NITROUS OXIDE

Here's a real bad guy: Nitrous oxide. Although it comes from both natural and manmade processes, it's a potent greenhouse gas that is 170 to 290 times stronger a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.

NO₂ has an atmospheric lifetime of over 121 years and is responsible for 6% of human-caused global warming. The main sources of nitrous oxide are fossil fuel combustion (like from power stations), fertilizers, burning rainforests and animal waste.

TRANSPORTATION

Nitrous oxide spews out of cars. Current estimates of the amount of transport-related NO₂ range from 110 to 240 thousand tonnes per year. As car culture spreads around the globe and more and more people begin to drive, nitrous oxide emissions will continue to rise. And it's not just cars. Nitrous oxide emissions come from other forms of fossil-fuel-powered transport, including planes, boats and trucks.

AGRICULTURE

Agricultural soil is the second largest—and growing—global source of nitrous oxide. Global emissions range from 2 to 4 million tonnes annually. Mostly it comes from fertilizer application, and a small amount is released from burning crop residues. Burning biomass produces about half a million tonnes of nitrous oxide each year.



FERTILIZER

In our modern world, always growing, nitrogenous fertilizers are relied on to produce higher crop yields. Because of the nitrification process, use of nitrogenous fertilizer increases nitrous oxide emissions from soil and water. Fertilizer in the form of animal waste also emits substantial emissions of nitrous oxide from agricultural soils.