An international comparison of agricultural nitrous oxide emissions

Agriculture is a major source of global greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for approximately 14-17% of global anthropogenic emissions. Among others, nitrous oxide emissions from synthetic fertilisers, manure applications and crop residues left on farms account for over 40% of total agricultural emissions. This research aims to analyse trends and magnitudes of nitrous oxide emissions from these three sources over a 52 year period (1961-2012) in seven major crop producing countries including: (1) three developed countries (Australia, Canada and USA); and (2) four developing countries (Argentina, Brazil, China and India). Annual emissions and other required data for the study were collected from Food and Agriculture Organisation and World Bank sources. Among these seven countries, Australia appears to perform well in terms of maintaining relatively lower total emissions from the three sources and increasing crop production indices. China and India ranked well in terms of crop production indices but had higher emissions. The reasons why such differences between the countries exist and what lessons other countries can learn from the Australian experience are discussed. This is critical in a low-carbon economy where an environmentally-friendly agricultural production system is rewarded