Mitigation of ammonia and greenhouse gases emissions from urea coated with oil shale residues in a silvopastoral system.

The objective of this work was to investigate the viability of using retorted oil shale as urea coating (U + ROS) in the decrease of N losses by ammonia (NH3-N) volatilization. The experiment was carried out in a silvopastoral system with a randomized block design with split-plots. The main treatments consisted of spatial arrangements of the trees, while the subdivision of the plots constituted the surface application of common urea (U) and retorted oil shale-coated urea (U + ROS) for the pasture. In addition to NH3 measurements, fluxes of N2O and CH4 in the soil were determined, as well as soil moisture and contents of mineral N (0-5 cm). Independently of tree spacing, the use of ROS along with urea (U + ROS) showed a mean decrease of 15.9% in the accumulated NH3 volatilization and 24.1% in the peaks of emission, although it was not significantly different from the U treatment (P < 0.10). In addition, it did not increase significantly the N2O and CH4 emissions, evidencing a potential to decrease N losses by ammonia volatilization, with no impact on greenhouse gases emissions from the soil.

The conversion of grassland to acacia forest as an effective option for net reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of forestation with leguminous Acacia mearnsii De Wild in native grasslands on the soil greenhouse (GHG) fluxes and their main driving factors. The experiment was conducted in the Brazilian Pampa over the period of one year in a six-year-old Acacia plantation, evaluating four treatments: Acacia (AM), Acacia with litter periodically removed (A-l), Acacia after harvest (AH) and native grassland (NG) (reference treatment). Air samples were obtained by the static chamber method, and gas concentrations were evaluated by gas chromatography. Soil and climate factors were monitored. The accumulated fluxes of methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) were statistically similar between the soils in the AM and NG treatments, which tended to oxidize CH4 (-1445 and -1752 g C-CH4 ha(-1) yr(-1), respectively) and had low emission of N2O (242 and 316 g N-N2O ha(-1) yr(-1)), most likely influenced by the low water-filled pore space and the low content of mineral N in the soil. However, the soil in the AH treatment presented higher emissions of both gases, totaling 1889 g C-CH4 ha(-1) yr(-1) and 1250 g N-N2O ha(-1) yr(-1). Afforestation neither significantly affected the total organic C stocks nor their lability, keeping the C management index for the forested area similar to that in the NG treatment. The conversion from grassland to Acacia forest represents an effective option for mitigating the net reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, which is basically determined by C accumulation in biomass and wood products.

In situ methane and nitrous oxide fluxes in soil from a transect in Hennequin Point, King George Island, Antarctic.

The study aimed at to determine the magnitude of the methane (CH(4)) and nitrous oxide (N(2)O) flux rates in soils at Hennequin Point, King George Island, Antarctic, under different slope positions, vegetal covers and presence of skuas, as well as to evaluate the main soil and climate factors that are involved with the flux of such gases. In situ gas sampling (closed chamber method) was performed in four sites along a transect involving a skua nesting field in a moraine with 5% and 100% of surface covered by vegetal, and two poor-drained soils in the toeslope (a bare alluvium soil and a poor-drained moss field with 100% soil cover). Flux rates ranged from -0.86±0.45 to 2.75±1.52 µg N(2)O-N m(-2) h(-1) and -12.26±3.05 to 1.42±1.31 µg CH(4)-C m(-2) h(-1). The soil totally covered by vegetal in the skua field had the largest CH(4) influx rates. However, this benefic effect was counterbalanced by the greatest N(2)O efflux rates from this soil, resulting in the largest contribution to the global warming potential among the soils evaluated. Flux rates were closely related to soil temperature, but no significant relation was observed with mineral N contents and water-filled pore space. In turn, accumulated CH(4) and N(2)O emissions were closely related to the total N and total organic C stocks in the soil. Net CH(4) influx predominated even in the poor-drained soils, suggesting that the coarse soil texture avoided critical anaerobic conditions. No significant changes in flux rates were observed for sampling time along the day.

Dejeto líquido de suínos: I - perdas de nitrogênio e fósforo na solução escoada na superfície do solo, sob plantio direto / Pig slurry: I - nitrogen and phosphorus losses by surface run off in a soil cropped under no tillage

A aplicação de dejeto líquido de suínos em áreas de lavoura e/ou pastagem representa a adição de nutrientes às plantas e também uma alternativa de reciclagem. Contudo, as perdas de nitrogênio e fósforo por escoamento superficial no plantio direto podem diminuir sua eficiência à nutrição de plantas e representar um poluente potencial, comprometendo a qualidade da água no ambiente. Esse trabalho teve por objetivo avaliar a importância do escoamento superficial às perdas de nitrogênio e fósforo aplicados via dejeto líquido de suínos. O trabalho foi conduzido na Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, RS, no período de maio de 2000 a maio de 2002 em Argissolo Vermelho Arênico distrófico. Numa rotação aveia preta/milho/nabo forrageiro, foram estudadas as doses de 0, 20, 40 e 80 m³ ha-1 de dejetos líquidos de suínos, distribuídas a lanço sobre a superfície antes da semeadura de cada espécie da rotação. As concentrações de fósforo disponível e nitrogênio mineral na solução escoada na superfície do solo foram diretamente relacionados com as doses de dejeto aplicadas. As concentrações de nitrogênio e fósforo na solução escoada na superfície do solo, bem como a predominância de amônio ou nitrato, estão diretamente relacionadas ao intervalo entre a aplicação do dejeto e o primeiro escoamento superficial. As perdas de nitrogênio e fósforo por escoamento superficial, expressas em kg ha-1, são pequenas, porém as maiores concentrações observadas nos picos de perdas preocupam com relação à possibilidade de eutroficação de mananciais de água.