What is ISO 20951 - Greenhouse gases and ammonia in soil quality about?
ISO 20951 discusses soil quality with a focus on methods for measuring greenhouse gases (GHG) (CO2, N2O, CH4) and ammonia (NH3) fluxes between soils and the atmosphere.
ISO 20951 gives an overview and provides guidance on the main methods available to quantify the exchanges of greenhouse gases (CO2, N2O, CH4) and ammonia (NH3) between soils and the atmosphere.
ISO 20951 gives technical specifications such as terms, definitions, methods for measuring GHGs and ammonia fluxes between soil and the atmosphere, concentration measurements and air sampling, selection of the appropriate methods, minimum requirement for reporting to verify the soil quality.
Who is ISO 20951 - Greenhouse gases and ammonia in soil quality for?
ISO 20951 on GHG and ammonia in soil quality are useful for:
- Industries emitting GHGs
- Climate regulatory authorities/emission monitoring bodies
- Environment protection authorities
- Government authorities
- Soil testing laboratories
Why should you use ISO 20951 - Greenhouse gases and ammonia in soil quality?
GHG emissions from soils have become a major environmental concern. Global and national emission inventories have identified soils, in particular agricultural soils, as being a major contributor to these emissions, in particular nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4), and carbon dioxide (CO2) related to loss of soil organic matter.
Agricultural soils are also major emitters of ammonia (NH3), which is a precursor of N2O. Changes in soil management should take account of these emissions as part of efforts to mitigate climate change.
ISO 20951 provides guidance on the main methods available to quantify the exchanges of greenhouse gases (CO2, N2O, CH4) and ammonia (NH3) between soils and the atmosphere. ISO 20951 is intended to help users to select the measurement method or methods most suited to their purposes by setting out information on the application domain and the main advantages and limitations of each method.