Anthropogenic and natural methane fluxes in Switzerland synthesized within a spatially explicit inventory
We present the first high-resolution (500 m × 500 m) gridded methane (CH<sub>4</sub>) emission inventory for Switzerland, which integrates 90 % of the national emission totals reported to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and recent CH<sub>...
Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
---|---|
Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Copernicus Publications
2014-04-01
|
Series: | Biogeosciences |
Online Access: | http://www.biogeosciences.net/11/1941/2014/bg-11-1941-2014.pdf |
Summary: | We present the first
high-resolution (500 m × 500 m) gridded methane
(CH<sub>4</sub>) emission inventory for Switzerland, which integrates 90 % of
the national emission totals reported to the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and recent CH<sub>4</sub> flux studies
conducted by research groups across Switzerland. In addition to anthropogenic
emissions, we also include natural and semi-natural CH<sub>4</sub> fluxes, i.e.,
emissions from lakes and reservoirs, wetlands, wild animals as well as uptake
by forest soils. National CH<sub>4</sub> emissions were disaggregated using
detailed geostatistical information on source locations and their spatial
extent and process- or area-specific emission factors. In Switzerland, the
highest CH<sub>4</sub> emissions in 2011 originated from the agricultural sector
(150 Gg CH<sub>4</sub> yr<sup>−1</sup>), mainly produced by ruminants
and manure management, followed by emissions from waste management
(15 Gg CH<sub>4</sub> yr<sup>−1</sup>) mainly from landfills and the
energy sector (12 Gg CH<sub>4</sub> yr<sup>−1</sup>), which was
dominated by emissions from natural gas distribution. Compared with the
anthropogenic sources, emissions from natural and semi-natural sources were
relatively small (6 Gg CH<sub>4</sub> yr<sup>−1</sup>), making up only
3% of the total emissions in Switzerland. CH<sub>4</sub> fluxes from
agricultural soils were estimated to be not significantly different from zero
(between −1.5 and 0 Gg CH<sub>4</sub> yr<sup>−1</sup>), while forest
soils are a CH<sub>4</sub> sink (approx.
−2.8 Gg CH<sub>4</sub> yr<sup>−1</sup>), partially offsetting other
natural emissions. Estimates of uncertainties are provided for the different
sources, including an estimate of spatial disaggregation errors deduced from
a comparison with a global (EDGAR v4.2) and an European (TNO/MACC) CH<sub>4</sub>
inventory. This new spatially explicit emission inventory for Switzerland
will provide valuable input for regional-scale atmospheric modeling and
inverse source estimation. |
---|---|
ISSN: | 1726-4170 1726-4189 |