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rdinary people and political leaders must know the sources of greenhouse gas emissions and their effect on global climate change before they have ability to make decisions to reduce emissions and increase sinks of these gases. These people must, however, understand where greenhouse gas emissions are formed and how reductions can be made: they must understand where carbon dioxide sinks are and how to preserve or increase these sinks. North Savo is the example used in this work to describe the present emissions and sinks. There are proposals on what should and could be done to reduce greenhouse gas emissions caused by traffic, heating, forests and agriculture. There are possibilities of reducing emissions of greenhouse gases in traffic and heating in spite of the fact that the province has a low population density with long distances between homes and workplaces and schools, and a cold climate. We believe that research will also find solutions for reducing greenhouse gases and protecting waters, which are used for recreational purposes and for raw water of drinking water in many places. Luckily forests cover large areas of North Savo and their growth is an important carbon dioxide sink. In addition, forest soils serve as a valuable storage of carbon. Besides carbon dioxide emissions, emissions of nitrous oxide and methane must also be considered since they are more potent greenhouse gases than carbon dioxide and land use can thus influence these gas emissions.

Degradation and leaching of 14C-labelled simazine in coarse sandy soils at 15 + 1°C were investigated using radiometric and mass-spectrometric methods. During 6 months incubation approx. 4–7% of the applied 14C-simazine was evolved as 14CO2. 4–9% of the simazine still remained in the soil. Addition of hen manure or acidification by addition of peat did not clearly influence the rate of degradation of simazine, whereas mechanical treatment significantly increased its degradation. In a nitrogen atmosphere the rate of degradation of simazine was reduced. 9–15% of the simazine or its radioactive metabolites leached through a 33 cm sandy moraine soil column (diameter 6 cm) in ca. 1770 mm of precipitation over a 4 month period, and 2% was leached from a fine sand soil under the same conditions.

Numbers of faecal microbes (faecal coliforms, enterococci, sulphite-reducing clostridia and coliphages) were determined in run-off waters from cattle farms in 1998-2005. Water samples were collected from drain wells and open ditches adjacent to exercise yards and forested feedlots for cattle, a grass field with slurry applications and a pasture with buffer strips. The indicator numbers were the highest in run-off waters from asphalt exercise yards while the figures were even 100-fold smaller in waters from a bark covered yard. In the forested feedlots, where cattle were fed for the winter months or all the year round, the indicator numbers were as high as the ones in a grass field with slurry applications or a pasture. There was a severe risk of transporting pathogens to the environment, especially if run-off water from exercise yards and feedlots are only poor purifed and allowed to flow into ditches and watercourses. The existence of buffer strips between fields and watercourses may reduce the numbers of faecal microbes in surface run-off.

The yield of carrots by horse manure was 66 % higher than the yield with artificial fertilizer. The yields of other plants fertilized with composted horse manure or artificial fertilizer were equal. The yields of plants fertilized with cattle manure were clearly lesser. The taste of lettuces fertilized with artificial fertilizer was assessed to be the sweetest and the cattle manure fertilization the less sweet. Potato fertilized with horse manure was assessed significantly tenderer at structure than with other fertilizers. Triangle tests showed no significant differences in tastes of other vegetables between fertilizations. Hygienic quality of vegetables fertilized with horse manure or artificial fertilizer was excellent. Small amounts of faecal microbes were found in the vegetables fertilized with cattle manure. Amounts of nitrate in cucumbers and lettuces were relatively high when fertilized with artificial fertilizer. The amounts of nitrate were low in all the other vegetables, and very low and equal when fertilized with horse or cattle manure.

Two exercise yards have been designed, constructed and monitored. Samples from the runoff water have been taken regularly, and their nutrient concentrations(nitrogen, phosphor), total solids, pH, total chemical oxygen demand and hygienic quality have been analysed. The behaviour of animals has been observed.