Greenhouse gas and reactive N-gas emissions from a horse paddock – relationship to physicochemical properties of soil

Abstract

The horse industry today in Europe is an increasing leisure or sporting activity. Due to considerable input of nutrients
via dung and urine, horse paddocks can be significant sources of greenhouse gases (GHG) and reactive nitrogen (N)-gases. However, horse paddocks have not been studied intensively in contrast to e.g., dairy cow pastures. Here we report GHG emissions from one selected horse paddock in Eastern Finland. During the first year, GHG emissions from the site and surrounding grassland area were measured with closed static chamber method. In the following year soil samples were taken from the sites to study GHG emission and reactive N-gas (nitrous acid and nitric oxide) emissions in the laboratory. The paddock area emitted significant amounts of N-gases and methane compared with surrounding areas during wet season. N-gas emissions also increased with increasing soil mineral N concentration. We conclude that horse paddocks can be significant but local sources of greenhouse gases and wet soil conditions should be avoided to mitigate the emissions.