GCRF South Asian Nitrogen Hub

人类大规模地改变了地球上氮的流动，既有利于粮食生产，也给环境带来了多重威胁。地球上很少有地方比南亚受影响更严重，氮污染水平迅速上升。其结果是一系列相互关联的问题，如农业和化石燃料燃烧造成的氮损失会造成空气和水污染。这损害了人类健康，威胁到森林和河流的生物多样性，并导致沿海和海洋污染，加剧了气候变化的影响，例如使珊瑚礁容易发生珊瑚白化。总之，很明显，氮污染是我们应该非常重视的问题。令人惊奇的是很少有人听说过这个问题。每个人都知道气候变化和碳足迹，但有多少人意识到氮污染同样重要？造成这种情况的一个原因是，科学家和政策制定者传统上是专业化的。不同的专家专注于氮的不同部分，很少有专家能够看到所有问题是如何结合在一起的。这一挑战由英国全球挑战研究基金下建立的一个重要的新研究中心承担。“GCRF南亚氮中心”是一个伙伴关系，汇集了来自英国和南亚的32个主要研究机构和项目参与伙伴。南亚合作环境方案（SACEP）的所有八个国家都包括在内。该中心包括研究如何改善农业中的氮管理，节省肥料费用，更好地利用粪便、尿液和自然固氮过程。它强调了印度、巴基斯坦、孟加拉国、尼泊尔、阿富汗、斯里兰卡、不丹和马尔代夫的更有利可图和更清洁的农业选择。与此同时，该中心考虑如何将氮污染转化为肥料，例如从工厂捕获氮氧化物气体并将其转化为硝酸盐。所有SACEP国家都包括在内，这一点非常重要。这意味着可以分享好的经验教训，以及是否存在文化、经济和环境差异，这些差异阻碍了更好的管理做法的采用。从国际外交的角度来看，这也很重要，并提供了一个例子，表明如何在一个共同的问题上进行合作符合各方的利益。它把重点放在未来的合作上，为了一个更健康的地球，而不是过去。南亚的案例提供了一些令人兴奋的科学、社会、文化和经济研究挑战。首先是让所有的研究人员在一起交谈，相互理解。南亚有几十种语言，这与不同研究学科聚集在一起时遇到的挑战相匹配。这就是围绕氮气开发一种共享语言的真正帮助所在。有很多形式的氮，从不活泼的大气氮（N2），到空气污染物氨（NH3）和二氧化氮（NO2），到污染水道的硝酸盐（NO3-），以及一氧化二氮（N2O），这是一种温室气体。目前正在研究这些因素的影响，以便更好地了解它们是如何相互作用的。其结果是一种旨在提供南亚氮循环更连贯图景的方法：是什么阻碍了我们采取行动，以及我们可以为此做些什么。人们最大的期望之一是氮的经济价值会有所帮助。仅印度每年就花费60亿英镑补贴化肥供应。这意味着南亚各国政府强烈希望更好地利用氮。在这一点上，南亚中心的研究可以为他们从哪里开始提供指导。

Humans have massively altered flows of nitrogen on our planet, leading to both benefits for food production and multiple threats to the environment. There are few places on Earth more affected than South Asia, with levels of nitrogen pollution rapidly increasing. The result is a web of interlinked problems, as nitrogen losses from agriculture and from fossil fuel combustion cause air and water pollution. This damages human health, threatens biodiversity of forests and rivers, and leads to coastal and marine pollution that exacerbates the effects of climate change, such as by predisposing reefs to coral bleaching. Altogether, it is clear that nitrogen pollution is something we should be taking very seriously.The amazing thing is that so few people have heard of the problem. Everyone knows about climate change and carbon footprints, but how many people are aware that nitrogen pollution is just as significant? One reason for this is that scientists and policy makers have traditionally specialised. Different experts have focused on different parts of the nitrogen story, and few have the expertise to see how all the issues fit together.This challenge is taken up by a major new research hub established under the UK Global Challenge Research Fund. The "GCRF South Asian Nitrogen Hub" is a partnership that brings together 32 leading research organisations with project engagement partners from the UK and South Asia. All eight countries of the South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme (SACEP) are included. The hub includes research on how to improve nitrogen management in agriculture, saving money on fertilizers and making better use of manure, urine and natural nitrogen fixation processes. It highlights options for more profitable and cleaner farming for India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and the Maldives. At the same time, the hub considers how nitrogen pollution could be turned back to fertilizer, for example by capturing nitrogen oxide gas from factories and converting it into nitrate.The fact that all the SACEP countries are included is really important. It means that lessons can be shared on good experiences as well as on whether there are cultural, economic and environmental differences that prevent better management practices from being adopted. It is also important from the perspective of international diplomacy, and provides an example to demonstrate how working together on a common problem is in everyone's interest. It puts the focus on future cooperation for a healthier planet, rather than on the past.The South Asian case provides for some exciting scientific, social, cultural and economic research challenges. The first is simply to get all the researchers talking together and understanding each other. There are dozens of languages in South Asia, matching the challenge met when different research disciplines come together. This is where developing a shared language around nitrogen can really help. There are lots of nitrogen forms ranging from unreactive atmospheric nitrogen (N2), to the air pollutants ammonia (NH3) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2), to nitrate (NO3-) which contaminates watercourses, and nitrous oxide (N2O) which is a greenhouse gas. The impacts of each of these are being studied to provide a better understanding of how they all fit together.The result is an approach that aims to give a much more coherent picture of the nitrogen cycle in South Asia: What is stopping us from taking action, and what can be done about it. One of the big expectations is that the economic value of nitrogen will help. India alone spends around £6 billion per year subsidising fertilizer supply. It means that South Asian governments are strongly motivated to use nitrogen better. At which point research from the South Asian hub can provide guidance on where they might start.