A novel and effective technology for mitigating nitrous oxide emissions from land-applied manures
Jaye Hill A , Matthew Redding A and Chris Pratt A B
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, 203 Tor Street, Toowoomba, Qld 4350, Australia.
B Corresponding author. Email: christopher.pratt@daf.qld.gov.au
Animal Production Science 56(3) 362-369 https://doi.org/10.1071/AN15519
Submitted: 31 August 2015 Accepted: 6 November 2015 Published: 9 February 2016
Abstract
Land-applied manures produce nitrous oxide (N2O), a greenhouse gas (GHG). Land application can also result in ammonia (NH3) volatilisation, leading to indirect N2O emissions. Here, we summarise a glasshouse investigation into the potential for vermiculite, a clay with a high cation exchange capacity, to decrease N2O emissions from livestock manures (beef, pig, broiler, layer), as well as urea, applied to soils. Our hypothesis is that clays adsorb ammonium, thereby suppressing NH3 volatilisation and slowing N2O emission processes. We previously demonstrated the ability of clays to decrease emissions at the laboratory scale. In this glasshouse work, manure and urea application rates varied between 50 and 150 kg nitrogen (N)/ha. Clay : manure ratios ranged from 1 : 10 to 1 : 1 (dry weight basis). In the 1-year trial, the above-mentioned N sources were incorporated with vermiculite in 1 L pots containing Sodosol and Ferrosol growing a model pasture (Pennisetum clandestinum or kikuyu grass). Gas emissions were measured periodically by placing the pots in gas-tight bags connected to real-time continuous gas analysers. The vermiculite achieved significant (P ≤ 0.05) and substantial decreases in N2O emissions across all N sources (70% on average). We are currently testing the technology at the field scale; which is showing promising emission decreases (~50%) as well as increases (~20%) in dry matter yields. This technology clearly has merit as an effective GHG mitigation strategy, with potential associated agronomic benefits, although it needs to be verified by a cost–benefit analysis.
Additional keywords: agriculture, greenhouse gas mitigation, manure management, nitrogen, vermiculite.
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