Food Nitrogen Footprint Increased by 35% on the Third Pole During 1998-2018

The N footprint is considered as an indicator of potential environmental damage from N. Quantitative analysis of N footprint distribution, sources and drivers can help mitigate its negative impacts and promote sustainable N management. In this study, we constructed a city-scale food N footprint (FNF) framework for the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) using a N mass balance approach. We quantitatively analyzed the FNF during food production and consumption on the QTP from 1998 to 2018. We used the logarithmic mean Divisa index decomposition method to analyze the driving forces of the FNF, and the decoupling of the FNF. The results showed that the per capita FNF of the QTP increased from 24.92 kg N cap(-1) in 1998 to 27.70 kg N cap(-1) in 2018, and the total FNF increased by 35.11% from 1998 to 2018. The spatial distribution of the FNF was uneven, with N losses from crop production and animal production being the leading contributing source to the FNF (86%). Economic development and urbanization were the main driving forces behind the FNF increase, while N consumption intensity inhibited the growth of the FNF. With the rapid growth of GDP, the FNF in the eastern part of the QTP grew relatively slowly, indicating a gradual decoupling of the FNF from economic development. To reconcile the relationship between socioeconomic drivers and the FNF, it is necessary to focus on coupling relationships between subsystems within the food production and consumption system to promote N recycling.

Automated summary

This study constructed a city-scale food nitrogen footprint (FNF) framework for the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) and quantitatively analyzed the FNF during food production and consumption from 1998 to 2018. The results showed that the per capita FNF of the QTP increased from 24.92 kg N cap(-1) in 1998 to 27.70 kg N cap(-1) in 2018, and the total FNF increased by 35.11% during the same time period. The main contributing sources to the FNF were N losses from crop production and animal production, and the main drivers behind the FNF increase were economic development and urbanization.