News
Earth\'s Growing Nitrogen Threat
Cassandra Smith posted on June, 14 2010 at 10:47 am
By Mark Clayton, Staff Writer of The Christian Science Monitor / January 12, 2010
Dennis Lindsay still recalls the day four decades ago when his father, an Iowa farmer, began using nitrogen fertilizer on the family’s 160 acres. With nitrogen, the family’s corn crop suddenly grew much higher and stronger, and produced full ears and big harvests. When fed to their cows and pigs, that high-quality corn produced far more milk and meat. As a result, the family bought more livestock – and the farm grew. “I remember Dad bringing the neighbors over to see how much greener and better the quality of the stalk was,” Mr. Lindsay says. “It was a really big deal then.” It’s an even bigger deal today. Lindsay and his son farm 3,000 acres of corn and soybeans, using about 150 tons of nitrogen fertilizer annually. Farmers from China, Europe, and South America rely on nitrogen, too, to make ends meet and feed a growing world. Yet it’s also becoming clear that too much of a good thing can have a downside for the environment. The world is awash in man-made “reactive” nitrogen (the chemically active form), researchers say. “Nitrogen plays a tremendously important role in feeding the world’s peoples, so that’s a very positive benefit for humanity,” says James Galloway, a professor of environmental science at the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, and a leading nitrogen researcher. “The problem is how to maximize nitrogen’s benefits while diminishing its negatives – especially waste.” In the US as much as 40 percent of reactive nitrogen is wasted – washing off farm fields into rivers, lakes, and the ocean, where oxygen-depleted “dead zones” are growing in number and size worldwide. The most dramatic impacts can be seen in the growth of coastal dead zones where excessive nutrients in the water – fueled by runoff of fertilizers – has suffocated or driven away ocean animals. In the Gulf of Mexico, fish and shrimp have been eliminated in an 8,000-square-mile dead zone at the mouth of the Mississippi River. More than 400 dead zones with a total area of 245,000 square kilometers were identified worldwide last year. This spring, a federal science advisory report is expected to recommend a national goal of improving the efficiency of farm nitrogen fertilizer use by 25 percent, Herz and Galloway say.
The information above comes from an article on The Christian Science Monitor website. To read the full article visit: http://www.csmonitor.com/Environment/Living-Green/2010/0113/Earth-s-growing-nitrogen-threat
As stated in the article, the environment has been suffering from the increased use of nitrogen in agricultural practices. The benefits seen from adding nitrogen to crops are great and the negative effects of the nitrogen can be reduced if the growers use nitrogen in the most efficient manner possible. If the grower can reduce the amount of nitrogen that is leached off of the field they can decrease the amount they apply without losing out on all the benefits. This also reduces the amount of nitrogen entering our rivers, streams, and oceans. Ag Concepts manufactures two products that can help reduce Nitrate Leaching significantly; AgZyme, our micronutrient spray and biological growth catalyst, and Pervaide, our non-ionic soil pentrant. In a five year study done with Arise Research and Discovery, AgZyme reduced Nitrate Leaching by an average of 42.5%. In 2008 Ag Concepts began the same study with Arise Research and Discovery, testing Pervaide. Pervaide reduced Nitrate Leaching by an average of 40.5% over the first two years of the study. AgZyme and Pervaide are both great tools to use to help minimize the negative impact from nitrogen leaching on the environment. Both products offer a wide range of benefits to the soil and plant so take a look at the product’s brochures (available on the website) or talk to your local Ag Concepts Dealer to determine which product would work best for your field. If you have any questions please call Ag Concepts at (208) 388-1131.