Fertiliser use in farming

The use of fertilisers on farms increased sharply after the Second World War. The volumes of phosphorus and nitrogen discharged into lakes and coastal areas today therefore considerably exceed those at the beginning of the 20th century.

Farms use large quantities of fertilisers. Arable soil is also often enriched with animal manure. The risk of phosphorus and nitrogen leaching out of fields into adjacent watercourses, lakes and coastal areas is affected by such factors as what crop is grown, the soil type, precipitation, irrigation and harvesting.

Agriculture accounts for roughly 85% of ammonia emissions to air. The interim
target in Zero Eutrophication has, essentially, already been achieved.
(Source: Swedish Environmental Protection Agency.)

 

On average, a third of nitrogen fertiliser applied to arable land brings no benefit, since it is not absorbed by the crops. More than half of this surplus leaches out into surrounding waters.

Wetlands in which ditches have been dug, lakes that have been lowered and watercourses that have been straightened out contribute to the ongoing massive leaching of nutrients from farming areas, since the previous obstacles to this leaching no longer exist.

Contact: Lars Klintwall, lars.klintwall(a)naturvardsverket.se