Abstract
Potential activity of soil and sediment samples along a watershed is determined for the reduction of nitrous oxide (N2O), which is a doubly important trace gas controlling the energy budget of the troposphere and the ozone level in the stratosphere.15N tracer technique is applied for the determination of the potential activity using labelled N2O. Most of the soil and sediment samples have been proved to have large potential activity for reduction of N2O. The potential activity is highest for the river and bay subsurface sediment at the coast, where anaerobic micro site predominates. The present results indicate that the nitrate reduction system of soil and sediment, especially in coastal area is an important process in consuming N2O.
