LILA - Reducing soil nitrous oxide emissions: innovative mitigation measures for Flemish agriculture and the development of regional emission factors
Promotors: Prof. dr. ir. Steven Sleutel, dr. ir. Peter Maenhout
Researchers: Rens Accou
Greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural soils account for 15% of the total greenhouse gas emissions within agriculture. These soil emissions, mainly nitrous oxide (N₂O), are responsible for 72% of the total nitrous oxide emissions from the agricultural sector. The application of mineral fertilizers, animal manure, and crop residues are the main sources. The use of fertilizers also contributes to NH₃ emissions and represents 28% of the NH₃ emissions within agriculture.
In addition, the incorporation of crop residues and the use of organic fertilization are often put forward as measures to increase carbon storage in soils. Carbon sequestration receives considerable attention because of its positive contribution to soil quality and the opportunities it offers to generate income through carbon farming business models. According to the EU Carbon Removal Certification Regulation currently under development, additional greenhouse gas emissions must be deducted when determining the amount of carbon removal.
In Flanders, carbon sequestration management is being promoted, but trade-offs between carbon storage and N₂O or CH₄ emissions are still poorly understood.
For both climate reporting and the further transition of agriculture towards a lower climate impact, it is important to gain a better understanding of the actual N₂O emissions from Flemish agricultural soils. These emissions are currently calculated using a general international methodology that has not been validated for Flemish agricultural conditions. As a result, current Flemish emission estimates are associated with considerable uncertainty.
In addition to farmers as direct stakeholders, the food processing industry also has a strong interest in understanding the climate impact of the products they source, due to sustainability reporting requirements and the accounting of Scope 3 emissions. The LCA-based KLIMREK tool (klimrekproject.be) could help address this need, but it is currently still relatively limited in its ability to accurately account for soil N₂O emissions and carbon sequestration. The KLIMREK sustainability score of a farm can also be highly sensitive to the estimated soil N₂O emissions.
A lack of reliable emission factors derived from field observations of N₂O emissions limits the provision of targeted advisory services. As a result, farmers’ efforts to reduce soil emissions through mitigation measures are not yet sufficiently reflected in KLIMREK scores. The LILA Project aims to provide these emission factors as well as a relevant and applicable mitigation measures.
