## 2.22.7. Losses of Nitrogen Due to Fire[¶](#losses-of-nitrogen-due-to-fire "Permalink to this headline")
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The final pathway for nitrogen loss is through combustion, also known as pyrodenitrification. Detailed equations are provided, together with the effects of fire on the carbon budget, in Chapter [2.24](https://escomp.github.io/ctsm-docs/versions/master/html/tech_note/Fire/CLM50_Tech_Note_Fire.html#rst-fire). It is assumed in CLM-CN that losses of N due to fire are restricted to vegetation and litter pools (including coarse woody debris). Loss rates of N are determined by the fraction of biomass lost to combustion, assuming that most of the nitrogen in the burned biomass is lost to the atmosphere ([Schlesinger, 1997](https://escomp.github.io/ctsm-docs/versions/master/html/tech_note/References/CLM50_Tech_Note_References.html#schlesinger1997); [Smith et al. 2005](https://escomp.github.io/ctsm-docs/versions/master/html/tech_note/References/CLM50_Tech_Note_References.html#smithetal2005)). It is assumed that soil organic matter pools of carbon and nitrogen are not directly affected by fire ([Neff et al. 2005](https://escomp.github.io/ctsm-docs/versions/master/html/tech_note/References/CLM50_Tech_Note_References.html#neffetal2005)).
