Managing agricultural phosphorus to minimize water quality impacts

Eutrophication of surface waters remains a major use-impairment in many countries, which, in fresh waters, is accelerated by phosphorus (P) inputs from both point (e.g., municipal waste water treatment plants) and nonpoint sources (e.g., urban and agricultural runoff). As point sources tend to be easier to identify and control, greater attention has recently focused on reducing nonpoint sources of P. In Brazil, agricultural productivity has increased tremendously over the last decade as a consequence, to a large extent, of increases in the use of fertilizer and improved land management. For instance, adoption of the “4R” approach (i.e., right rate, right time, right source, and right placement of P) to fertilizer management can decrease P runoff. Additionally, practices that lessen the risk of runoff and erosion, such as reduced tillage and cover crops will also lessen P runoff. Despite these measures P can still be released from soil and fluvial sediment stores as a result of the prior 10 to 20 years’ management. These legacy sources can mask the water quality benefits of present-day conservation efforts. Future remedial efforts should focus on developing risk assessment indices and nonpoint source models to identify and target conservation measures and to estimate their relative effectiveness. New fertilizer formulations may more closely tailor the timing of nutrient release to plant needs and potentially decrease P runoff. Even so, it must be remembered that appropriate and timely inputs of fertilizers are needed to maintain agricultural productivity and in some cases, financial support might also be required to help offset the costs of expensive conservation measures

Water Quality and Watershed Conditions in the Upper Illinois River Watershed

The Illinois River and its tributaries have many uses that have been designated by the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality including fisheries, aquatic life, primary contact waters, secondary contact waters, drinking water supply, and agricultural and industrial water supply, and water quality affects whether these uses can be supported. Since water quality can be quite complex, many types of measurements can be used as water quality indicators; some common water quality measurements include pH, dissolved oxygen concentration, and conductivity. More complicated measurements include determining nutrients, sediment and bacteria in the water, as well as assessing the aquatic life—aquatic insects, fish, algae and plants that are present within a stream. Most of these parameters are related to the type and use of land surrounding the stream and thus can be impacted by human activities. This publication details stream use classification and use support, impaired reaches in the Arkansas portion of the Illinois River, general water quality conditions across the Upper Illinois River Watershed, and trends in water quality in the Illinois River over the past decade. This publication serves as companion material to MSC Publication 355, Final Report to the Illinois River Watershed Partnership: Recommended Watershed Based Strategy for the Upper Illinois River Watershed, Northwest Arkansa

Handbook of Best Management Practices for the Upper Illinois River Watershed and Other Regional Watersheds

Management actions are strategies carried out by stakeholders that are designed to implement water quality protection and restoration activities with a watershed. This publication presents a range of beneficial management actions from simple to complex that address the pollutant potential that is common across the watershed landscape of northwest Arkansas. Some management actions can be undertaken by any watershed stakeholder at any time, while others need to be carefully planned or lobbied to local and state government. The following chapters address potential management actions that can be taken by individuals or groups at households, businesses, institutions, municipalities, industrial facilities, farms, and construction sites to maintain or improve water quality in northwest Arkansas. This publication serves as companion material to MSC Publication 355, Final Report to the Illinois River Watershed Partnership: Recommended Watershed Based Strategy for the Upper Illinois River Watershed, Northwest Arkansas. However, the practices and programs described within this publication are also relevant to other regional watersheds

Produção animal, manejo de fósforo e qualidade da água no Brasil: opções para o futuro

Eutrofização dos mananciais de água se tornou uma preocupação nos Estados Unidos, Europa e Austrália. Na maioria dos casos, a eutrofização de mananciais de água é acelerada pelo aumento na quantidade de fósforo adicionada, o que tem estreita relação com o escorrimento superficial deste elemento, em função da intensificação dos sistemas de produção de culturas e animais a partir do início dos anos noventa. Em virtude de pouca informação com relação aos impactos da agricultura na qualidade da água, este artigo enfatiza modificações nos sistemas de produção de culturas e animais no Brasil no contexto das prováveis implicações quanto ao destino do fósforo no processo. Os dados apontam para um aumento de 33% no número de animais (gado de corte, gado de leite, suíno e frango) no período de 1993 - 2003, a maior parte deste aumento ocorrendo na região sul (Paraná, Rio Grande do Sul e Santa Catarina), onde se localizam 43% e 49% da produção de suínos e frangos, respectivamente. Enquanto a produção de gado de corte se dá predominantemente em sistema de pastejo a campo, com deposição do esterco sobre os pastos, a produção de suíno e frango ocorre em sistema intensivo de confinamento, o que resulta em elevadas quantidades de esterco em pequenas áreas. Assim sendo, a discussão irá focalizar na produção de suínos e frangos. Tendo em vista o peso médio de suíno (100 kg) e frango (1,3 kg), a produção diária de esterco (4,90 e 0,055 kg por suíno ou frango, respectivamente), e o conteúdo médio de P no esterco (40 e 24 g kg-1 para suíno e frango, respectivamente), estimou-se uma quantidade de 2,5 milhões de toneladas de fósforo nos estercos de suíno e frango, produzidas no Brasil em 2003. A maior parte foi produzida nas regiões sul e sudeste do Brasil (62% em conjunto), a qual representa apenas 18% da área do país. No contexto da exigência das culturas, os cálculos apontam para 2,6 vezes mais fósforo produzido nos estercos (1,08 milhões de toneladas) do que aplicado por meio de fertilizante (0,42 milhões de toneladas) na região sul em 2003. Diante do fato que a quantidade utilizada por fertilizantes representa o necessário para atender as exigências nutricionais das plantas, levando inclusive em consideração o fósforo adsorvido pelo solo, se o esterco de suíno e frango fosse considerado no sentido de substituir os fertilizantes aplicados, haveria uma sobra anual de 0,66 milhões de toneladas apenas na região sul. Estas aproximações e estimativas claramente indicam que, como em outras partes do mundo, existe potencial para esta sobra anual de fósforo rapidamente acumular em certas regiões do Brasil. A menos que medidas sejam desenvolvidas e implementadas para utilizar este esterco, repetidas sobras anuais irão conduzir a um problema de difícil resolução. Estas medidas podem ser agrupadas em dois tipos: as do manejo das fontes e as do transporte. As medidas que visam o manejo das fontes tendem a diminuir as quantidades de fósforo na dieta, usar aditivos no alimento, promover o tratamento e compostagem do esterco, bem como manejar com cuidado as doses, época, e método de aplicação dos estercos. As medidas visando o manejo no transporte objetivam controlar a perda de fósforo no escorrimento do solo para os corpos de água por meio da conservação do solo e resíduos, zonas vegetativas ribeirinhas de contenção, culturas de cobertura superficial, e pontes de aprisionamento ou áreas alagadas. Estas medidas são discutidas no contexto do clima, topografia, uso do solo, e ainda quanto ao sucesso dos programas de remediação a serem implementados em fazendas ou bacias hidrográficas.Eutrophication has become a major threat to water quality in the U.S., Europe, and Australasia. In most cases, freshwater eutrophication is accelerated by increased inputs of phosphorus (P), of which agricultural runoff is now a major contributor, due to intensification of crop and animal production systems since the early 1990s'. Once little information is available on the impacts of Brazilian agriculture in water quality, recent changes in crop and animal production systems in Brazil were evaluated in the context of probable implications of the fate of P in agriculture. Between 1993 and 2003, there was 33% increase in the number of housed animals (i.e., beef, dairy cows, swine, and poultry), most in the South Region (i.e., Paraná, Rio Grande do Sul, and Santa Catarina States), where 43 and 49% of Brazil's swine and poultry production is located, respectively. Although grazing-based beef production is the major animal production system in Brazil, it is an extensive system, where manure is deposited over grazed pastures; confined swine and poultry are intensive systems, producing large amounts of manure in small areas, which can be considered a manageable resource. This discussion will focus on swine and poultry farming. Based on average swine (100 kg) and poultry weights (1.3 kg), daily manure production (4.90 and 0.055 kg per swine and poultry animal unit, respectively), and manure P content (40 and 24 g kg-1 for swine and poultry, respectively), an estimated 2.5 million tones of P in swine and poultry manure were produced in 2003. Mostly in the South and Southeast regions of Brazil (62%), which represent only 18% of the country's land area. In the context of crop P requirements, there was 2.6 times more P produced in manure (1.08 million tones) than applied as fertilizer (0.42 million tonnes) in South Brazil in 2003. If it is assumed that fertilizer P use represents P added to meet crop needs and accounts for P sorbed by soil in unavailable forms each year, if swine and poultry manure were to replace fertilizer, there would be an annual P surplus of 0.66 million tonnes in the South region alone. These approximations and estimates highlight that, similarly to other parts of the world, there is a potential for surplus P to quickly accumulate in certain regions of Brazil. Unless measures are developed and implemented to utilize manure P, repeated annual surpluses will create an increasingly difficult problem to solve. These measures can be grouped as source and transport management. Source management attempts to decrease dietary P, use feed additives, manure treatment and composting, as well as careful management of the rate, timing, and method of manure applications. Transport management attempts to control the loss of P in runoff from soil to sensitive waters via use of conservation tillage, buffer or riparian zones, cover crops, and trapping ponds or wetlands. These measures are discussed in the contest of Brazil's climate, topography, and land use, and how successful remediation programs may be implemented at farm and watershed level

Distant views and local realities: the limits of global assessments to restore the fragmented phosphorus cycle

With more sophisticated data compilation and analytical capabilities, the evolution of “big data” analysis has occurred rapidly. We examine the meta-analysis of “big data” representing phosphorus (P) flows and stocks in global agriculture and address the need to consider local nuances of farm operations to avoid erroneous or misleading recommendations. Of concern is the disconnect between macro-needs for better P resource management at regional and national scales versus local realities of P management at farm scales. Both agricultural and environmental researchers should focus on providing solutions to disconnects identified by meta-analyses and ensure that production and conservation strategies consider farming realities

Final Report to the Illinois River Watershed Partnership: Recommended Watershed Based Strategy for the Upper Illinois River Watershed, Northwest Arkansas

This publication serves as the final report to the Illinois River Watershed Partnership (IRWP) regarding the project entitled “Development of the Watershed Management Plan for the Upper Illinois River”. This document was intended to provide this stakeholder based organization guidance in the development of a watershed management plan for the Illinois River drainage area (i.e., the Upper Illinois River Watershed, UIRW) in Arkansas. This document represents the final report from the Arkansas Water Resources Center (AWRC) and affiliated project investigators, and the IRWP may alter this document before the final submission of its watershed management plan to the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission (ANRC) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

A Portable Rainfall Simulator for Plot–Scale Runoff Studies

Rainfall simulators have a long history of successful use in both laboratory and field investigations. Many plot–scale simulators, however, have been difficult to operate and transport in the field, especially in remote locations where water or electricity is unavailable. This article describes a new rainfall simulator that is relatively easy to operate and transport to and from the field while maintaining critical intensity, distribution, and energy characteristics of natural rainfall. The simulator frame is constructed from lightweight aluminum pipe with a single 50 WSQ nozzle centered at a height of 3 m (9.8 ft). An operating nozzle pressure of 28 kPa (4.1 psi) yields continuous flow at an intensity of 70 mm h-1 (2.8 in. h-1 ) over a 1.5– x 2–m (4.9– x 6.6–ft) plot area with a coefficient of uniformity of 93%. Kinetic energy of the rainfall is about 25 J m-2 mm-1 (142.8 ft–lb ft-2 in.-1), approximately 87% of natural rainfall. The simulator can be easily transported by two field personnel and completely assembled or disassembled in approximately 10 min. Water usage is at a minimum as the simulator utilizes only one nozzle

Agricultural phosphorus and water quality: sources, transport and management

Freshwater eutrophication is usually controlled by inputs of phosphorus (P). To identify critical sources of P export from agricultural catchments we investigated hydrological and chemical factors controlling P export from a mixed land use (30% wooded, 50% cultivated, 20% pasture) 39.5-ha catchment in east-central Pennsylvania, USA. Mehlich-3 extractable soil P, determined on a 30-m grid over the catchment, ranged from 7 to 788 mg kg-1. Generally, soils in wooded areas had low Mehlich-3P

Celebrating the 350th anniversary of phosphorus discovery: a conundrum of deficiency and excess

2019 will be the 350th anniversary of the discovery of phosphorus (P) by the alchemist Henning Brandt. This perspective traces the historical threads that P has weaved through the fabric of our society and identifies challenges to improve P stewardship in the future and for our future. A century after Brandt’s discovery, P was identified in bone ash, which became the primary source of P until guano and ultimately rock P was mined to provide the various mineral formulations used today. Owing to limited supplies, a strategic shift in resource management ethics—from exploiting to conserving P resources—is needed. In agriculture, remedial strategies should consider when conservation practices can transition from P sinks to sources; however, a broader, long-term strategy for P stewardship is needed. This must include Reducing P loss in food and other wastes, Recovering P from waste streams, Reusing P generated beneficial by-products, and Restructuring production systems. A key action to enact such changes will be collaboration across all sectors of society and the supply chain, from field to fork and beyond. As this will likely increase the cost of food, fiber, and feed production, it will require an innovative mix of public and private initiatives