Reactive nitrogen at root of land's waste, group says

Fertilizer, a form of reactive nitrogen, boosts plant productivity but also wreaks havoc on the environment, the Intermountain Water Alliance says.

January 12, 2000
Web posted at: 12:23 p.m. EST (1723 GMT)

By Environmental News Network staff

Chemically altered nitrogen molecules, commonly known as "reactive nitrogen," are the root of modern-day environmental degradation, the Intermountain Water Alliance says.

"It was the limited availability of reactive nitrogen ... that established the earth's biodiversity and ecosystem as we know it and like it," note Peter Maier and Kay Henry of the alliance.

Yet, reactive nitrogen became widely available after German chemist Fritz Haber developed a method to synthesize ammonia, for which he received the Nobel Prize in 1919. Haber's discovery led to the industrial production of fertilizer, an abundant form of reactive nitrogen.

"Fertilizer is the fuel of the modern food production system," said Ron Phillips, a spokesman for the Fertilizer Institute in Washington, D.C. "It has enabled farmers to provide the most bountiful food supply in the history of mankind." Reactive nitrogen, which supplies food with nutrients, is responsible not only

for the population boom of the last 100 years but also for the longevity of the world's population.

"The explosive growth of the world population, from one and a half billion by the start of the century to more than six by the end of this century, was only possible because of Haber's invention," Maier and Herny write. "Although clearly a blessing for humans, the impact of this massive introduction of 'reactive nitrogen' on the Earth's ecosystem was unforeseen."

Before Haber's invention, a limited amount of reactive nitrogen passed along the food chain, keeping the biodiversity of Earth's ecosystems in check.

Odors from manure in animal feedlots are an unfortunate byproduct of excessive reactive nitrogen.

Haber's invention opened the farm gates to the wholesale production and use of fertilizer, and humans adopted the practice of releasing waste into the environment. To complicate matters, the increased use of fossil fuels which, when burned, convert to another form of reactive nitrogen, have contributed to the degradation of Earth's ecosystems and biodiversity, according to Maier and Henry.

The examples of environmental degradation from overabundant reactive nitrogen are several: red tide, acid rain, destruction of the ozone layer, smog, global warming, various sources of pollution and odors emitted from manure in animal feedlots.

"All of those criticisms have some kernel of truth to them, but they are overstated," said Phillips. "We [the fertilizer industry] are tinkering with the nitrogen cycle and the nitrogen cycle is not a leak-proof system, thus this has contributed to environmental degradation."

Phillips notes that technological advances are allowing farmers to apply the minimum amount of fertilizer required to feed their crops. The new products are helping stem the tide of excess reactive nitrogen in the environment, he says.

Other technologies that reduce manmade reactive nitrogen in the biosphere include solar and wind energy to replace the fossil fuels, Maier and Henry note. Natural fertilizers are making a comeback in agriculture, and eco-friendly sewage treatment plants that recycle all solid waste are now in place in Italy.

"We ... not only changed the size and shape of the food web, we also are impacting the elements in such a manner that we may not need our nuclear weapons to alter this earth's biosphere," Maier and Henry warn.

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