Synchronizing nitrogen cycling processes reduces agricultural nitrous oxide and ammonia emissions

Mitigating reactive nitrogen losses is critical for sustainable agriculture. However, predictions of the benefits of substituting synthetic fertilizers with organic amendments remain unreliable, as current approaches treat soil nitrogen processes separately. Here, we introduce a synchrony metric, adapted from community ecology, to quantify the coordination among nitrogen processes. Using 2,235 global paired observations (organic vs. synthetic), we find that the synchrony metric is a superior predictor of nitrous oxide (N₂O) and ammonia (NH₃) emissions compared to individual process. Specifically, synchrony deviations in nitrification and denitrification account for half of global N₂O variability, while synchrony deviations in mineralization and immobilization explain over one-third of NH₃ variability. Projections indicate that leveraging organic substitution could achieve the greatest N₂O reductions in European croplands (-40.7%) and the highest NH₃ mitigation in Africa croplands (-46.1%). This study provides a theoretical foundation for optimizing nitrogen gas loss models through the integration of process synchrony.