Residue management leading to higher field-scale N2O flux is associated with different soil bacterial nitrifier and denitrifier gene community structures

This study investigated the effects of crop residue removal on nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from farm fields, along with the presence of nitrifying/denitrifying genes in the soil over 7 months. Removing corn residue increased N2O emissions, reduced levels of dissolved organic carbon and ammonium in the soil, and increased levels of soil nitrate. Some bacterial communities were correlated with N2O emissions.