How can farmers use knowledge of the nitrogen cycle to make their fields more productive?
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Explanation:. Without nitrogen, most of the world’s crops wouldn’t exist. Nitrogen is to corn, wheat and rice, what water is to fish. Yearly, more than 100 million tonnes of nitrogen are applied to crops in the form of fertilizer, helping them grow stronger and better. But issues arise when nitrogen run-off occurs, polluting air, water and land in the process. It is estimated that nitrogen discharge accounts for a third of agriculture’s greenhouse gas emissions.
“We’ve known for a long time that using nitrogen as fertilizer is great for farming to increase productivity but there's a whole range of threats resulting from nitrogen leaking into the environment,” said Mark Sutton of the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology in Edinburgh, who works with UN Environment Programme (UNEP) on the science of nitrogen pollution."By considering nitrogen as a whole, it is becoming increasingly clear that nitrogen pollution represents a massive waste of valuable fertilizer and other nutrient resources. It means that smart nitrogen management can help reduce threats to water, air, climate and health, while contributing positively to farmers’ livelihoods.”
The three ways we can improve the way nitrogen is used in farming.
Using chemical fertilizers more holistically
Better managing livestock waste
Avoiding chemical fertilizers