Navigating the right course for quality water and profit Professor - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Navigating the right course for quality water and profit

Professor Keith Goulding Sustainable Soils Research Fellow Rothamsted Research Crop Nutrition Sponsored by YARA UK

§ doubling resource productivity by 2050 § continuing to cut greenhouse gas emissions including from land use, land use change, the agriculture and waste sectors § working towards our ambition of zero avoidable waste by 2050 Actions we will take include: Putting in place a robust framework to limit inputs of nitrogen-rich fertilisers such as manures, slurries and chemicals to economically efficient levels, and make sure they are stored and applied safely. Draft Environment Bill includes an ‘Office of Environmental Protection’?

10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90

• 100

100 200 300 1st wheat

• cont. wheat

N N le leac ache hed d de depe pende ndent nt on n the the N N sur urplus plus no not t the the amo amount unt of N N applie applied

N leached (kg N ha-1 yr-1) N surplus (kg N ha-1 yr-1)

Relationship between average farm N surplus in 1999-2001 and NO3 concentration in groundwater in 2000-2002 in The Netherlands. (O. Oenema)

Supported by on-farm data from The Netherlands

Wide range of N surpluses on UK farms

N surplus (= N inputs – N in product; kg N/ha) Fertiliser N input (kg N/ha)

sheep arable dairy pig/arable

• rganic

dairy (clover)

Improving NUE: precision

Avoid excessive surplus by: n Realistic yield prediction n Recommendation system for N application, e.g. ‘Nutrient Management Guide (RB209) n ‘4R nutrient management’

‘4R Nutrient Stewardship’ for BMP

§ Right source § Right rate § Right time § Right place

Johnston and Bruulsema 2014 Procedia Engineering 83, 365-370.

FAO International Code of Conduct for the Sustainable Use and Management of Fertilizers. Approved 27 June 2019: Includes: “…site-specific nutrient management incorporating the ‘4Rs’ … is a requirement to close remaining yield gaps as well to reduce the environmental footprint of fertilizers”

Inhibitors: N2O emissions from fertilisers

Harty et al 2016, Sci. Total Env., 563-564, pp 576-586.

Inhibitors: NH3 emissions from fertilisers applied to pH7 soils

Hutchings N, Webb J, Amon B (2016): EMEP/EEA air pollutant emission inventory guidebook | via Yara International ASA

AHDB data on Excess Winter Rainfall used to inform

• n N requirements

Paul Hallett: IFS Agronomy Conference 2018

Good soil structure essential

Good Compacted

Good all-round agronomy:

Many UK arable soils contain too little P and K

Professional Agriculture Analysis Group, 2014

A graphical presentation of the desirable range for the N surplus

An example from Broadbalk An example from Broadbalk

Take-home points

§ Precision:

Ø Realistic yield prediction Ø Minimise the N surplus Ø ‘4Rs’ critical

§ Use online alerts such as AHDB EWR § Soil structure, pH, PKMg… supply important § Good all-round agronomy

Go Good all all-rou

• und a

agr gron

• nom
• my e

y essential: Br Broa

• adbalk

Broadbalk: mean yields of wheat grain, cultivars and major changes

IFS Agronomy Conference, 12-13 Dec 2019

‘Factors affecting Nitrogen Use Efficiency - identification, measurement and management’ Papers on: § NUE by De Vries § Ammonia emission by Powlson § Inhibitors by Cardenas

Final question: Do you know your NUE?

Acknowledgements

Rothamsted Research receives funding from the UK Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council. The UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs funded some of the research described in this talk. Yara sponsored this seminar.