Methane and Nitrous Oxide Emissions from Rice-Duck and Rice-Fish Complex Ecosystems and the Evaluation of Their Economic Significance

Rice-duck （RD） and rice-fish （RF） ecological systems are major complex planting and breeding models of rice paddy fields in southern China. Studying the methane （CH4） and nitrous oxide （N2O） emissions and their economic value from these two ecosystems can provide theoretical and practical basis for further development and utilization of these classical agricultural techniques. CH4 and N2O emissions from RD and RF ecological systems were measured in situ by using static chambers technique. Using global warming potentials （GWPs）, we assessed the greenhouse effect of CH4 and N2O and their economic value. Results showed that the peaks of CH4 emission fluxes from RD and RF appeared at full tillering stage and at heading stage, and the average emission fluxes were significantly （P〈 0.05） lower than that from CK. N2O fluxes remained low when the field is flooded and high after draining the water. Compared with CK, the total amount of N2O emissions was significantly （P〈0.05） higher and slightly lower than those from RD and RF, respectively. In 2006 and 2007, the total greenhouse effect of CH4 and N20 from RD and RF were 4 728.3 and 4 611 kg CO2 ha^-1, 4 545 and 4 754.3 kg CO2 ha^-1, respectively. The costs of greenhouse effect were 970.89 and 946.81 RMB yuan ha^-1, and 933.25 and 976.23 RMB yuan ha^-1, respectively, which were significant lower than those from CK （5 997.6 and 5 391.5 RMB yuan ha^-1）. Except for the environment cost of CH4 and N2O, the economic benefits from RD and RF were 2 210.64 and 4 881.92 RMB yuan ha^-1; 3 798.37 and 5 310.64 RMB yuan ha^-1, respectively, higher than those from CK. Therefore, RD and RF complex ecological planting and breeding models can effectively decrease and control CH4 and N2O emissions, and they are two of the effective strategies to reduce greenhouse gases from rice paddy fields and contribute in alleviating global warming. Thus, their adoption is important to the environment together with their economy benefits.

Nitrous oxide emissions in nonflooding period from fallow paddy fields

The study was conducted to investigate the N2O emissions and dissolved N2O in the leachate during the nonflooding period in nongrowing paddy fields.Three kinds of paddy soils were repacked to soil columns and were supersaturated with water initially and dried gradually in a greenhouse to attain the N2O emissions flux during the incubation.Soils with the texture of silty clay-loam (Q and H) produced cracks during the drying of soil,but soil with the texture of silty loam (X) did not form the cracks.Cracked s...

Temperature dependence of carbon mineralization and nitrous oxide emission in a temperate forest ecosystem

The measurement of CO2 and N2O effiux from forest soils is of great importance in evaluating the role of forests as sequestering agents of atmospheric CO2 and nitrogen. To quantify the effect of site on temperature dependence of net C-mineralization and N2O-N emissions, three adjacent forest floors under beech, Norway spruce and mixed species stands were investigated at Soiling forest, Germany, by an incubation experiment for three months. The investigated net C-mineralization and N2O-N emissions from all forest floors exhibited an exponential increase with respect to temperature elevation. The temperature coefficient function （Q10 value）, was fitted to flux rates to describe the temperature sensitivity of forest floors on temperature in the range of 1-20℃. Comparing the fitted curves for temperature sensitivity of the forest floors in relation to net carbon mineralization and nitrous oxide emission rates revealed a strong positive correlation across all sites. For the whole data set of all stands, a Q10 value of 1.73-2.10 for net C-mineralization and 2.81-3.58 for N2O-N emissions per measured unit was found to describe the temperature dependency of net C-mineralization and N20-N efflux at experimental site. The absence of clear differences between beech and spruce in mono and mixed species cultures on temperature dependencies of net C-mineralization and N2O-N emission rates indicated that the flux rates were not affected by species-specific differences of litter quality.

The effects of nitrogen fertilizer application on methane and nitrous oxide emission/uptake in Chinese croplands

The application of nitrogen（N） fertilizer to increase crop yields has a significant influence on soil methane（CH_4） and nitrous oxide（N_2O） emission/uptake.A meta-analysis was carried out on the effect of N application on（i） CH_4 emissions in rice paddies,（ii） CH_4 uptake in upland fields and（iii） N_2O emissions.The responses of CH_4 emissions to N application in rice paddies were highly variable and overall no effects were found.CH_4 emissions were stimulated at low N application rates（〈100 kg N ha^（-1）） but inhibited at high N rates（〉200 kg N ha^（-1）） as compared to no N fertilizer（control）.The response of CH_4 uptake to N application in upland fields was 15%lower than control,with a mean CH_4 uptake factor of-0.001 kg CH_4-C kg^（-1） N.The mean N_2O emission factors were 1.00 and 0.94%for maize（Zea mays） and wheat（Triticum aestivum）,respectively,but significantly lower for the rice（Oryza sativa）（0.51%）.Compared with controls,N addition overall increased global warming potential of CH_4 and N_2O emissions by 78%.Our result revealed that response of CH_4 emission to N input might depend on the CH_4concentration in rice paddy.The critical factors that affected CH_4 uptake and N_2O emission were N fertilizer application rate and the controls of CH_4 uptake and N_2O emission.The influences of application times,cropping systems and measurement frequency should all be considered when assessing CH_4 and N_2O emissions/uptake induced by N fertilizer.

Methane and nitrous oxide emissions from a subtropical coastal embayment(Moreton Bay, Australia)

Surface water methane （CH4） and nitrous oxide （N20） concentrations and fluxes were investigated in two subtropical coastal embayments （Bramble Bay and Deception Bay, which are part of the greater Moreton Bay, Australia）. Measurements were done at 23 stations in seven campaigns covering different seasons during 2010-2012. Water-air fluxes were estimated using the Thin Boundary Layer approach with a combination of wind and currents-based models for the estimation of the gas transfer velocities. The two bays were strong sources of both CH4 and N2O with no significant differences in the degree of saturation of both gases between them during all measurement campaigns. Both CH4 and N2O concentrations had strong temporal but minimal spatial variability in both bays. During the seven seasons, CH4 varied between 500% and 4000% saturation while N2O varied between 128 and 255% in the two bays. Average seasonal CH4 fluxes for the two bays varied between 0.5 ± 0.2 and 6.0 ± 1.5 mg CH4/（m^2.day） while N20 varied between 0.4 ± 0.1 and 1.6 ± 0.6 mg N2O/（m^2-day）. Weighted emissions （t CO2-e） were 63%-90% N2O dominated implying that a reduction in N2O inputs and/or nitrogen availability in the bays may significantly reduce the bays＇ greenhouse gas （GHG） budget. Emissions data for tropical and subtropical systems is still scarce. This work found subtropical bays to be significant aquatic sources of both CH4 and N2O and puts the estimated fluxes into the global context with measurements done from other climatic regions.

N_2O Emission from Paddy Field under Different Rice Planting Modes

Measurements of N2O emissions from conventional rice cultivation （CRC）, CRC with straw mulching, system of rice intensification （SRI） and SRI with plastic film mulching were conducted through static chamber/gas-chromatography techniques. The results show that daily fluctuation of N2O emissions in jointing stage are much higher than in others. A type peak of N2O seasonal emission presented between jointing and bearing stages companying with high daily average temperature and low precipitation. Biomass and leaf stomatal conductance were observed. Total quantities of N2O emission were budgeted. The results showed that after jointing stage the average N2O emission flux of SRI with plastic film mulching increased significantly than CRC with straw mulching and SRI, the leaf stomatal conductance of those showed the same trend （p〈 0.05）. Yield and total quantity of N20 emission in CRC with straw mulching enhanced 13. 7% and 10.7% compared with those of CRC, respectively. The total quantity of N20 emissions reduced 3. 6% in SRI with plastic film mulching compared with CRC, however, the yield increase of that was not significant.

Environmental Problems From Tea Cultivation in Japan and a Control Measure Using Calcium Cyanamide

A field experiment, involving lime N (calcium cyanamide, CaCN2) fertilization as a control measure, was conducted to study environmental problems induced by long-term heavy N application in Japanese tea fields. Long-term tea cultivation caused serious soil acidification. Seventy-seven percent of the 70 tea fields investigated had soil pH values below 4.0, and 9% below 3.0, with the lowest value of 2.7. Moreover, excess N application in tea fields put a threat to plant growth, induced serious nitrate contamination to local water, and caused high nitrous oxide loss. Compared with the conventional high N application treatment (1100 kg N ha-1) without lime N, the low N application (400 kg N ha-1) with calcium cyanamide effectively stopped soil acidification as well as achieved the same or slightly higher levels in tea yield and in total N and amino acid contents of tea shoots. The application of calcium cyanamide could be a suitable fertilization for the prevention of environmental problems in tea cultivation.

Relationships of nitrous oxide fluxes with water quality parameters in free water surface constructed wetlands

The effects of chemical oxygen demand(COD)concentration in the influent on nitrous oxide(N_(2)O)emissions,together with the relationships between N_(2)O and water quality parameters in free water surface constructed wetlands,were investigated with laboratoryscale systems.N_(2)O emission and purification performance of wastewater were very strongly dependent on COD concentration in the influent,and the total N_(2)O emission in the system with middle COD influent concentration was the least.The relationships between N_(2)O and the chemical and physical water quality variables were studied by using principal component scores in multiple linear regression analysis to predict N_(2)O flux.The multiple linear regression model against principal components indicated that different water parameters affected N_(2)O flux with different COD concentrations in the influent,but nitrate nitrogen affected N_(2)O flux in all systems.

Nitrogen mobility,ammonia volatilization,and estimated leaching loss from long-term manure incorporation in red soil

Nitrogen（N） loss from fertilization in agricultural fields has an unavoidable negative impact on the environment and a better understanding of the major pathways can assist in developing the best management practices. The aim of this study was to evaluate the fate of N fertilizers applied to acidic red soil（Ferralic Cambisol） after 19 years of mineral（synthetic） and manure fertilizer treatments under a cropping system with wheat-maize rotations. Five field treatments were examined： control（CK）, chemical nitrogen and potash fertilizer（NK）, chemical nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer（NP）, chemical nitrogen, phosphorus and potash fertilizer（NPK） and the NPK with manure（NPKM, 70% N from manure）. Based on the soil total N storage change in 0–100 cm depth, ammonia（NH_3） volatilization, nitrous oxide（N_2O） emission, N plant uptake, and the potential N leaching loss were estimated using a mass balance approach. In contrast to the NPKM, all mineral fertilizer treatments（NK, NP and NPK） showed increased nitrate（NO_3~–） concentration with increasing soil depth, indicating higher leaching potential. However, total NH_3 volatilization loss was much higher in the NPKM（19.7%） than other mineral fertilizer treatments（≤4.2%）. The N_2O emissions were generally low（0.2–0.9%, the highest from the NPKM）. Total gaseous loss accounted for 1.7, 3.3, 5.1, and 21.9% for NK, NP, NPK, and NPKM treatments, respectively. Estimated N leaching loss from the NPKM was only about 5% of the losses from mineral fertilizer treatments. All data demonstrated that manure incorporation improved soil productivity, increased yield, and reduced potential leaching, but with significantly higher NH_3 volatilization, which could be reduced by improving the application method. This study confirms that manure incorporationis an essential strategy in N fertilization management in upland red soil cropping system.

Characteristics of greenhouse gas emission in three full-scale wastewater treatment processes

Three full-scale wastewater treatment processes, Orbal oxidation ditch, anoxic/anaerobic/aerobic （reversed A^2O） and anaerobic/anoxic/aerobic （A^2O）, were selected to investigate the emission characteristics of greenhouse gases （GHG）, including carbon dioxide （CO2）, methane （CH4） and nitrous oxide （N2O）. Results showed that although the processes were different, the units presenting high GHG emission fluxes were remarkably similar, namely the highest CO2 and N2O emission fluxes occurred in the aerobic areas, and the highest CH4 emission fluxes occurred in the grit tanks. The GHG emission amount of each unit can be calculated from its area and GHG emission flux. The calculation results revealed that the maximum emission amounts of CO2, CH4 and N2O in the three wastewater treatment processes appeared in the aerobic areas in all cases. Theoretically, CH4 should be produced in anaerobic conditions, rather than aerobic conditions. However, results in this study showed that the CH4 emission fluxes in the forepart of the aerobic area were distinctly higher than in the anaerobic area. The situation for N2O was similar to that of CH4： the N2O emission flux in the aerobic area was also higher than that in the anoxic area. Through analysis of the GHG mass balance, it was found that the flow of dissolved GHG in the wastewater treatment processes and aerators may be the main reason for this phenomenon. Based on the monitoring and calculation results, GHG emission factors for the three wastewater treatment processes were determined. The A^2O process had the highest CO2 emission factor of 319.3 g CO2/kg CODremoved, and the highest CH4 and N2O emission factors of 3.3 g CH4/kg CODremoved and 3.6 g N2O/kg TNremoved were observed in the Orbal oxidation ditch process.

Biochar for Sustainable Soil Health:A Review of Prospects and Concerns

Biochar as a soil amendment is confronted with the challenge that it must benefit soil health as it can be by no means separated from soils once it is added. The available literature even though sparse and mostly based on short-term studies has been encouraging and the trend obtained so far has raised many hopes. Biochar has been reported to positively impact an array of soil processes ranging from benefiting soil biology, controlling soil-borne pathogens, enhancing nitrogen fixation, improving soil physical and chemical properties,decreasing nitrate(NO-3) leaching and nitrous oxide(N2O) emission to remediation of contaminated soils. However, very little biochar is still utilized as soil amendment mainly because these benefits are yet to be quantified, and also the mechanisms by which the soil health is improved are poorly understood. Due to the infancy of research regarding this subject, there are still more questions than answers. The future research efforts must focus on carrying out long-term experiments and uncover the mechanisms underlying these processes so that key concerns surrounding the use of biochar are addressed before its large scale application is recommended.