home
> News
> New study tracks nitrogen footprint of products made for export
New study tracks nitrogen footprint of products made for export
January 26, 2016
New study tracks nitrogen footprint of products made for export
Carbon Brief
Tuesday 26 January 2016
Just four countries – the US, China, India and Brazil – are responsible for almost half of the world’s total nitrogen pollution, a new study finds.
The new research maps the nitrogen ‘footprint’ of 188 countries, and finds that around a quarter of emissions come from making products that are then traded internationally.
As most of this trade takes products from poorer countries to richer ones, nitrogen pollution in developing nations is being driven by demand for food and clothing products in developed countries, the researchers say.
Nitrogen footprint
Nitrogen pollution comes in various different forms. Some of the main sources are from burning fossil fuels in cars and power stations (nitrogen oxides), processing of textiles for clothing (nitrous oxide), rearing livestock and using fertilisers (nitrous oxide and ammonia), and water run-off from industry and farming taking nitrogen into water supplies.
Read more at Eco-Business.
category : Topics
