A nitrate vulnerable zone is a
conservation designation
A conservation designation is a name and/or acronym which explains the status of an area of land in terms of conservation or protection.
Examples United Kingdom
*Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB)
* Environmentally sensitive area
* Local ...
of the
Environment Agency for areas of land that drain into
nitrate polluted
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change. Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, the ...
waters, or
waterway
A waterway is any navigable body of water. Broad distinctions are useful to avoid ambiguity, and disambiguation will be of varying importance depending on the nuance of the equivalent word in other languages. A first distinction is necessary b ...
s that could become polluted by
nitrates due to environmental and health threats. A nitrate vulnerable zone can be designated as a response to an increase in
nitrate leaching or increased use of nitrate
fertilizer
A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...
s.
Nitrate pollution
Sources of nitrate pollution
One of the primary causes of nitrate pollution is the use of nitrogen
fertilizer
A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...
s and application of
manure
Manure is organic matter that is used as organic fertilizer in agriculture. Most manure consists of animal feces; other sources include compost and green manure. Manures contribute to the Soil fertility, fertility of soil by adding organic ma ...
to agricultural fields, which stimulates
crop
A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. When the plants of the same kind are cultivated at one place on a large scale, it is called a crop. Most crops are cultivated in agriculture or hydropon ...
production but also contributes to
nutrient pollution
Nutrient pollution, a form of water pollution, refers to contamination by excessive inputs of nutrients. It is a primary cause of eutrophication of surface waters (lakes, rivers and coastal waters), in which excess nutrients, usually nitrogen or ...
due to nitrate
leaches from soil during heavy
precipitation
In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravitational pull from clouds. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, sleet, snow, ice pellets, graupel and hail. ...
events.
Environmental impacts
Nitrate runoff can lead to
eutrophication
Eutrophication is the process by which an entire body of water, or parts of it, becomes progressively enriched with minerals and nutrients, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus. It has also been defined as "nutrient-induced increase in phytopla ...
of waterways, leading to excessive algal growth and
oxygen depletion
Hypoxia refers to low oxygen conditions. Normally, 20.9% of the gas in the atmosphere is oxygen. The partial pressure of oxygen in the atmosphere is 20.9% of the total barometric pressure. In water, oxygen levels are much lower, approximately 7 p ...
.
Health effects
High levels of nitrate in drinking water used to prepare
infant formula
Infant formula, baby formula, or simply formula (American English); or baby milk, infant milk or first milk (British English), is a manufactured food designed and marketed for feeding to babies and infants under 12 months of age, usually prepar ...
can negatively affect infant health. With continued use of contaminated water, infants can develop
Blue Baby Syndrome
Blue baby syndrome can refer to conditions that cause cyanosis, or blueness of the skin, in babies as a result of low oxygen levels in the blood. This term has traditionally been applied to cyanosis as a result of:
#Cyanotic heart disease, whi ...
, which can be fatal.
Regulations
Nitrate vulnerable zones are designated when the
concentration
In chemistry, concentration is the abundance of a constituent divided by the total volume of a mixture. Several types of mathematical description can be distinguished: '' mass concentration'', ''molar concentration'', '' number concentration'', ...
of nitrate in a given area reaches or surpasses 50 NO
3− mg/L. Regulations include:
* Reducing the amount of fertilizer applied;
* Prohibiting application of fertilizer during the winter when
runoff
Runoff, run-off or RUNOFF may refer to:
* RUNOFF, the first computer text-formatting program
* Runoff or run-off, another name for bleed, printing that lies beyond the edges to which a printed sheet is trimmed
* Runoff or run-off, a stock marke ...
is greatest and uptake by plants at a minimum;
* Changing the times when
animal waste
Manure is organic matter that is used as organic fertilizer in agriculture. Most manure consists of animal feces; other sources include compost and green manure. Manures contribute to the fertility of soil by adding organic matter and nu ...
is applied to the land and holding the waste in tanks until application.
The restrictions are within
Good Agricultural Practice
Good agricultural practice (GAP) is a certification system for agriculture, specifying procedures (and attendant documentation) that must be implemented to create food for consumers or further processing that is safe and wholesome, using sustaina ...
guidelines, meaning that farmers are expected to adhere to the given regulations without receiving any
subsidies
A subsidy or government incentive is a form of financial aid or support extended to an economic sector (business, or individual) generally with the aim of promoting economic and social policy. Although commonly extended from the government, the ter ...
. Farmers who do not adhere to these restrictions can be fined by the government.
Locations
![Descobreix Penedès, Torrelles de Foix](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/Descobreix_Pened%C3%A8s%2C_Torrelles_de_Foix.jpg)
Nitrate vulnerable zones were introduced by the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
government in response to the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...
mandate that all countries apart of the EU must reduce the nitrate in drinking water to a maximum of 50 NO
3− mg/L to protect public health and environmental health.
United Kingdom
The
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
identifies nitrate vulnerable zones as discrete zones in specific agricultural regions. There are at least 70 nitrate vulnerable zones in England and several in Wales, covering 600,000
hectare
The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100- metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is ...
s of
surface water and
ground water
Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit of rock or an unconsolidate ...
.
Wales
The Welsh Government introduced an all Wales NVZ in 2021, previously, 2.4% of Wales' land was designated as a NVZ. Environmental and fishing groups welcomed the new rules. It will be rolled out, pending a review by the
Senedd, over the next three years. The review came after major political backlash from opposition parties and farmers.
Northern Europe
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, and
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
have established their entire nations as nitrate vulnerable zones. These countries take a broader approach to designating nation-wide nitrate vulnerable zones because of the quality of the groundwater
as well as marine
eutrophication
Eutrophication is the process by which an entire body of water, or parts of it, becomes progressively enriched with minerals and nutrients, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus. It has also been defined as "nutrient-induced increase in phytopla ...
.
References
Environmental policy in the United Kingdom
{{Environment-stub