Gassy+farm+soils+are+a+shockingly+large+source+of+these+air+pollutants

https://www.sciencenews.org/article/gassy-farm-soils-are-shockingly-large-source-these-air-pollutants?tgt=nr

Date Posted: February 7, 2018

This article reveals the fact that the use of nitrogen fertilizers on the majority of California’s agricultural land is what is producing the noxious gas that produces toxic effects and acid rain throughout the state. Up to 51% of the pollution is contributed to by these soils creating nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide, which react with the sunlight to create ozone. The soil emissions are sensitive to climate and rates of nitrogen input, therefore as these factors rise, so will the emissions. The health effects associated with this amount of air pollution include asthma, emphysema, and many other harmful diseases. There are many ways to solve this issue, including limiting the amount of nitrogen fertilizer is used in soil or planting cover crops along the target crops to consume as much excess nitrogen as possible.
 * A summary: **

This article relates to APES because the amount of pollution in the air due to nitrogen oxides is mentioned multiple times in the textbook as well as the course in general. The effects of air pollution is also quite important, as “nitrogen oxides can irritate the lungs, aggravate asthma or chronic bronchitis, cause conditions similar to chronic bronchitis and emphysema, and increase susceptibility to respiratory infections such as the flu and common colds” (Miller 488). The article also relates to the course because it discusses the process of the nitrogen cycle, including denitrification which is mentioned in this quote: “NOx gases are produced in oxygen-poor soils when microbes break apart nitrogen compounds in the fertilizer, a process called denitrification.” It also mentions cover crops, which is essential in agricultural techniques and soils: “planting what are called cover crops along with the target crops that enrich soils and consume the excess nitrogen.”
 * How the article relates to the course **

I believe that this article is essential for everyone to read, not only those in California that are directly affected by this issue, because there are important causes of the issue that everyone should learn from. The article mentions the fact that the majority of California’s agricultural land uses nitrogen fertilizers, which essentially make the soil extremely saturated and allow the soil to emit harmful gases which eventually pollute the air. People should limit their use of nitrogen fertilizer because it will lead to these large issues, and this will then prevent future health problems like emphysema or bronchitis.
 * My opinion **

I believe a relevant law to this article would be the Clean Air Act of 1963 because it sets standards for pollution levels and limits emissions for various classes of pollutant based on current technology. The farmers in California need to abide by this law because the nitrogen fertilizers they are using are extremely harmful to society.
 * An environmental law **


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