Dark red circles indicate oil spills and gray-shaded areas indicate sea pollution and land pollution from chemical fertilizers. Originally found at “http://www.worldprocessor.com/catalog/world/mainframe.html”
In 1798, English economist Thomas Malthus first warned about the dangers of unchecked population growth inAn Essay on the Principle of Population. Crop production, he concluded, was no match for an explosively increasing human presence. Worldwide famine and mass death would eventually result unless this increase could be slowed. Over two hundred years and billions of people later, humankind has defied what Malthus forecast as inevitable.
世界人口正在攀升至70亿大关,到21世纪30年代中期,地球预计每年将增加5000万至7000万人口。这么多人要养活啊。Although hunger tragicallyplagues over 13% of that 7 billion, mostly in developing nations, starvation is an issue of poverty and access to fertile land and water – not, as Malthus suggested, absolute food availability. We are, in fact, able to grow enough food to feed everybody. How is this possible?
Chemical Fertilizer Launches The Green Revolution
1960s innovations in agriculture, known as the Green Revolution, saw the development of thirsty, super-productive crop strains and farming technologies that allowed production to keep pace with population. These high-yield varieties need plenty of nutrients (and water), and are thus fueled by inorganic fertilizers that typically contain nitrogen, phosphorus, or potassium. The value of these fertilizers should not be understated; without them, much of the world would be without food (from https://ehp03.niehs.nih.gov/article/fetchArticle.action?articleURI=info%3Adoi%2F10.1289%2Fehp.119-a208#r4). But fertilizer overuse and production is also credited with environmental degradation, prompting some scientists to re-examine the Green Revolution’s effects with a more critical lens.
Although all plants require the nutrients contained in fertilizers for growth, current application rates are threatening the environment. Global fertilizer use has reached staggering amounts, and is projected to rise. By 2015, world fertilizer consumption is estimated to reach nearly 190 million tons.
In million tons…
How Chemical Fertilizers Changed Modern Agriculture
现代工业化农业的关键因素之一是从固氮中提取的肥料,在某些情况下对作物增产的贡献率高达75%。自从第二次世界大战以来,由于哈伯-博世工艺的发现,使工业肥料的生产成为可能,全球氮的供应量翻了一番。
The Haber-Bosch process takes nonreactive atmospheric nitrogen and turns it into ammonia – a plant nutrient – through an energy-intensive procedure using high heat and pressures. (good Wired article explanation) It is estimated that1% of the world’s energy consumption goes toward fertilizer manufacture. That energy, of course, requires the burning of fossil fuels. On average, 5.5 gallons of fossil fuels per acre, per year are needed to fertilize soil for farming.
Fertilizer production, Florida. Photo copyright J Henry Fairjhenryfair.com
Mining Chemical Fertilizers Hurts The Environment
磷酸盐的产生– and potash-based fertilizers causes ecological damage through the mining processes it entails: draining huge quantities of water from local ecosystems, removal of vegetation, and the discharge of greenhouse gases to name a few (for an extensive list of mining impacts:www.elaw.org).此外,为农业用途加工磷会产生放射性废物,因为开采的磷矿含有自然产生的放射性物质(铀和钍)。
Phosphogypsum is one of these wastes, and a commonly used fertilizer to boost levels of calcium and sulfur in soils. The EPA does not permit the use of phosphogypsum above a certain radioactivity level (concentrations of radium-226 greater than 10 pCi/g), but farmers may apply phosphogypsum without limitation, and need not keep records of their application rates.
Another byproduct of fertilizer production, phosphate slag, is reused for construction purposes – primarily roads, bridges, railways, and other non-habitable infrastructure. While the EPA states that phosphate slag is less prone to radionuclide leaching than phosphogypsum, levels of radium, thorium, and uranium in phosphate slag have occasionally been as high as 50 pCi/g. Because phosphogypsum more radioactive than 10pCi/g is unusable, it is stored in enormous stacks, typically on unprepared land at production sites. These stacks are left uncovered, exude carcinogenic radon gas, and can leak acidic water into the ground. (source)
北卡罗来纳州的磷矿。Originally found at “http://www.ptrf.org/PhosphateMining.html”
The U.S. biofuel industryrelies heavily on the mining of phosphate for fertilizers. Phosphate cannot be substituted with any other mineral, and so growing biofuel demands could precipitate a future shortage of this resource in as little as 50 years. So much for the renewability of ethanol. Phosphate rock’s growing scarcity has increased both the price of the mineral itself (roughly 350% between 2003 and 2008) as well as the food it is used to fertilize, prompting riots in over 40 countries in 2008 (Originally sourced from https://www.ecosystm.org/Losing-Phosphorus-Means-Losing-Crops.html).
The prospects of finding new phosphorus reserves large enough to satisfy growing demand are slim, and the ore itself takes millions of years to form. Like crude oil, remaining phosphorus could soon become a point of geopolitical contention – its main sources for export are Morocco, Syria, Jordan, South Africa, Russia, and the Western Sahara.
Early morning fertilizer runoff after late-night storm.
Photo copyright J Henry Fairjhenryfair.com
Runoff From Chemical Fertilizers Pollutes Our Water
Fertilizers do not just affect the crops on which they are applied, but drain off into the soil and nearby waterways. In aquatic systems, they boost the growth of algae, which bloom en masse and deprive the surrounding water of oxygen. This process is called eutrophication, and areas of severe eutrophication – waters that do not have enough oxygen to support life – are known as dead zones.
The leaching nitrates can also impact drinking water supplies if located near wells, and nitrate-contaminated water has beenlinked to gastric problems in adults. Infants are more susceptible to adverse health effects, and should not consume water with concentrations of nitrate in excess of 10 mg/L. Since most purification methods do not effectively remove nitrates from water, contamination ought to be prevented in the first place.
In The Long Run, Chemical Fertilizers Hurt Crop Yields
虽然肥料的目的是使土壤肥沃,但过度使用化肥实际上会阻碍作物产量。由于大多数作物适合中性pH范围,大量氮肥输入导致的土壤酸化可以抵消增肥的预期效果。中国的情况就是这样,酸性土壤增加了寄生虫数量,并促进了铝和锰等有毒金属的浸出。在那里,农业专家说,许多地区将受益于高达60%的应用减少。
China is the world’s top consumer of fertilizers and it is estimated that10 million tons of fertilizer end up in China’s waterways. Groundwater pollution is occurring, and in other Asian countries besides China: Japan, Korea, and Vietnam are all experiencingcontamination of water from fertilizers.
Originally found at “https://suarticlese.co.cc/sa-aquatic-green-plants”
How To Reduce Environmental Impacts Of Chemical Fertilizer
Better management practicesare a good option for reducing environmental impacts. The Southwest Florida Management District recently kicked off an awareness campaign to encourage responsible fertilizer use at the municipal level (seeswfwmd.state.fl.us).美国环境保护署在2005年发起了一项类似的运动,与MTA合作,向纽约郊区公共交通系统的电脑告知过量化肥进入饮用水的危害(yosemite.epa.gov)。也许对西方饮食习惯的认识运动也是必要的:因为如此多的粮食生产被用于牲畜的饲料——在美国,这一比例高达80%——减少肉类消费可以缓解一些对化肥的需求。家庭园丁可以选择有机而不使用它。有机肥料的例子包括堆肥,堆肥茶,粪便,叶霉菌,鱼乳剂,海藻和尿。For organic lawn ideas see:www.extremelygreen.com
If chemical fertilizers are necessary, the following guidelines can help minimize contaminated drainage into sensitive areas:
Time your fertilizer applications
Fast-acting fertilizers should not be applied before a heavy rainfall. Spring fertilization should be minimized—water tables are generally high at that time, thereby increasing the risk of fertilizer leaching into water sources. Do not apply fertilizer on frozen ground—the likelihood of runoff into water supply sources is dramatically increased.
Use buffer strips
Leave a strip of unfertilized grasses or natural vegetation near any water body. This helps against erosion and produces a trap for unwanted nutrients. Reduse usage on hills.
Use a mulching mower
覆盖草和留下剪下的草可以减少一半的肥料需求。
Prevent misapplication of fertilizers
Take care when applying fertilizers around sewers and drains. Shut off spreaders before crossing sidewalks or driveways and sweep up any spills. Rinse your spreader over the lawn area and not on the driveway in order to minimize fertilizer runoff.
Properly store your fertilizer
Store unused fertilizer in a dry place away from any water source. If stored fertilizer gets wet you not only lose nutrient value, there is potential for nitrates to leach into water sources. (from mass.gov)
sbprojectcleanwater.org
Malthus may havebeen wrong up until now – we can produce enough food to feed the world with the use of inorganic fertilizers. But with the environmental destruction and looming resource shortages, our reliance cannot last forever. Dealing with the problem on the industrial scale will pose serious challenges. It may be time for a second Green Revolution, and one that takes into account our unsustainable farming practices.
Additional Sources About Chemical Fertilizers
S.K.A. Danso and D.L. Eskew. “Enhancing Biological Nitrogen Fixation.” IAEA Bulletin, Vol. 26, No. 2.www.iaea.org.pdf
EPA. “Fertilizer and Fertilizer Production Wastes.”www.epa.gov
Richard Manning. Harper’s Magazine, 2004. “The Oil We Eat: Following the Food Chain Back to Iraq.”www.harpers.org
Chemical Fertilizer Resources
How U.S. biofuel industry will increase demand for fertilizers:www.icis.com
生态和水文中心,2011年4月,“过多的氮危害经济和环境-第一个全欧洲范围的评估发表。”www.ceh.ac.uk
2008 New York Times article on spot fertilizer shortages:www.nytimes.com
Lessons from the Green Revolution: is new technology needed to end hunger? From FoodFirst, a nonprofit organization dedicated to eradicating hunger:www.foodfirst.org
Wired Magazine article, from 2008, on the need for new fertilizer tech:www.wired.com
Anonymoussays
it was really helpful and clarifying knowledge thank you
waisake mikiwaisays
This topic has been a major issue at most place but people are not taking this issue very seriously….fertrilizer has alot of problem to our enviroment
Thomas Peelsays
I’m a yr 12 student doing a organic vs chemical fertilizer research exrternal task. Just wondering what you could tell me about just chemical fertilizer.
IF ANYONE COULD HELP
I’LL BE EXTREMELY GREATFUL
Nataliesays
I’m doing this for a science homework to find out what the problems are with using chemical fertilisers and every web site I have been on has been no help at all,so if anyone could help me,that would be great
jigar patelsays
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we have produce 200/day mix fertilizer NPK different grad.
我们面临着产品破裂的问题。此外,我们也使用了防结垢油,但仍然面临问题。
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