| Abstract: | A mass-balance budget of N cycling was developed for an intensive agricultural area in west-central Minnesota to better understand NO3/- contamination of ground water in the Otter Tail outwash aquifer. Fertilizer, biological fixation, atmospheric deposition, and animal feed were the N sources, and crop harvests, animal product exports, volatilization from fertilizer and manure, and denitrification were the N sinks in the model. Excess N, calculated as the difference between the sources and sinks, was assumed to leach to ground water as NO3/-. The budget was developed using ground water data collected throughout the 212-km2 study area. Denitrification was estimated by adjusting its value so the predicted and measured concentrations of NO3/- in ground water agreed. Although biological fixation was the largest single N source, most was removed when crops were harvested, indicating that inorganic fertilizer was the primary source of N reaching the water table. It was estimated that denitrification removed almost half of the excess NO3/- that leached below the root zone. Even after accounting for denitrification losses, however, it was concluded that the ground water system was receiving approximately three times as much N as would be expected under background conditions. |
| Genre: | Article |
| ProdID: | 70021247 |
| Citation Author: | Puckett, L. J.; Cowdery, T. K.; Lorenz, D. L.; Stoner, J. D. |
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| Citation End Page: | 2025 |
| Citation Issue: | 6 |
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| Citation Language: | English |
| Citation Larger Work Title: | Journal of Environmental Quality |
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| Citation Number Of Pages: | 11 |
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| Citation Publisher: | American Soc of Agronomy Inc |
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| Citation Search Results Text: | Estimation of nitrate contamination of an agro-ecosystem outwash aquifer using a nitrogen mass-balance budget; 1999; Article; Journal; Journal of Environmental Quality; Puckett, L. J.; Cowdery, T. K.; Lorenz, D. L.; Stoner, J. D. |
| Citation Start Page: | 2015 |
| Citation Volume: | 28 |
| Citation Year: | 1999 |
| Type: | citation/reference |
| Text: | Estimation of nitrate contamination of an agro-ecosystem outwash aquifer using a nitrogen mass-balance budget; 1999; Article; Journal; Journal of Environmental Quality; Puckett, L. J.; Cowdery, T. K.; Lorenz, D. L.; Stoner, J. D. |
| URL (THUMBNAIL): | http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/thumbnails/outside_thumb.jpg |
| Date Other: | Fri, 1 Jan 1999 00:00 -0600 |
| Publisher: | American Soc of Agronomy Inc |
