{"id":385,"date":"2018-03-07T13:35:24","date_gmt":"2018-03-07T21:35:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/?p=385"},"modified":"2020-02-18T09:01:34","modified_gmt":"2020-02-18T17:01:34","slug":"research-update-nitrogen-fertilizer-loading-to-groundwater-in-the-central-valley","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/research-update-nitrogen-fertilizer-loading-to-groundwater-in-the-central-valley\/","title":{"rendered":"Research Update: Nitrogen Fertilizer Loading to Groundwater in the Central Valley"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Research Project: <\/strong>Nitrogen Fertilizer Loading to Groundwater in the Central Valley. <em>Thomas Harter et al<\/em>.<br \/>\n<strong>Status: <\/strong>Completed<\/p>\n<p><strong>Issue: <\/strong>Nitrogen, in the form of nitrate, is the most common pollutant found in Central Valley groundwater. Nitrate has a maximum contaminant level (MCL) in drinking water of 45mg\/L (NO3). Under natural conditions, groundwater nitrate may occur in concentrations up to 10mg\/L. Nitrate can also leach into groundwater from other nitrogen sources, such as fertilizer and manure.<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>This project conducted an assessment of Central Valley groundwater vulnerability to nitrate contamination from various sources. Researchers evaluated sources of groundwater nitrate, historical trends, and methods to reduce nitrate loading. Previous work by these researchers showed that the sources of most nitrogen loading to groundwater in the Tulare Lake Basin and the Salinas Valley are nitrogen fertilizer applications and dairy manure.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Findings: <\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Through this project, researchers found that, while growers have become more efficient with their water and fertilizer applications, there remain opportunities for improvement. They also identified the most significant nitrogen inputs and outputs in these agroecosystems to be the following:<\/p>\n<table role=\"presentation\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\">\n<tbody>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td width=\"50%\">The largest nitrogen fluxes into the agricultural landscape:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Synthetic Fertilizers<\/li>\n<li>Land application of manure &amp; wastewater effluent<\/li>\n<li>Nitrogen fixation in alfalfa<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<td width=\"50%\">The largest nitrogen fluxes out of the agricultural landscape:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Harvested nitrogen<\/li>\n<li>Potential nitrogen losses to groundwater<\/li>\n<li>Atmospheric nitrogen losses<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><strong>Outlook: <\/strong>Based on the magnitude of nitrogen fluxes, there are a few options to reduce the potential for nitrogen loading to groundwater from cropland across the Central Valley:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Increase the amount of harvest without increasing the amount of synthetic or organic fertilizer<\/li>\n<li>Reduce nitrogen input to the agricultural landscape. Synthetic fertilizer is the main flux that can be reduced significantly without changing Central Valley land use.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Due to the slow-moving nature of groundwater recharge, improvements in groundwater quality from better management practices adoption may take decades. However, improvements in agricultural management and resource efficiency are important in protecting groundwater quality.<\/p>\n<p>As part of this work, FREP\u2019s work, and others, a wide range of agricultural processes have been documented that significantly improve crop nitrogen use efficiency. Moving forward, a key goal will be to extend this knowledge to growers and effectively disseminate research findings.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Final Report: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdfa.ca.gov\/is\/ffldrs\/frep\/pdfs\/CompletedProjects\/15-0454_partialFR-Harter.pdf\">https:\/\/www.cdfa.ca.gov\/is\/ffldrs\/frep\/pdfs\/CompletedProjects\/15-0454_partialFR-Harter.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Research Project: Nitrogen Fertilizer Loading to Groundwater in the Central Valley. Thomas Harter et al. Status: Completed Issue: Nitrogen, in the form of nitrate, is the most common pollutant found in Central Valley groundwater. Nitrate has a maximum contaminant level (MCL) in drinking water of 45mg\/L (NO3). Under natural conditions, groundwater nitrate may occur in concentrations up to 10mg\/L. Nitrate &hellip;<\/p>\n<div class=\"m-y-md text-right\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/research-update-nitrogen-fertilizer-loading-to-groundwater-in-the-central-valley\/\" class=\"btn btn-primary\" aria-label=\"Continue reading the blog post...\">Read More<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[86],"tags":[21,91,266,58],"class_list":["post-385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-all","tag-california-agriculture-research","tag-central-valley-agriculture","tag-nitrate-groundwater-contamination","tag-nitrogen-management"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9r16A-6d","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":189,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/research-update-fertilizer-value-of-nitrogen-in-irrigation-water\/","url_meta":{"origin":385,"position":0},"title":"Research Update: Fertilizer Value of Nitrogen in Irrigation Water","author":"Brooke Elliot","date":"February 15, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Research Project: Determining the Fertilizer Value of Ambient Nitrogen in Irrigation Water - Cahn, M. et al. Status: Final year of study Issue: Irrigation water from many wells on the Central Coast contains a significant amount of nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N). The N content in irrigation water has not been accounted for\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;All&quot;","block_context":{"text":"All","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/category\/all\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Manifold and injection system used for simulating irrigation water with different concentrations of nitrate-N.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/Cahn-blog-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":228,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/research-update-train-the-trainer\/","url_meta":{"origin":385,"position":1},"title":"Research Update: Train the Trainer","author":"Brooke Elliot","date":"August 15, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Research Project: Train the Trainer: A Nitrogen Management Training Program for Growers. Klassen, P. et al. Status: Second year of a three year study Issue: Growers who belong to California\u2019s Central Valley Water Quality Coalitions and who are in designated high vulnerability areas are under new Irrigated Lands Regulatory Program\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;All&quot;","block_context":{"text":"All","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/category\/all\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Larry Schwankl, UCCE Irrigation Specialist, presenting to CCAs at a Train the Trainer course in November 2015.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/LS-trains-trainers-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":184,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/research-update-data-driven-nitrate-leaching-hazard-index-and-bmp-assessment-tool\/","url_meta":{"origin":385,"position":2},"title":"Research Update: Data Driven Nitrate Leaching Hazard Index and BMP Assessment Tool","author":"Brooke Elliot","date":"March 14, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Research Project: A Data Driven Nitrate Leaching Hazard Index and BMP Assessment Tool - O\u2019Geen, A. et al. Status: Second year of a three year study Issue: California growers are faced with the challenge of producing high-quality crops while minimizing the movement of fertilizer nitrogen to groundwater. One major difficulty\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;All&quot;","block_context":{"text":"All","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/category\/all\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Figure 1. Spatial distribution of simulated travel times for a HYDRUS model map of nitrate leaching (50% complete).","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/OGeen-blog-810x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":334,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/grants-to-begin-funding-january-2018\/","url_meta":{"origin":385,"position":3},"title":"Grants to Begin Funding January 2018","author":"Brooke Elliot","date":"January 2, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"The Fertilizer Research and Education Program (FREP) of the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) is pleased to announce the award of almost $800,000 in grant funds to agricultural organizations and universities this year. These grants will fund four projects that will improve the efficiency and reduce the environmental\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;FREP Grant Program&quot;","block_context":{"text":"FREP Grant Program","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/category\/frep-grant-program\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":235,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/research-update-improving-n-use-efficiency-of-cool-season-vegetables-with-broccoli-rotations\/","url_meta":{"origin":385,"position":4},"title":"Research Update: Improving N Use Efficiency of Cool Season Vegetables with Broccoli Rotations","author":"Brooke Elliot","date":"July 1, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Research Project: Improving N Use Efficiency of Cool Season Vegetable Production Systems with Broccoli Rotations. Smith R. et al. Status: Completed Issue: The cool season vegetable production areas of the California\u2019s Central Coast frequently grow two or three crops during the growing season. The dominant crops\u2014like lettuce and spinach\u2014require high\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;All&quot;","block_context":{"text":"All","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/category\/all\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"photograph of a field of vegetables","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/IMG_5337-300x199.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":139,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/key-learnings-from-the-frepwpha-conference\/","url_meta":{"origin":385,"position":5},"title":"Key Learnings from the FREP\/WPHA Conference","author":"Brooke Elliot","date":"November 30, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"The twenty fourth annual FREP\/WPHA Conference took place on October 26-27, where speakers from industry, academia, and agricultural consulting provided cutting edge information on nutrient management in California agriculture. The conference presentations covered a wide range of nutrient management topics including education and outreach, soil microbiology, government regulations and irrigation,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Nutrient Management Events&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Nutrient Management Events","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/category\/nutrient-management-events\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Conf-Key-Learnings-Banner","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Conf-Key-Learnings-Banner-1024x330.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Conf-Key-Learnings-Banner-1024x330.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Conf-Key-Learnings-Banner-1024x330.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/385","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=385"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/385\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1538,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/385\/revisions\/1538"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=385"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=385"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=385"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}