Reports have emerged that the third largest gaseous contributor to climate change, nitrous oxide is being underestimated by up to 40% in the US.
The gas, often used as an anaesthetic and the subject of growing abuse, is also used in farming as a fertilizer.
To research the amount of damage being done, scientists isolated an area of farming for analysis.
The US corn belt region is farming intensive and relies on nitrous oxide as a fertilizer, and therefore was the ideal place to use for the analysis.
The area is made up of around 60 million hectares, and in samples taken from 19 rivers and streams, the underestimation of nitrous oxide was confirmed.
Other scientists in this field agree that an understanding of nitrous oxide requires much better information on the scale of emissions and their sources. This new study from an area with detailed records of nitrogen use might serve as benchmark for areas that don't have accurate information.
"In the global context, this could also have large implications for regions of the world where there are large agricultural sources and where we may not have the measurement coverage to assess emissions using atmospheric measurements," said Dr Anita Ganesan from the University of Bristol.
Cedrec's take
Nitrous oxide is very much a dark horse in this situation. From this report we can see that, whilst it is vital we publicise the damage of carbon dioxide and methane, we must also remember they are not the only threats to our ozone layer and environment.
On the other hand, similar to the divestment of fossil fuels, we cannot simply cease use of nitrous oxide fertilizers overnight. The corn belt of the US is a global food source thanks to internal consumption and export. Research must be put into this area and greener alternatives must be developed, perfected and used.
