Nitrogen Pollution

Today in class I thought it was interesting to hear that nitrogen is a pollutant and that its effects are as much of a problem as other well known pollutants like carbon dioxide. While nitrogen is a common naturally ocurring element, with nearly 80% of the atmosphere consisting of it and its availability in soil allowing plant growth, too much of it can have a negative impact. One source of excess nitrogen is the burning of fossil fuels, which causes it to be released into the atmosphere, contributing to respiratory problems like asthma. What goes up then comes down in the form of acid rain and is deposited in the soil. Even more nitrogen goes into the soil from the use of the nitrogen fertilizers that are commonly used in agriculture today. The excess nitrate leaches the soil, making it less arable and causing runoff into bodies of water. This eutrification causes rapid algae growth which uses up most of the oxygen in the water essentially suffocating other wildlife in the same body of water and creating "dead zones". In some areas of Sweden, nitrogen pollution from other parts of Europe has caused so much acid rain that deposition of nitrate can exceed 100 pounds per acre. To combat this Sweden has to add lime to nearly 8000 lakes to prevent the acidification of the water. This is an effective solution to this issue but is very expensive. Another idea that may prove to be helpful has emerged in recent research by LSU researchers of the effects of crop diversity. According to this research, "diverse farms tend to have smaller fields with more edges, which can mean there is a greater buffering effect on nitrogen runoff by surrounding grasslands and woodlands". This means that if farmers began growing multiple types of crops nitrate runoff would be reduced, unfortunately this goes against the government subsidizing the growth of specific crops like corn. Apparently to prevent problems like this we have to change quite a few things about our country.

http://www.sdearthtimes.com/et1099/et1099s11.html

http://esciencenews.com/articles/2009/02/11/cropland.diversity.reduces.nitrogen.pollution.0