Reply to Wassmann et al.: More data at high sampling intensity from medium- and intense-intermittently flooded rice farms is crucial

Here, we briefly respond to critique of our study (1) by Wassmann et al. (2). A detailed response to their letter is available online (edf.org/riceN2O). It is not necessary to compare intermittently flooded farms with continuously flooded farms serving as controls to understand the impacts of multiple aeration events on soil redox conditions and resulting rice-N2O. Wassmann et al. (2) define alternate wetting and drying (AWD) as a mitigation strategy, whereas we consider AWD as intermittent flooding that includes alternating dry and wet periods regardless of the cause (active drainage and/or percolation). Our study was conducted in farmers’ fields which, as stated previously (1, 3), often means that … [↵][1]1To whom correspondence should be addressed. Email: kritee{at}edf.org. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1