Climate and Air

Klimawandel-Alp_Flix

Agroscope determines the influence of the use of agricultural land and animal husbandry on the exchange of both climate-impacting gases – i.e. carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4) – and reactive trace gases. The effects of climate change and possible adaptation strategies are investigated.

  • As a contribution to the National Greenhouse Gas Inventory, Agroscope calculates the Swiss agricultural sector’s emissions of methane and nitrous oxide, as well as the changes in soil carbon content in the land-use sector.
  • Agroscope quantifies the long-term carbon sink and source potential of agricultural soils as a function of land management and site characteristics. In this context, the influence of land management and climate on the quantity and turnover of organic matter is studied with the aid of experiments and models.  The aim is to identify options for a more-climate-friendly management approach.
  • With the help of models, Agroscope gauges the influence of climate variability and climate change on the productivity and harvest quality of permanent grassland and arable crops as a function of location and use. From this, Agroscope derives measures for dealing with future weather-related risks. In addition, adaptive measures such as irrigation are investigated.

News

Les émissions de protoxyde d’azote des pâturages sont plus faibles que prévu

L’agriculture émet une très grande quantité de protoxyde d’azote, nocif pour le climat. Les chercheuses et chercheurs d’Agroscope ont pu montrer que les vaches au pâturage sont à l’origine de nettement moins de ce gaz qu’on ne le pensait jusqu’ici.

Further Information

umwelt-monitoring

Die Entwicklung eines Umweltrechners für die Schweizer Landwirtschaft

Agroscope und das Institut für Agrarökologie entwickeln einen praxisnahen Umweltrechner, der die Wirkung Schweizer Landwirtschaftsbetriebe auf Klima, Biodiversität und Nachhaltigkeit berechnen kann.

national-climate-observing-system-cover

Agroscope Climate Data Incorporated in the National Inventory

Long-term soil-carbon measurement series round out a detailed MétéoSuisse publication on the main climate-observation parameters in Switzerland.

Emissionstall-Laufflaechen-Schieber-Entmistung

Ammonia Reduction in Cattle Husbandry

In order to meet Agriculture-Related Environmental Objectives (AEO), total emissions of ammonia (NH3) in Switzerland must be reduced by around 40%. Both structural-procedural and organisational methods are necessary for reducing NH3 emissions from cattle-housing systems.