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The Latvian agriculture has achieved remarkable progress with regard to crop production over the past decade, which has resulted in constantly growing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agriculture. Currently, the agricultural sector is the second largest source of GHG emissions, accounting for 21.5% of the total GHG emissions in the country, and the key source of GHG emissions is direct nitrous oxide emissions from soil, which are largely the result of nitrogen applied. Such trends indicate that without additional measures Latvia cannot reach its GHG emission targets set internationally. In this paper, authors aim to select measures that have potential to reduce the GHG emissions from the Latvia's crop production sector by using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) approach. Within the hierarchical structure of decision-making process, four factor groups affecting implementation of measures were evaluated: economic, social, environmental and technological factors. The study results indicated that the potential to reduce emissions from crop production sector is limited by technology as technological factors play the most important role in the process of implementation of GHG emission-reducing measures. Study results showed that reduction of direct N2O emissions can be achieved through several alternatives from which, according to experts' rating, the most important is such GHG emission reducing measures that promote accurate management of nitrogen circulation and introduction of an organic management system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The agricultural sector has shown a stable and steady growth in Latvia, and the year 2015 was the most successful for Latvian grain growers. The largest grain harvest was collected that year. Nitrogen (N), phosphorous (P) and potassium (K) fertilizers are an essential factor that determines the quantity and quality of the crops harvested. However, over-fertilization can lead to negative economic and environmental consequences such as high production costs, depletion of energy resources and increased greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Emissions from agricultural soils contributed to the major share of the total emissions from the sector - 53.7 %. N (pure nitrogen content) fertilizer application management is essential in improving the mentioned indicators. Traditionally, N fertilizers have been applied uniformly across the entire field while ignoring inherent spatial variation in the crop N needs within the crop fields. This results in either too little or too much application of N in various parts of the fields. Too little N reduces the yields, while too much N reduces the nitrogen use efficiency (NUE). The aim of the research study is to examine the opportunities to reduce direct N2O emissions from N (nitrogen content) fertiliser application in crop farming using the constant and variable N fertiliser spreading technologies. In the present research study, the authors have carried out an N fertilizer efficiency assessment to understand the evolution of cereal production in Latvia by using precision farming experimental data. Suitable qualitative and quantitative research methods were applied in the research. The research found that the use of the variable N fertiliser spreading technology led to a decrease in the consumption of N (pure nitrogen) fertilisers, as the average fertiliser application rate in the case of variable fertiliser spreading decreased by 10 kg.ha-1, which, in its turn, reduced CO2 emissions by 46.8 kg.ha-1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]