Are the benefits of yield responses to nitrogen fertilizer application in the bioenergy crop Miscanthus × giganteus offset by increased soil emissions of nitrous oxide?

Abstract

A field trial was carried out on a 15 year old Miscanthus stand, subject to nitrogen fertilizer treatments of 0, 63 and 125 kg-N ha⁻¹, measuring N₂O emissions, as well as annual crop yield over a full year. N₂O emission intensity (N₂O emissions calculated as a function of above-ground biomass) was significantly affected by fertilizer application, with values of 52.2 and 59.4 g N₂O-N t⁻¹ observed at 63 and 125 kg-N ha⁻¹, respectively, compared to 31.3 g N₂O-N t⁻¹ in the zero fertilizer control. A life cycle analyses approach was applied to calculate the increase in yield required to offset N₂O emissions from Miscanthus through fossil fuel substitution in the fuel chain. For the conditions observed during the field trial yield increases of 0.33 and 0.39 t ha⁻¹ were found to be required to offset N₂O emissions from the 63 kg-N ha⁻¹ treatment, when replacing peat and coal, respectively, while increases of 0.71 and 0.83 t ha⁻¹ were required for the 125 kg-N ha⁻¹ treatment, for each fuel. These values are considerably less than the mean above-ground biomass yield increases observed here of 1.57 and 2.79 t ha⁻¹ at fertilization rates 63 and 125 kg-N ha⁻¹ respectively. Extending this analysis to include a range of fertilizer application rates and N₂O emission factors found increases in yield necessary to offset soil N₂O emissions ranging from 0.26 to 2.54 t ha⁻¹. These relatively low yield increase requirements indicate that where nitrogen fertilizer application improves yield, the benefits of such a response will not be offset by soil N₂O emissions.

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