Liechtenstein's Sources of N2O Emissions
Key Insights
Early Industrialization and Emission Trends
Liechtenstein's journey through industrialization began in the late 19th century, marking a shift towards increased fossil fuel use. This period saw a modest rise in emissions, primarily from energy and industry, as the country embraced coal for manufacturing. The establishment of a customs union with Switzerland in 1921 further spurred industrial growth, contributing to a gradual increase in emissions.
Post-War Economic Boom and Environmental Legislation
The post-World War II era brought significant economic expansion, leading to heightened energy consumption and emissions. However, the introduction of the Environmental Protection Act in 1990 marked a turning point. This legislation aimed to curb emissions, aligning with global environmental efforts. The act's impact is evident in the stabilization of emissions from agriculture and industry during the subsequent decades.
Commitment to Sustainability and Renewable Energy
Entering the 21st century, Liechtenstein's commitment to international climate agreements, such as the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement, underscored its dedication to reducing emissions. The promotion of renewable energy in 2008 and the Energy Strategy 2020 further propelled the country towards sustainability. These initiatives have contributed to a gradual decline in emissions, particularly from energy and industry, as Liechtenstein strives to achieve its net-zero emissions goal by 2050.
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.