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Diffuse source pollution from agricultural fertilizers is more difficult to trace, monitor and control. High nitrate concentrations are found in groundwater and may reach 50 mg/litre (the EU Directive limit). In ditches and river courses, nutrient pollution from fertilizers causes eutrophication. This is worse in winter, after autumn ploughing ...
The extensive use of pesticides in agricultural production can degrade and damage the community of microorganisms living in the soil, particularly when these chemicals are overused or misused as chemical compounds build up in the soil. [68] The full impact of pesticides on soil microorganisms is still not entirely understood; many studies have ...
The negative impact of agriculture is an old issue that remains a concern even as experts design innovative means to reduce destruction and enhance eco-efficiency. [2] Animal agriculture practices tend to be more environmentally destructive than agricultural practices focused on fruits, vegetables and other biomass. The emissions of ammonia ...
Nitrogen fertilizer can be converted by soil bacteria to nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas. [56] Nitrous oxide emissions by humans, most of which are from fertilizer, between 2007 and 2016 have been estimated at 7 million tonnes per year, [ 57 ] which is incompatible with limiting global warming to below 2 °C.
NO 3 − may also be denitrified by bacteria, producing N 2, NO x, and N 2 O. Estimated nitrogen surplus (the difference between inorganic and organic fertilizer application, atmospheric deposition, fixation and uptake by crops) for the year 2005 across Europe. Human impact on the nitrogen cycle is diverse.
As soil health declines, use of synthetic fertilizers on monocultural fields increases, often having negative implications on human health via chemical run-off. [ 8 ] [ 2 ] In addition to soil depletion, monocultures can cause significant reductions in biodiversity due to unavailability of resources, native species displacement, and loss of ...
A study found that grazing in US virgin grasslands causes the soil to have lower soil organic carbon but higher soil nitrogen content. [145] In contrast, at the High Plains Grasslands Research Station in Wyoming , the soil in the grazed pastures had more organic carbon and nitrogen in the top 30 cm than the soil in non-grazed pastures. [ 146 ]
According to a 2024 report: "39% of people living in America—131.2 million people—still live in places with failing grades for unhealthy levels of ozone or particle pollution." Analyzing data from 2020 to 2022, the American Lung Association found the number of people living in counties with a failing grade for ozone declined, this year by 2 ...