Nitrous oxide

• He begins to feel a pleasurable sensation “particularly in the chest and extremities” before dancing around and then collapsing in a heap.
• A few minutes later he comes to and is consumed by a fit of giggles.
• The year is 1799 and Davy has just discovered the euphoric effects of nitrous oxide (N₂O), which he names “laughing gas”.
• Word soon spread through high society and laughing gas parties became all the rage.

No laughing matter

• Despite these low concentrations, N₂O’s potency means it still has a significant effect on the climate.
• N₂O is now the main threat to the ozone layer since CFC chemicals were banned in the 1980s.
• Whippits are a relatively minor source of human emissions of nitrous oxide, the vast majority (some 70%) comes from agriculture.

The solution

• Applying more sparing amounts of fertilisers at the right part of the growing season means more fertilisers being taken up by plants.
• As a result less fertiliser is left in the soil where it runs off into water ways and breaks down into N₂O.
• Meanwhile, in clinical settings, huge amounts of N₂O are released through leaky valves, expired stock and theft for recreational use.

• The Pivot Bio N-OVATOR™ program is designed to unite growers, who are reducing their on-farm emissions by using Pivot Bio’s microbial nitrogen, with the corporations striving to decrease their Scope 3 emissions to reach net-zero.
• In a 2022 N-OVATOR™ pilot, a subset of Pivot Bio’s customers documented the unprecedented replacement of synthetic fertilizer with a new nitrogen source, Pivot Bio PROVEN® 40.
• Pilot participants signed affidavits verifying synthetic nitrogen was replaced on 725,000 acres, resulting in the avoidance of more than 80,000 MT of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e)1.
• As we innovate and drive scale in the years ahead, we’ll rapidly accelerate these reductions,” said Karsten Temme, CEO of Pivot Bio.

• On Thursday, MEPs adopted their position on revising the EU’s legislative framework on fluorinated gases (F-gases) emissions with 426 votes in favour, 109 against and 52 abstentions.
• This target would align the updated rules with the EU’s 2050 climate neutrality goal.
• They are covered by the Paris Agreement together with CO2, methane and nitrous oxide and account for around 2,5% of EU’s GHG emissions.
• Additional reduction of F-gases emissions is needed to contribute to EU climate objectives and comply with the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer.

• MiQ certification to cover all GHGs from LNG supply chain including methane, carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide
  LONDON and NEW YORK, March 21, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- MiQ , the global non-profit leader in methane emissions certification, today launched the world's first certification program that enables a complete assessment of all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the liquified natural gas (LNG) supply chain.
• Until now, importers haven't had a transparent or credible way to quantify the level of emissions from purchases, despite rocketing global demand for LNG.
• "We are witnessing a significant spike in demand for LNG, especially in Europe and Asia, elevating concerns about the lack of transparency on emissions," said Georges Tijbosch, CEO of MiQ.
• "Our comprehensive GHG framework signifies significant progress toward reducing unnecessary upstream and Scope 1 and 2 LNG emissions to near zero, as we transition to a renewable energy future."