Journal article
Livestock manure driving stream nitrate
Ambio, Vol.48(10), pp.1143-1153
10/01/2019
DOI: 10.1007/s13280-018-1137-5
PMCID: PMC6722160
PMID: 30569437
Abstract
Growth and consolidation in the livestock industry in the past 30 years have resulted in more total farm animals being raised on fewer Iowa farms. The effects of this on stream water quality at the landscape scale have largely gone unexplored. The main objective of this work was to quantify the effects on stream nitrate levels of livestock concentration in two western Iowa watersheds relative to seven other nearby watersheds. To achieve this objective, we used data on high-frequency nitrate concentration and stream discharge, commercial nitrogen fertilizer use, and manure-generated nitrogen in each watershed. Our analysis shows much higher stream nitrate in the two watersheds where livestock concentration has been greatest, and little difference in commercial fertilizer inputs with the widespread availability of manure N. Reducing N inputs and better management of manure N, including analysis of crop N availability in soil and manure, can reduce uncertainty regarding fertilization while improving water quality.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Livestock manure driving stream nitrate
- Creators
- Christopher S. Jones - 332 Trowbridge Hall, Iowa City, IA 52242 USAChad W. Drake - 100 C. Maxwell, Iowa City, IA 52242 USAClaire E. Hruby - Iowa Department of Natural ResourcesKeith E. Schilling - United States Geological SurveyCalvin F. Wolter - Iowa Department of Natural Resources
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Ambio, Vol.48(10), pp.1143-1153
- Publisher
- Springer Netherlands
- DOI
- 10.1007/s13280-018-1137-5
- PMID
- 30569437
- PMCID
- PMC6722160
- ISSN
- 0044-7447
- eISSN
- 1654-7209
- Grant note
- ;
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 10/01/2019
- Academic Unit
- Earth and Environmental Sciences; IIHR--Hydroscience and Engineering
- Record Identifier
- 9984383894302771
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