In agricultural settings, increasing which practice raises nutrient runoff risk?

In agricultural settings, increasing which practice raises nutrient runoff risk?

• A. Fertilizer and Manure Application
• B. Crop Rotation
• C. Drip Irrigation
• D. Cover Cropping

Answer: (A)

Increasing fertilizer and manure application raises nutrient runoff risk because adding more nutrients to the soil than crops can use or soils can hold leads to excess nutrients that can be washed away by rain or irrigation. Nitrogen and phosphorus move with surface water or through leaching, especially when inputs exceed uptake or soil retention capacity, contaminating nearby water bodies. Other practices tend to reduce runoff: drip irrigation minimizes water that leaves the field, cover crops protect and hold nutrients in the soil, and crop rotation helps maintain soil structure and nutrient use efficiency. So boosting fertilizer and manure inputs directly increases the potential for nutrient runoff.

Increasing fertilizer and manure application raises nutrient runoff risk because adding more nutrients to the soil than crops can use or soils can hold leads to excess nutrients that can be washed away by rain or irrigation. Nitrogen and phosphorus move with surface water or through leaching, especially when inputs exceed uptake or soil retention capacity, contaminating nearby water bodies. Other practices tend to reduce runoff: drip irrigation minimizes water that leaves the field, cover crops protect and hold nutrients in the soil, and crop rotation helps maintain soil structure and nutrient use efficiency. So boosting fertilizer and manure inputs directly increases the potential for nutrient runoff.