Details
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 119853 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | Journal of Environmental Management |
| Volume | 351 |
| Early online date | 22 Dec 2023 |
| Publication status | Published - Feb 2024 |
Abstract
The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) developed soil surface nutrient balance and made it mandatory for member countries to report annual nutrient budgets since 1990. This study aimed to evaluate the status of nitrogen (N) management in member countries and to figure out why N surplus levels differ across countries and how they relate to other agri-environmental indicators, by analyzing the N budgets from 35 OECD countries over the last 30 years. Of the three factors determining N balance (agricultural land area, N input, and N output), agricultural land area decreased in most OECD countries, negatively affecting N balance reduction. However, OECD's average N balance highly decreased from 91 to 46 kg ha−1 over the last 30 years due to the decrease in N input through inorganic fertilizers and manure, especially in EU countries with high N input levels, while N output did not meaningfully change. In comparison, in Japan and Korea, the N balance slightly increased and they became the highest N balance country recently. A higher N balance led to lower N use efficiency and higher ammonia (NH3) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emission intensities. More densely populated countries with smaller agricultural land per capita (ranging from 0.03 to 0.47 ha capita−1) showed a higher N balance (228–80 kg ha−1), presumably due to higher N input for more agricultural production on limited land. The most densely populated countries among OECD members (Belgium, the Netherlands, Korea, and Japan) had similar N input levels. However, two EU countries had much higher N output than two Asian countries due to higher pasture production, which led to a lower N balance and higher N use efficiency. Therefore, highly populated countries with small arable land areas per capita might need multilateral efforts to alleviate agricultural N balance.
Keywords
- Ammonia, Nitrogen surplus, Nitrous oxide, Nutrient use efficiency
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Environmental Science(all)
- Environmental Engineering
- Environmental Science(all)
- Waste Management and Disposal
- Environmental Science(all)
- Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law
Sustainable Development Goals
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In: Journal of Environmental Management, Vol. 351, 119853, 02.2024.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer review
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Changes in agricultural nitrogen (N) balance of OECD countries and its causes and impacts
AU - Lim, Ji Yeon
AU - Song, Hyeon Ji
AU - Kim, Gil Won
AU - Kim, Pil Joo
N1 - Funding Information: This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) through Basis Science Research Programs which are funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT ( NRF- 2023R1A2C30048421161382116530101 ) and the Ministry of Education ( NRF-2015R1A6A1A030314133361382116530303 ).
PY - 2024/2
Y1 - 2024/2
N2 - The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) developed soil surface nutrient balance and made it mandatory for member countries to report annual nutrient budgets since 1990. This study aimed to evaluate the status of nitrogen (N) management in member countries and to figure out why N surplus levels differ across countries and how they relate to other agri-environmental indicators, by analyzing the N budgets from 35 OECD countries over the last 30 years. Of the three factors determining N balance (agricultural land area, N input, and N output), agricultural land area decreased in most OECD countries, negatively affecting N balance reduction. However, OECD's average N balance highly decreased from 91 to 46 kg ha−1 over the last 30 years due to the decrease in N input through inorganic fertilizers and manure, especially in EU countries with high N input levels, while N output did not meaningfully change. In comparison, in Japan and Korea, the N balance slightly increased and they became the highest N balance country recently. A higher N balance led to lower N use efficiency and higher ammonia (NH3) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emission intensities. More densely populated countries with smaller agricultural land per capita (ranging from 0.03 to 0.47 ha capita−1) showed a higher N balance (228–80 kg ha−1), presumably due to higher N input for more agricultural production on limited land. The most densely populated countries among OECD members (Belgium, the Netherlands, Korea, and Japan) had similar N input levels. However, two EU countries had much higher N output than two Asian countries due to higher pasture production, which led to a lower N balance and higher N use efficiency. Therefore, highly populated countries with small arable land areas per capita might need multilateral efforts to alleviate agricultural N balance.
AB - The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) developed soil surface nutrient balance and made it mandatory for member countries to report annual nutrient budgets since 1990. This study aimed to evaluate the status of nitrogen (N) management in member countries and to figure out why N surplus levels differ across countries and how they relate to other agri-environmental indicators, by analyzing the N budgets from 35 OECD countries over the last 30 years. Of the three factors determining N balance (agricultural land area, N input, and N output), agricultural land area decreased in most OECD countries, negatively affecting N balance reduction. However, OECD's average N balance highly decreased from 91 to 46 kg ha−1 over the last 30 years due to the decrease in N input through inorganic fertilizers and manure, especially in EU countries with high N input levels, while N output did not meaningfully change. In comparison, in Japan and Korea, the N balance slightly increased and they became the highest N balance country recently. A higher N balance led to lower N use efficiency and higher ammonia (NH3) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emission intensities. More densely populated countries with smaller agricultural land per capita (ranging from 0.03 to 0.47 ha capita−1) showed a higher N balance (228–80 kg ha−1), presumably due to higher N input for more agricultural production on limited land. The most densely populated countries among OECD members (Belgium, the Netherlands, Korea, and Japan) had similar N input levels. However, two EU countries had much higher N output than two Asian countries due to higher pasture production, which led to a lower N balance and higher N use efficiency. Therefore, highly populated countries with small arable land areas per capita might need multilateral efforts to alleviate agricultural N balance.
KW - Ammonia
KW - Nitrogen surplus
KW - Nitrous oxide
KW - Nutrient use efficiency
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85180536550&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.119853
DO - 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.119853
M3 - Article
C2 - 38141344
AN - SCOPUS:85180536550
VL - 351
JO - Journal of Environmental Management
JF - Journal of Environmental Management
SN - 0301-4797
M1 - 119853
ER -