The use of fertilizers and pesticides in agriculture contributes to greenhouse gas emissions, particularly through the production and use of synthetic fertilizers and the release of nitrous oxide from fertilizers. Strategies to reduce the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, and promote more sustainable agricultural practices, can help mitigate the impact of agriculture on global warming.

Much of the applied fertilizer runs off into waterways, or gets broken down by microbes in the soil, releasing the potent greenhouse gas nitrous oxide into the atmosphere.