Solutions for Fertilizers: Taking a peek in Spain

Hey Foodies, this is part 2 of the fertilizers post and we shall take a look at a case study of pollution management against the use of fertilizers. Today, we will be looking at a study conducted in Spain, a developed nation in Europe.

Just a quick recap, fertilizers are chemicals – organic and inorganic. Fertilizers are used to improve the growth of plants as it allows plants to absorb more nutrients and improve the efficiency of photosynthesis. Therefore allowing for a higher yield of produce, when used in the right amounts. However, overuse of fertilizers will lead to pollution in the form of point source pollution, on the soil itself, or diffused pollution as these nutrients seep into groundwater supply and open-water bodies. As such, the majority of pollution caused by fertilizers can be attributed to its overuse by farmers (Chris, 2018). Hence, let’s take a look into two different management solutions against the overuse of fertilizers.

Case Study: Spain

In Spain, the majority of water pollution due to fertilizers comes from the high levels of nitrates infiltrating into the groundwater supply. As such, this pollution of the groundwater causes health, economic and environmental problems. Specifically, in our case study, these groundwater supplies are unsuitable for human consumption and need to be processed through denitrification. Therefore, increasing the cost of water for consumption and farming needs. Thus, there is an emphasis on the requirement to bring groundwater quality to European Union (EU) standards (Peña-Haro et al., 2010).

Fertilizer Taxation:

One of the methods adopted by the Spanish government to reduce the overuse of fertilizers is through heavy taxation of fertilizers. The use of a tax seeks to increase the cost of production of the farmers, which forces the farmers to reduce the use of fertilizers on crops. This will in turn decrease the yield of farmers in the short run. These farmers will then seek to use the optimal amount of fertilizers, to ensure that they balance both costs and yield. This method of management seeks to put the environmental cost of nitrate emissions to the farmers. Thus farmers, who need to pay their fair share of pollution cost will become more efficient in their use of fertilizers. Hence, reducing the level of groundwater pollution in the area. (Rougoor et al., 2010)

Agriculture-Planning

Another management method consists of agricultural planning. Peña-Haro et al, 2010 have suggested that although efficient use of nitrate fertilizers can reduce the levels of water pollution on groundwater supply, given the large amount of land use for agriculture, nitrate infiltration into groundwater still causes water quality to be unsustainable for EU Standards. As such, it is important for the environmental agency to help with long-term planning on regions that are suitable for fertilizer application. This form of planning not only reduces the amount of pollution caused by nitrate infiltration but also allows the soil to recover from previous fertilizer applications. The results shown from agriculture-planning shows that even though it might cost more for the country to identify land suitable for fertilizers, as well as a decrease in yield as land needs to regenerate after application, there is only a drop in 1.5% of yield for the farmers. This, coupled with the vast improvement in water quality shows a potential solution that might be feasible for the use of fertilizers in the future. Moreover, the improvement in water quality can also help reduce the costs of agriculture-planning as the government can channel funds that were used to treat polluted water to reduce and subsidize these analyses (Peña-Haro et al., 2010). Thus, making it more attractive for farmers to adopt and play a part to reduce nitrate emissions into the water.

 

Conclusion:

All in all, this case study has shown us the current management techniques, as well as potential new techniques that might be viable for use in the future. That being said, there is no one size fits all method to reduce pollution caused by fertilizers. As (Peña-Haro et al., 2010) mentioned in their article, although the fertilizer tax might be effective in reducing nitrates emission, farmers can simply change the types of crops they are growing to avoid these taxes. Furthermore, Spain can be considered to be a developed country. In less developed countries such as China, where economic growth takes precedence, it might not be feasible for the government to use taxes (Smith & Siciliano, 2015). Thus, a more modern approach of spatial analysis might be suitable in reducing pollution caused by fertilizers, especially with the growth in spatial analysis capabilities such as GIS, providing many alternatives to reduce the impact of pollution by fertilizers.

Therefore, we learned in these two fertilizers posts the impact of pollution on both soil and water, as well as the various management methods that might be feasible for different parts of the world. That will be it for fertilizers, and see you soon!

 

Detective Out,

Wen Hong

 

References:

Chris, M. (2018). Problems of overusing fertilizers. Home Guides | SF Gate. https://homeguides.sfgate.com/problems-overusing-fertilizers-28033.html

Peña-Haro, S., Llopis-Albert, C., Pulido-Velazquez, M., & Pulido-Velazquez, D. (2010). Fertilizer standards for controlling groundwater nitrate pollution from agriculture: El salobral-los llanos case study, Spain. Journal of Hydrology, 392(3-4), 174-187. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2010.08.006

Rougoor, C. W., Van Zeijts, H., Hofreither, M. F., & Bäckman, S. (2010). Experiences with fertilizer taxes in Europe. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 44(6), 877-887. https://doi.org/10.1080/09640560120087615

Smith, L., & Siciliano, G. (2015). undefined. In A comprehensive review of constraints to improved management of fertilizers in China and mitigation of diffuse water pollution from agriculture (Vol. 209, pp. 15-25). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2015.02.016