The North American Greenhouse Gas Budget : Emissions, Removals, and Integration for CO2, CH4, and N2O (2010–2019): Results From the Second REgional Carbon Cycle Assessment and Processes Study (RECCAP2)
(2025) In Global Biogeochemical Cycles 39(4).- Abstract
Accurate accounting of greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions and removals is central to tracking progress toward climate mitigation and for monitoring potential climate-change feedbacks. GHG budgeting and reporting can follow either the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change methodologies for National Greenhouse Gas Inventory (NGHGI) reporting or use atmospheric-based “top-down” (TD) inversions or process-based “bottom-up” (BU) approaches. To help understand and reconcile these approaches, the Second REgional Carbon Cycle Assessment and Processes study (RECCAP2) was established to quantify GHG emissions and removals for carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), for ten-land and five-ocean... (More)
Accurate accounting of greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions and removals is central to tracking progress toward climate mitigation and for monitoring potential climate-change feedbacks. GHG budgeting and reporting can follow either the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change methodologies for National Greenhouse Gas Inventory (NGHGI) reporting or use atmospheric-based “top-down” (TD) inversions or process-based “bottom-up” (BU) approaches. To help understand and reconcile these approaches, the Second REgional Carbon Cycle Assessment and Processes study (RECCAP2) was established to quantify GHG emissions and removals for carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), for ten-land and five-ocean regions for 2010–2019. Here, we present the results for the North American land region (Canada, the United States, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean). For 2010–2019, the NGHGI reported total net-GHG emissions of 7,270 TgCO2-eq yr−1 compared to TD estimates of 6,132 ± 1,846 TgCO2-eq yr−1 and BU estimates of 9,060 ± 898 TgCO2-eq yr−1. Reconciling differences between the NGHGI, TD and BU approaches depended on (a) accounting for lateral fluxes of CO2 along the land-ocean-aquatic continuum (LOAC) and trade, (b) correcting land-use CO2 emissions for the loss-of-additional-sink capacity (LASC), (c) avoiding double counting of inland water CH4 emissions, and (d) adjusting area estimates to match the NGHGI definition of the managed-land proxy. Uncertainties remain from inland-water CO2 evasion, the conversion of nitrogen fertilizers to N2O, and from less-frequent NGHGI reporting from non-Annex-1 countries. The RECCAP2 framework plays a key role in reconciling independent GHG-reporting methodologies to support policy commitments while providing insights into biogeochemical processes and responses to climate change.
(Less)
- author
- Poulter, Benjamin
; Murray-Tortarolo, Guillermo
; Hayes, Daniel J.
; Ciais, Philippe
; Andrew, Robbie M.
; Bastos, Ana
; Byrne, Brendan
; Butman, David
; Canadell, Josep G.
; Chatterjee, Abhishek
; Domke, Grant
; Feldman, Andrew
; Foster, Kelsey
; Hunka, Neha
; Jackson, Robert B.
; Kurz, Werner A.
; Lindquist, Ayia
; Liu, Maodian
; Luijkx, Ingrid
; Mialon, Arnaud
; Michalak, Anna M.
; Miller, John
; Obermeier, Wolfgang A.
; Pan, Naiqin
; Randerson, James T.
; Raymond, Peter A.
; Regnier, Pierre
; Resplandy, Laure
; Rocher-Ros, Gerard
; Rodriquez-Fernandez, Nemesio
; Rosentreter, Judith
; Salazar-Neira, Julio César
; Tank, Suzanne E.
; Tian, Hanqin
; Vargas, Rodrigo
; Villalobos, Yohanna
LU
; Wang, Jonathan A.
; Wei, Xinyuan
; Wickland, Kimberly P.
; Williams, Christopher
; Windham-Myers, Lisamarie
; Woodall, Christopher
; Ying, Qing
and Zhang, Zhen
(Less) - organization
- publishing date
- 2025-04
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- agriculture, forestry and other land use (AFOLU), bottom-up, carbon dioxide, land ocean aquatic continuum (LOAC), lateral fluxes, methane, nitrous oxide, top-down
- in
- Global Biogeochemical Cycles
- volume
- 39
- issue
- 4
- article number
- e2024GB008310
- publisher
- Wiley-Blackwell
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:105002083122
- ISSN
- 0886-6236
- DOI
- 10.1029/2024GB008310
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 4550f5ae-24a4-48de-87f9-37eb5fc8b8f3
- date added to LUP
- 2025-08-19 09:41:25
- date last changed
- 2025-10-14 15:11:31
@article{4550f5ae-24a4-48de-87f9-37eb5fc8b8f3,
abstract = {{<p>Accurate accounting of greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions and removals is central to tracking progress toward climate mitigation and for monitoring potential climate-change feedbacks. GHG budgeting and reporting can follow either the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change methodologies for National Greenhouse Gas Inventory (NGHGI) reporting or use atmospheric-based “top-down” (TD) inversions or process-based “bottom-up” (BU) approaches. To help understand and reconcile these approaches, the Second REgional Carbon Cycle Assessment and Processes study (RECCAP2) was established to quantify GHG emissions and removals for carbon dioxide (CO<sub>2</sub>), methane (CH<sub>4</sub>) and nitrous oxide (N<sub>2</sub>O), for ten-land and five-ocean regions for 2010–2019. Here, we present the results for the North American land region (Canada, the United States, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean). For 2010–2019, the NGHGI reported total net-GHG emissions of 7,270 TgCO<sub>2</sub>-eq yr<sup>−1</sup> compared to TD estimates of 6,132 ± 1,846 TgCO<sub>2</sub>-eq yr<sup>−1</sup> and BU estimates of 9,060 ± 898 TgCO<sub>2</sub>-eq yr<sup>−1</sup>. Reconciling differences between the NGHGI, TD and BU approaches depended on (a) accounting for lateral fluxes of CO<sub>2</sub> along the land-ocean-aquatic continuum (LOAC) and trade, (b) correcting land-use CO<sub>2</sub> emissions for the loss-of-additional-sink capacity (LASC), (c) avoiding double counting of inland water CH<sub>4</sub> emissions, and (d) adjusting area estimates to match the NGHGI definition of the managed-land proxy. Uncertainties remain from inland-water CO<sub>2</sub> evasion, the conversion of nitrogen fertilizers to N<sub>2</sub>O, and from less-frequent NGHGI reporting from non-Annex-1 countries. The RECCAP2 framework plays a key role in reconciling independent GHG-reporting methodologies to support policy commitments while providing insights into biogeochemical processes and responses to climate change.</p>}},
author = {{Poulter, Benjamin and Murray-Tortarolo, Guillermo and Hayes, Daniel J. and Ciais, Philippe and Andrew, Robbie M. and Bastos, Ana and Byrne, Brendan and Butman, David and Canadell, Josep G. and Chatterjee, Abhishek and Domke, Grant and Feldman, Andrew and Foster, Kelsey and Hunka, Neha and Jackson, Robert B. and Kurz, Werner A. and Lindquist, Ayia and Liu, Maodian and Luijkx, Ingrid and Mialon, Arnaud and Michalak, Anna M. and Miller, John and Obermeier, Wolfgang A. and Pan, Naiqin and Randerson, James T. and Raymond, Peter A. and Regnier, Pierre and Resplandy, Laure and Rocher-Ros, Gerard and Rodriquez-Fernandez, Nemesio and Rosentreter, Judith and Salazar-Neira, Julio César and Tank, Suzanne E. and Tian, Hanqin and Vargas, Rodrigo and Villalobos, Yohanna and Wang, Jonathan A. and Wei, Xinyuan and Wickland, Kimberly P. and Williams, Christopher and Windham-Myers, Lisamarie and Woodall, Christopher and Ying, Qing and Zhang, Zhen}},
issn = {{0886-6236}},
keywords = {{agriculture, forestry and other land use (AFOLU); bottom-up; carbon dioxide; land ocean aquatic continuum (LOAC); lateral fluxes; methane; nitrous oxide; top-down}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{4}},
publisher = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
series = {{Global Biogeochemical Cycles}},
title = {{The North American Greenhouse Gas Budget : Emissions, Removals, and Integration for CO<sub>2</sub>, CH<sub>4</sub>, and N<sub>2</sub>O (2010–2019): Results From the Second REgional Carbon Cycle Assessment and Processes Study (RECCAP2)}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2024GB008310}},
doi = {{10.1029/2024GB008310}},
volume = {{39}},
year = {{2025}},
}