Chapter 1: Managing Fertilizer Nutrients to Protect the Environment and Human Health

The goal of a nutrient management plan is to ensure the availability of adequate nutrients for crop production with minimal nutrient loss in runoff or leaching from the root zone. Such a plan should include an evaluation of site environmental concerns, evaluation of available soil nutrient status, calculation of nutrient application amounts based on realistic crop yields and available soil nutrients, and, appropriate nutrient application methods. This chapter explains how fertilizer nutrients can be environmental pollutants and, in some cases, a danger to human health. It describes the evolution of regulations designed to protect society from this pollution, and it provides details about what goes into a nutrient management plan