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- By Adrian Leip, European Commission Joint Research Centre, Beat Achermann, Federal Office for the Environment Air Pollution Control, Gilles Billen, University Pierre & Marie Curie, Albert Bleeker, Energy Research Centre of the Netherlands, Alexander F. Bouwman, Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, Wim de Vries, Wageningen University and Research Centre, Ulli Dragosits, Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Ulrike Döring, European Commission Joint Research Centre, Dave Fernall, Food and Rural Affairs Kingspool, Markus Geupel, Federal Environment Agency, Germany, Jürg Herolstab, Penny Johnes, University of Reading, Anne Christine Le Gall, INERIS, France, Suvi Monni, European Commission Joint Research Centre, Rostislav Nevečeřal, Czech Hydrometeorological Institute, Lorenzo Orlandini, European Commission – DG AGRI, Michel Prud'homme, International Fertilizer Industry Association, Hannes I. Reuter, Gisxperts gbr, David Simpson, Norwegian Meteorological Institute, Guenther Seufert, European Commission Joint Research Centre, Till Spranger, Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, Mark A. Sutton, Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, John van Aardenne, European Commission Joint Research Center, Maren Voß, Leibniz-Institute of Baltic Sea Research Warnemuende, Wilfried Winiwarter, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis
- Edited by Mark A. Sutton, NERC Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, UK, Clare M. Howard, NERC Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, UK, Jan Willem Erisman, Gilles Billen, Albert Bleeker, Peringe Grennfelt, Hans van Grinsven, Bruna Grizzetti
-
- Book:
- The European Nitrogen Assessment
- Published online:
- 16 May 2011
- Print publication:
- 14 April 2011, pp 345-376
-
- Chapter
- Export citation
-
Summary
Executive summary
Nature of the problem
Environmental problems related to nitrogen concern all economic sectors and impact all media: atmosphere, pedosphere, hydrosphere and anthroposphere.
Therefore, the integration of fluxes allows an overall coverage of problems related to reactive nitrogen (Nr) in the environment, which is not accessible from sectoral approaches or by focusing on specific media.
Approaches
This chapter presents a set of high resolution maps showing key elements of the N flux budget across Europe, including N2 and Nr fluxes.
Comparative nitrogen budgets are also presented for a range of European countries, highlighting the most efficient strategies for mitigating Nr problems at a national scale. A new European Nitrogen Budget (EU-27) is presented on the basis of state-of-the-art Europe-wide models and databases focusing on different segments of Europe's society.
Key findings
From c. 18 Tg Nr yr−1 input to agriculture in the EU-27, only about 7 Tg Nr yr−1 find their way to the consumer or are further processed by industry.
Some 3.7 Tg Nr yr−1 is released by the burning of fossil fuels in the EU-27, whereby the contribution of the industry and energy sectors is equal to that of the transport sector. More than 8 Tg Nr yr−1 are disposed of to the hydrosphere, while the EU-27 is a net exporter of reactive nitrogen through atmospheric transport of c. 2.3 Tg Nr yr−1.
The largest single sink for Nr appears to be denitrification to N2 in European coastal shelf regions (potentially as large as the input of mineral fertilizer, about 11 Tg N yr–1 for the EU-27); however, this sink is also the most uncertain, because of the uncertainty of Nr import from the open ocean.