Estimating greenhouse gas emissions from soil following liquid manure applications using a unit response curve method

Quantitative information is critical in policy making related to the roles of agriculture in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. A Unit Response (UR) curve method was developed in this study for modeling GHG emissions from soil after liquid manure applications. The emission sources (soils and liquid manures) are conceptualized as a set of linear cascaded chambers with equal storage-release coefficients, or two sets of cascaded chambers in parallel, each set having equal storage-release coefficients. The model is based on a two-parameter gamma distribution. Three parameters in this model denote the number of cascaded chambers, the storage-release coefficient, and the multiplier (referring to the total net emissions) added to the gamma distribution function. These parameters can be expressed as functions of site-specific background fluxes without applications of manure/fertilizer. The method was assessed with emissions data from five fields in Washington State. The results showed that at the WSU and Lynden sites, the average excess CH4 emissions due to manure applications were 0.39 and 0.17 kg CH4–C ha− 1, respectively; the average excess CO2 emissions were 216.50 and 25.20 kg CO2–C ha− 1, respectively; and the average excess N2O were 0.37 and 0.03 kg N2O–N ha− 1, respectively. The UR method may fill the gaps between field measurements, simple emission factor (EF) method, and complex process-oriented models. This method has the potential to be used for estimating additional GHG emissions due to manure/fertilizer applications.

► A Unit Response (UR) curve method was developed based on gamma distribution.
► UR can be used to model soil GHG emissions after manure/fertilizer applications.
► UR parameters can be expressed as functions of site-specific background fluxes.
► UR may fill the gaps between field measurements, simple EF and complex models.