Guiding policies for agricultural nitrous oxide emission reduction with behavioral insights and experimentation.

Abstract

Nitrogen fertilizer application causes emissions of nitrous oxide (N₂O), a gas that contributes to global warming. N₂O emission reduction is possible given technological advances. But climate policy for N₂O reduction faces challenges caused by complex information, entangled risks with invisible gains, and polarized values. Behavioral factors influence farmers' decision-making, and here we argue context-dependent experimentation is needed to develop N₂O reduction policies, proposing crop insurance as an example policy.