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Indicator Specification
This indicator boasts several main advantages.
The indicator estimates the potential surplus (or deficit) of nitrogen in agricultural land. It calculates the balance between nitrogen added to an agricultural system and nitrogen removed from the system annually in kilograms of nitrogen per hectare of utilised agricultural area. The input side of the balance counts mineral fertiliser application and manure excretion as well as atmospheric deposition, biological fixation and biosolids (compost, sludge and sewage) input. The output side of the balance represents the removal from grassland (grazing and mowing) and the net crop uptake (removal) from arable land. The gross nitrogen balance takes an 'extended soil' surface (or 'land' surface) as the system boundary, meaning that it also includes nitrogen losses from animal housing and manure management (e.g. storage) systems.
The data used are partly based on expert estimates of various physical parameters for the individual countries as a whole. There may also be large regional variations within a country so national figures should be interpreted with care.
To assess the trend in the development of the nitrogen balance, it is necessary to draw on average values over several years, as factors such as extreme weather conditions may influence the annual nitrogen surplus. In this case, 2000-2003, and 2011-2014 were taken as reference periods.
The units used in this indicator are kilograms per hectare of utilised agricultural area.
High nitrogen inputs and losses generally coincide with high phosphorous and pesticide inputs and losses. The nitrogen balance is related to nutrient leaching risks: high nitrogen inputs and imbalances normally lead to high pressure on biodiversity within and outside the farmed environment.
Agriculture is intensifying in many places, causing increasing pressure on biodiversity. Increasing nitrogen availability favours a few nitrophilous species and suppresses many other, rarer species. The 'nitrogen balance' includes nitrogen input (fertilising, nitrogen fixation and nitrogen deposition among other things) and nitrogen output (denitrification and the emission of ammonia among other things) and thus reflects a major part of the nitrogen cycle and the impact of farm management on the hydrosphere and atmosphere. Nitrogen input (fertilising and nitrogen fixation) more directly affects the level of biodiversity in fields and grasslands.
The sustainable management of agricultural ecosystems would minimise the negative effects from excess nitrogen through management of the nitrogen-balance.
2020 EU Biodiversity Targets - target 3a: By 2020, maximise areas under agriculture across grasslands, arable land and permanent crops that are covered by biodiversity-related measures under the CAP so as to ensure the conservation of biodiversity and to bring about a measurable improvement in the conservation status of species and habitats that depend on or are affected by agriculture and in the provision of ecosystem services as compared tothe EU2010 Baseline, thus contributing to enhance sustainable management.
The methodology for calculating the nitrogen balances is described in the Eurostat/OECD Nutrient Budgets Handbook .
The inputs to the nitrogen balance are:
The outputs of the gross nitrogen balance are:
No gap filling was used for this indicator.
No methodology references available.
No uncertainty has been specified.
No uncertainty has been specified.
This indicator has several main disadvantages:
Work specified here requires to be completed within 1 year from now.
Work specified here will require more than 1 year (from now) to be completed.
For references, please go to https://www.eea.europa.eu/data-and-maps/indicators/agriculture-nitrogen-balance-1 or scan the QR code.
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