I was reading about synthetic nitrogen today and learned a lot of things :
In short, we know that plants need nitrogen to thrive. There are essentially 3 ways to convert Nitrogen (N2) to a form that plants can use, Nitrate (NO3) and Ammonoim (NH4). There are two natural ways, "atmosphermic fixation" and "biological fixation", and a third synthetic way, " industrial fixation" (the Harper-Bosch process). A lot of people have argued in the past, that to a plant, a nirtrate ion is a nitrate ion, and plants dont care where it comes from!
However, on top the the energy intesive process used to create nitrogen synthetically (and the related environemental impacts!!), the following research from the, The Morrows Plots at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign featuring the world’s oldest experimental site for studying the effects of different types of fertilizers on soil (research began in 1876) has helped me understand what is so bad about synthetic nitrogen fetrilizers !
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"Researchers began measuring the effects of synthetic nitrogen fertilizer on soil health starting in 1967. What they’ve found in the decades since is shocking. If the implications had been fully understood, the research would have made the front page of every news station in the world.
“Intensive use of N fertilizers in modern agriculture is motivated by the economic value of high grain yields and is generally perceived to sequester soil organic C by increasing the input of crop residues. This perception is at odds with a century of soil organic C data reported herein for the Morrow Plots, the world’s oldest experimental site under continuous corn (Zea maysL.). After 40 to 50 yr of synthetic fertilization that exceeded grain N removal by 60 to 190%, a net decline occurred in soil C despite increasingly massive residue C incorporation… These findings implicate fertilizer N in promoting the decomposition of crop residues and soil organic matter and are consistent with data from numerous cropping experiments involving synthetic N fertilization in the USA Corn Belt and elsewhere, although not with the interpretation usually provided. There are important implications for soil C sequestration because the yield-based input of fertilizer N has commonly exceeded grain N removal for corn production on fertile soils since the 1960s. To mitigate the ongoing consequences of soil deterioration, atmospheric CO2 enrichment, and NO3 − pollution of ground and surface waters, N fertilization should be managed by site-specific assessment of soil N availability. Current fertilizer N management practices, if combined with corn stover removal for bioenergy production, exacerbate soil C loss.”
“This decline [in soil Nitrogen] is in agreement with numerous long-term baseline data sets from chemical-based cropping systems involving a wide variety of soils, geographic regions, and tillage practices. The loss of organic N decreases soil productivity and the agronomic efficiency (kg grain kg(-1) N) of fertilizer N and has been implicated in widespread reports of yield stagnation or even decline for grain production in Asia. A major global evaluation of current cereal production systems should be undertaken…”
In short: the conventional thinking of conventional agriculture in regards to synthetic nitrogen fertilizer use is not just wrong, it’s dangerously wrong. Synthetic nitrogen fertilizer is rapidly depleting the world’s soil fertility, burning out its carbon stores, and causing an increase in fertilizer use in order to continue getting a yield from the same land."(
https://www.growjourney.com/5-facts-synthetic-nitrogen-fertilizer/)
On top of all that, runoff of excess nitrogen to our rivers, creeks, lakes and oceans is creating massive algae blooms ! This creates "dead-zones" where fish and marine life cannot live - in addition to shutting down beaches and public swimming areas. AND if excess nitrogen gets into our drinking water, high concentrations of nitrates in our acidic stomachs form
nitrosoamines, which are carcinogenic.
