#Nitrogen4NetZero- SANH is helping mobilise change on nitrogen management in preparation for COP 26
What is #Nitrogen4NetZero?
#Nitrogen4NetZero is a UK-led initiative that highlights the need for sustainable nitrogen management as part of climate change mitigation and adaptation.
The goals of #Nitrogen4NetZero are to raise awareness on the importance of nitrogen for climate action and to work with governments to prepare their positions related to nitrogen on the pathway to COP-26.
#Nitrogen4NetZero illustrates how action on nitrogen is needed to meet our ambitious global climate goals, while offering multiple benefits across United Nations conventions.
The key message is that Net Zero will be impossible to achieve without action on nitrogen. At the same time, reducing nitrogen pollution offers multiple win-wins across sustainable development for air, water, biodiversity, stratospheric ozone depletion, soils, food and the economy. These issues have been recognized by the UN Environment Assembly ‘Resolution on Sustainable Nitrogen Management’, led by India (UNEP/EA.4/Res.14), and the 'Colombo Declaration' championed by Sri Lanka, which agreed an ambition to halve nitrogen waste from all sources by 2030, offering the potential to save US$100 billion annually.
What is the UKRI GCRF South Asian Nitrogen Hub's Role in #Nitrogen4NetZero?
The UKRI GCRF South Asian Nitrogen Hub has a key role in the #Nitrogen4NetZero campaign through providing both scientific expertise and facilitating regional dialogue on Nitrogen. South Asia has consistantly been a world leading region for action on nitrogen with India leading the UNEP resolution on Sustainable Nitrogen Management and Sri Lanka championing the Colombo Declaration. SANH members were integral to both of these processes and the Hub continues to help mobilise action on nitrogen in the region.
In the lead up to COP 26, the SANH project is helping provide co-ordination assistance to the #Nitrogen4NetZero campaign with managing multiple events in the lead up to the Glasgoiw convention. Our SANH scientists from across both South Asia and the UK are also helping provide fundamental scientific expertise to the events through presentations, meeting chairing, providing scientific evidence and contributing to dialogue with policy-makers. In conjunction with our project partner, the South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme (SACEP), SANH is dedicated to assisting this high level policy engagement to ensure real-world change towards sustainable nitrogen management.
What is the link between climate change and nitrogen management?
Reactive nitrogen appears in many forms. One of them is nitrous oxide (N2O) which is one of several harmful greenhouse gases responsible for human driven climate change. Nitrous oxide - commonly known as laughing gas - has 300 times the warming potential of carbon dioxide (CO2). In addition to the effect to global warming, increasing nitrous oxide emissions from human sources also contribute to thinning of the ozone layer (stratospheric ozone depletion). Controlling nitrous oxide emissions requires a system wide change to the way that humans manage the global nitrogen cycle. Reaching net zero is therefore impossible without managing nitrogen pollution.
Human alteration of the global nitrogen cycle is having multiple adverse impacts on climate, environment, economy and health. Sustainable nitrogen management would not only support climate mitigation and adaptation, but also provide quantifiable co-benefits for air quality, freshwater water quality, coastal zones and stratospheric ozone depletion.
What does the #Nitrogen4NetZero initiative contain?
A series of events is planned to highlight the connection between nitrogen and climate change, bringing together science and policy on the pathway to COP26.
- The initiative is being launched during the Nitrogen for Climate and Green Recovery virtual event hosted by the British High Commission Colombo and the Government of Sri Lanka. The event is supported by the “GCRF South Asian Nitrogen Hub” (SANH), the GEF/UNEP “International Nitrogen Management System” (INMS), and the South Asian Cooperative Environment Programme (SACEP). This event takes place from 27-29 April 2021 and will develop the #Nitrogen4NetZero proposal with the governments of South Asia, preparing the way to widen engagement on the pathway to COP26.
- Follow up events between June and November 2021 to be confirmed
You can register for the April 2021 #Nitrogen4NetZero event here
