Colombia's Sources of N2O Emissions
Key Insights
Agricultural Dominance in Emissions
Colombia's N2O emissions have been predominantly driven by agriculture, which has consistently been the largest contributor over the decades. The decadal data reveals a steady increase in emissions from this sector, with significant growth observed in the mid-20th century. This trend aligns with the expansion of coffee cultivation in the 1940s, which likely contributed to increased emissions due to land-use changes and deforestation. The agricultural sector's dominance is evident, as it consistently accounts for a substantial portion of the country's total N2O emissions.
Energy and Industrial Contributions
While agriculture remains the primary source, emissions from the energy and industrial sectors have also shown notable increases. The discovery of the Barrancabermeja oil field in 1921 marked the beginning of Colombia's oil industry, contributing to a gradual rise in emissions from energy-related activities. The industrial sector, although smaller in comparison, saw a significant increase in emissions during the mid-20th century, coinciding with the country's industrialization efforts. These sectors, while not as dominant as agriculture, have played a crucial role in the overall emissions profile.
Recent Trends and Policy Impacts
In recent years, Colombia has made strides in addressing its emissions through policy measures and renewable energy projects. The implementation of a national carbon tax in 2019 and the expansion of renewable energy projects in 2021 have likely contributed to a reduction in emissions from fossil fuel combustion. However, challenges remain, as deforestation in the Amazon region continues to pose a significant threat to the country's emissions reduction efforts. The ongoing balance between economic development and environmental sustainability will be crucial in shaping Colombia's future emissions trajectory.
Background
The chart shows a national breakdown by source of the yearly nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from human activities and processes, expressed as weight in megatonnes (Mt). Human-induced emissions are the main driver of the increasing atmospheric nitrous oxide that is warming our planet. The sources of human nitrous oxide emissions are
- Agriculture
- Energy
- Industry
- Waste
- Other
Agriculture
Emissions related to agriculture are mainly from the use of synthetic fertilizers and manure management.
Synthetic fertilizer, used for agricultural processes, contains a lot of nitrogen. That nitrogen in the soil reacts and causes considerable N2O emissions. The use of excess fertilizer, meaning more fertilizer than the plants can use to grow, causes even higher relative emissions. Applying the right amount of fertilizer at the right time can reduce N2O emissions. There are many technical solutions to reduce emissions while keeping, or even increasing, agricultural yields.
When manure is left on the field or otherwise managed in dry processes, it emits considerable amounts of nitrous oxide. Manure can be managed by wet processes, which reduces nitrous oxide emissions but increases methane emissions. Some technical solutions focus on modifying the animal feed to reduce the nitrogen in the manure, thereby reducing nitrous oxide emissions.
Energy, Industry, Waste, and Other
All non-agricultural categories together have much lower emissions than agricultural emissions alone.
N2O emissions related to energy are almost all from the combustion of fossil fuels. For example, the combustion of fossil fuels in power plants, cars, and airplanes not only causes CO2 emissions but also emits nitrous oxide (N2O). Any advances to reducing fossil fuel dependency will thus also reduce nitrous oxide emissions.
Most industry-related emissions are from the chemical industry for producing fertilizer, nylon, and similar products. Technologies are available to reduce emissions in these processes.
Nitrous oxide emissions from waste come from, for example, wastewater treatment and landfills.
Wikipedia: Nitrous oxideIPCC: AR6, 5.16 Anthropogenic nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions
Units and Measures
N2O emissions are expressed in the total weight in megatonnes per year. 1 Megatonne is equal to 1 million tonnes.
Wikipedia: MegatonneWikipedia: Global warming potential
About the Data
The last available year in all the emission datasets is 2023. N2O emissions come from the PRIMAP-Hist dataset. It is a rich dataset that combines several published sources to create a historical emissions time series for various greenhouse gases.
The Key Insights paragraph was generated using a large language model (LLM) using a structured approach to improve the accuracy. This included separating the context generation from the interpretation and narrative.
Data Sources
PRIMAP-hist The PRIMAP-hist national historical emissions time series (1750-2023)
Update cycle: Every few monthsDelay: Less than 1 yearCredits: Gütschow, Johannes; Busch, Daniel; Pflüger, Mika (2024): The PRIMAP-hist national historical emissions time series (1750-2023) v2.6. Zenodo.