Growing Returns

Selected tag(s): hypoxia

Will Ohio’s proposed fertilizer legislation solve the runoff problem?

By Karen Chapman / Bio / Published: December 4, 2014

Proposed legislation in Ohio would regulate when farmers can apply fertilizer to their fields.

The Ohio General Assembly will vote next week on legislation that aims to address the problem of nutrient pollution, which was responsible for a massive algae bloom in Lake Erie that contaminated the drinking water of more than 400,000 Ohio residents this past August.

In short, the bill would ban application of fertilizer on land that is frozen, covered by snow, saturated with rain, or when the weather predicts a certain amount of rainfall. Those who violate the ban could face penalties of up to $10,000.

Policies that set rational ground rules for when farmers can apply fertilizer to their fields and that create real incentives to reduce nutrient pollution are important, but it’s going to take more than legislation to solve the runoff problem. Read More »

Posted in Supply Chain / Also tagged agriculture, ecosystems, fertilizer, fertilizer optimization, Lake Erie, nitrogen, nutrient pollution, Ohio General Assembly, phosphorus, soil health, sustainable agriculture, Toledo, toxic algae, water quality, western water | Comments are closed

How the marketplace is driving clean water solutions

By David Festa / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: September 17, 2014

Federal and state governments aren’t doing enough to keep polluted runoff from reaching America’s waterways. That’s the conclusion the Environmental Protection Agency – aka the federal government – has reached in a new report from the office of its inspector general.

Anyone surprised?

Government has tried to reign in nutrient pollution for decades, only to watch dead zones persist in the Gulf of Mexico, Chesapeake Bay and Lake Erie. Just last month, a toxic brew of urban and agricultural runoff shut down Toledo’s water for two days. Seven weeks later, many of the city’s half million residents are still afraid to drink what’s coming out of the tap.

Posted in Uncategorized / Also tagged agriculture, Chesapeake Bay, cover crops, dead zones, ecosystems, EPA, fertilizer, grain production, Gulf of Mexico, Lake Erie, nutrient efficiency, polluted runoff, sustainable agriculture, Toledo, toxic algae, water quality, western water | Comments are closed

Water filters can fight dead zones without hindering farm production

By Eileen McLellan / Bio / Published: August 15, 2014

Updated (October 23, 2014): Interior, Agriculture Departments Partner to Measure Conservation Impacts on Water Quality

A treatment wetland built under the Iowa Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program. Photo from Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship

“Is the water safe?”

In the United States, we take it for granted that the answer to that question is “yes.” But the residents of Toledo, OH, learned recently that their water wasn’t safe to drink for a few days because toxins associated with an algal bloom in Lake Erie had contaminated the city’s water supply. Meanwhile, a Maryland man was released from the hospital after nearly losing his leg and his life to flesh-eating bacteria contracted from swimming in the Chesapeake Bay.

These types of incidents are caused by nutrient pollution. Although nutrient pollution can come from many sources, runoff from agriculture is the dominant contributor to the problem in Lake Erie, the Chesapeake Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. Agriculture-associated nutrient pollution also impacts local streams and lakes, causing fish kills and closing swimming beaches. A recent study in Minnesota suggested that more than 70 percent of nitrogen in state waters comes from cropland.

What needs to be done, and how much will make a difference? Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Also tagged Chesapeake Bay, dead zone, ecosystems, fertilizer, Gulf of Mexico, Interior department, Lake Erie, natural resources conservation, nutrient pollution, USDA, USGS, water quality, watershed, western water, wetland buffer | Comments are closed