The effect of urinary nitrogen loading rate and a nitrification inhibitor on nitrous oxide emissions from a temperate grassland soil

Abstract

Nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions associated with urine nitrogen (N) deposition during grazing are a major component of greenhouse gas emissions from domestic livestock. The present study investigated the relationship between urine N loading rate and the efficacy of a nitrification inhibitor, dicyandiamide (DCD), on cumulative N₂O emissions from a grassland soil in Ireland over 80 and 360-day periods in 2009/10 and 2010/11. A diminishing curvilinear relationship between urine N rate and cumulative N₂O emissions was observed in both years. Despite this increase in cumulative N₂O emissions, the emission factor (EF₃) for N₂O decreased with increasing urine N rate from, on average, 0·24 to 0·10% (urine applied at 300 and 1000 kg N/ha, respectively), during an 80-day measurement period. This was probably the result of a factor other than N, such as carbon (C), limiting the production of N₂O. The efficacy of DCD varied with urine N loading rate, and inter-annual variability in efficacy was also observed. Dicyandiamide was effective at reducing N₂O production for 50-80 days after urine application, which accounted for the major period of elevated daily flux. However, DCD was ineffective at reducing N₂O production after this period, which was likely a result of its removal from the soil via degradation and leaching. Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2014.