Letter of Transmittal

February 27, 2019

Roble Mohamed

Civil EngineeingEngineering UndergaduateUndergraduate

4700 Keele St, 11 Arboretum Lane

Dear Ms. Darlee

As per our agreement on January Janruary 27, 2019 the report being submitted is entitled “Combatting

Fertilizer Runoff in Lake Erie”

This report discusses discussed how to combat the runoff and provides solutions

Please direct any questions to my office at (specify phone number for your office)

Thank you,

Roble Mohamed

Combatting Fertilizer Runoff in Lake Erie

by

Roble Mohamed

Lassonde School of Engineering

February 27, 2019

Executive Summary

This report deals with the issues that arise from fertilizer that is applied on soil travelling to

lakes, rivers, and oceans. This analysis specifically deals with runoff affecting Lake Erie. The

damage to groundwater from fertilizer seeping into the soil, as well as the large growths of algae

killing marine life is was discussed. A combined solution including green infrastructure

(wetlands, proper sewers) and urban farming was proposed. Specifically, aquaponics which is a

system where fish and plants are grown in a controlled area was proposed as an urban farming

strategy. The proper implementation of fertilizer to the subsurface of soil and controlling

drainage were part of the combined solution.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 64

2. Background .................................................................................................................................. 75

2.1. What is Fertilizer?................................................................................................................ 75

2.2. History of Fertilizer .............................................................................................................. 75

2.3. Fertilizer Runoff and its Impacts ......................................................................................... 96

3. Discussion ................................................................................................................................... 117

3.1 Potential Solutions ................................................................................................................... 117

3.2 Assessing the solutions ............................................................................................................. 128

4. Information on the solution ..................................................................................................... 1310

5. Implementation ........................................................................................................................ 1713

References ........................................................................................................................................ 1915

List of Figures

Figure 1: Increased Fertilizer Among Throughout the 20th Century ....................................................... 87

Figure 2: Relationships Between Turbidity (SDD, TSM), and Fertilizer Products................................. 119

Figure 3: An Aquaponics System with Plants Resting in Nets ............................................................ 1615

List of Tables Table 1: Statistics for Lake Erie. (N =# of samples, chl-a=mg·m−3, TSM=m) [5] ................................................. 10 Table 2: Minimal amount of fertilizer used in aquaponics among other information [15]. ...................................... 15

1. Introduction

During the 1960’s, Lake Erie was said to be dying. This is because there were harmful algal

blooms spreading across the lake caused portions of the aquatic life in the lake to die. The trees

in the surrounding area were uprooted and the soil in the surrounding area was heavily

contaminated. Scientists and geologists conducted research in the 1970’s and concluded that the

high levels of phosphorus were to blame for these problems that arose. This is what contributed

to the passing of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement between the United States and

Canada. Following this, there was heavy monitoring of the sources of pollution and this lead to a

dramatic reduction in phosphorus levels. This was accomplished by monitoring point sources of

pollution coming from factories and sewage plants [1].

This is what caused Lake Erie to be seen as a water quality achievement in the 1990’s, and a

model for other municipalities dealing with water pollution problems. The rigorous monitoring

declined in the 2000’s and the pollution levels began to rise again [1]. Agricultural runoff is

mostly to blame for this. This causes us to question, is simply monitoring and putting caps on

discharge enough?

In this report, I will discuss the biological and environmental problems caused by fertilizer

runoff to Lake Erie and offer a viable solution compared to other solutions. Fertilizer runoff

happens when fertilizer placed on lawns and farms travel into our bodies of water causing

various problems. It is a growing concern due to the extensive damage it is causing to our

freshwater resources, ecosystems, and soil. This report’s body will explain the problems caused

by fertilizer runoff and the best solution to that issue. Please refer to the table of contents to find

any specific information.

2. Background

2.1. What is Fertilizer?

Fertilizer is any substance used to increase the nutrients in the soil, so that crops and plants can

grow more easily [2]. The most important nutrients in fertilizer are: phosphorus, nitrogen, and

potassium. Nitrogen is essential towards the formation of DNA and enzymes in plants, whilst

phosphorus is involved in the conversion of energy. The potassium in fertilizer is responsible for

chemical reactions in plants [3]. The widespread use of fertilizers has led to the problem of

fertilizer runoff.

2.2. History of Fertilizer

Throughout the history of humankind, there has been an interest in improving agricultural yields.

This has led to the experimentation of adding various substances to the soil to see which ones

produced results. This was mostly a trial and error process for most of history, until the dawn of

the 19th century. As scientists began to discover more and more chemical elements, they were

very interested in what plants were comprised of and what they’re necessities were. Justus Von

Liebig laid the foundations for the current fertilizer industry. He instructed putting sulfuric acid

on bones so that phosphate could fertilize plants. Liebig noted that nitrogen and phosphorus were

very important nutrients [4].

The demand for ammonia and nitrates increased as farmers wanted more effective fertilization

methods. Haber Fitz was able to create ammonia (NH3) in a usable form for living organisms

from nitrogen gas (N2) in the air. This was done by adding hydrogen, iron catalysts, and

monitoring the temperature. It is said that this discovery drastically exploded the use of this

fertilizer as illustrated in the following figure:

Figure 1: Increased Fertilizer Use Among Countries Throughout the 20th Century [5]

These increased crop yields have contributed to the exploding of the human population from 1

billion to 7 billion. The widespread use of fertilizer derived from the Haber process has had

lasting impacts on the environment. One of the major ones is fertilizer runoff [4].

2.3. Fertilizer Runoff and its Impacts

Fertilizer runoff occurs when fertilizer not consumed by the soil is carried off the soil by water or

seeps into the ground. Fertilizer runoff is primarily caused by poor soil structure and

overfertilization. A particular soil may not have enough organic material to process the fertilizer

(worms, plant/animal remains etc), so it sits on top of soil and is carried away with the water.

When too much fertilizer is applied, the excess is carried away by rainwater or hosewaterhose

water as runoff [6]. Fertilizer runoff has caused damage to water resources, aquatic life, and

aquatic environments. (coral reefs).

Fertilizer runoff causes the contamination of water resources. Groundwater is polluted by nitrates

that come from fertilizer that has seeped into the soil [7]. Water with excess nitrates are known to

kill infants and can cause gastric problems in adults (Self and Waskom, 2013, para. 5-6).

Fertilizer runoff introduces harmful algal blooms in our oceans and lakes. It is rich in phosphorus

and nitrogen, which are two nutrients that algae need to grow. When there is an excessive

amount of it in a body of water, large amounts of algae begin to grow. These algae release toxins

into the water supply that can cause diarrhea, nausea, and headaches if consumed [8].

There was an extensive study conducted into Lake Erie that checked for water quality parameters

utilizing MERIS mapping in 2016. This shows different regions of the lake in different colors

which is spectrometry. It showed the following:

1. The Detroit and Maumee watershed carry phosphorus and other nutrients to Lake Erie

2. The western basin of Lake Erie experiences the most intense algal blooms compared to

the rest of the lake. This includes Maumee Bay and Sandusky Bay for example.

3. Total suspended matters (i.e high turbidity) is the major cause of the lakes low water

clarity [5].

Fertilizer runoff has caused the destruction of aquatic life and marine environments in Lake Erie.

Whenever algae dies, the decomposition process consumes a lot of oxygen. Because of this, a

large amount of algae depletes the amount of oxygen in an area of water. This causes fish and all

organisms that require oxygen to die [8]. The University of Waterloo conducted research on how

fertilizer products affect turbidity. It showed how chlorophyll (chl_a), and turbidity (SDD and

TSM) were related:

Table 1: Statistics for Lake Erie. (N =# of samples, chl-a=mg·m−3, TSM=m) [5]

Figure 2: Relationships Between Turbidity (SDD, TSM), and Fertilizer Products [5]

The sediment from fertilizers doesn’t allow light to reach vegetation that is on the bed of a body

of water. The decreased light leads to those plants death since they need sunlight to perform

photosynthesis [8]. Marine environments like coral reefs also suffer from runoff. A coral reef site

at Florida Keys showed that the corals would become diseased as a reaction to increased levels

of nitrogen and phosphorus were diseased when there was increased levels of nitrogen and

phosphorus [9].

3. Discussion

3.1 Potential Solutions

There are a number of potential solutions to solve the issue of fertilizer runoff in Lake Erie. A

genuine solution should be financially feasible and not be difficult to implement. Most crucial of

all, the solution must be sustainable in the long-term. Lake Erie was polluted in the 70’s and

became polluted again, because the strategies implemented back then weren’t feasible for the

long-term. The potential solutions are as follows:

a) Fertilizer Management: This solution entails taking over 30,000 acres of agricultural land

out of production and placing over a million acres under strict fertilizer management

practices. This would affect thousands of farms in the Maumee watershed, which drain

into the lake. Management practices include placing the fertilizer in the sub-surface of the

soil instead of the surface. Fertilizer placed on the surface can be carried away by

rainwater and runoff into lakes, and sub-surface placement greatly reduces this [10].

b) Green Infrastructure: This answer to the problem includes the conversion of cropland and

the creation of grasslands and wetlands. Wetlands provide an amazing filter and sponge

for runoff and clean out contaminants and excess phosphorus in runoff. Grasslands act in

a similar manner by slowing down and absorbing runoff. The use of ditches around a

farm so that fertilizer runoff collects there is also part of green infrastructure. Other green

infrastructure include upgrading storm sewer systems that use a combined sewer outfall.

This stops sewage from flowing into the lake during a heavy storm event [11].

c) Aquaponics as a supplement to land-based Agriculture: Aquaponics is the growing of

plants in a soilless media and fish in tanks. Because it can be set up in urban centers with

ease, it can be a powerful solution to reduce the reliance on land-based agriculture in

rural areas. The decreased demand for food will free up some croplands to be converted

into green infrastructure [12].

3.2 Assessing the solutions

a) Fertilizer Management: This form of reducing the runoff in Lake Erie is very similar to

what was done back in 70’s and it isn’t very sustainable. Even though it would meet the

runoff reduction targets, it would greatly negatively affect the ability of Maumee farms to

operate in a competitive market. There would also have to be some cropland shut down,

which will damage businesses. Overall, this is a harsh method and one that will not be

pursued. However, the practice of trying to put fertilizer in the ground will be

implemented.

b) Green Infrastructure: This solution is a huge step in the right direction. By reducing or

eliminating the ways runoff can enter the lake, the amount of phosphorus in the lake will

decrease be decreased. The elimination of combined sewer overflows would greatly

reduce lake contamination, but it might be costly. Green infrastructure is very sustainable

in that it does not doesn’t require much maintenance. This is definitely a solution that will

be implemented.

c) Aquaponics as a supplement to land-based Agriculture: Even though green infrastructure

would reduce runoff coming into the lake, it won’t prevent runoff entering into the

environment in general. A full solution requires the reduction of fertilizer runoff

discharged. Aquaponics becomes a very attractive option since, because it would reduce

the demand from land-based agriculture, by agriculture by increasing production in urban

and rural centers. This would in turn reduce fertilizer requirements needed in the Maumee

agricultural regions.

The plan to reduce runoff in Lake Erie will use a combination of the best aspects of the potential

solutions that were discussed. In summary, this is the combined solution:

1. Instructing and enforcing farmers to put fertilizer in the sub-surface of the soil within

reason.

2. The overhaul of combined sewer overflows (CSO’s) within the Maumee watershed.

3. The installation of swales and ditches around farms.

4. The gradual creation of grasslands, wetlands, and general green cover in the areas

surrounding farms.

5. A concentrated effort to introduce publicly-owned urban aquaponics farms as well as

encouraging private aquaponics businesses to start.

4. Information on the solution

The University of Michigan has have conducted studies and created models which prove that

adopting the widespread practice of subsurface application of fertilizer would greatly reduce

fertilizer runoff. Many Most of the different scenarios that they have run have the most

successful results when sub-surface fertilizer is used. The University of Illinois conducted a

study to see if sub-surface application increased crop yields and they concluded that it doesn’t

increase yields. This is good news, considering because it would notwouldn’t be financially

prudent to promote a practice that damages yields.

Futhermore, One reason a reason to why sewage is ending up in Lake Erie, especially during an

extreme rain event, is because of a design flaw called a combined sewer overflow (CSO). The

sanitary sewer and storm sewer pipes are connected together and during a dry event, the system

works fine with a weir blocking the sewage. However during a heavy rain event, the sewage

flows freely into a Lake Erie. The creation of separate sewage and storm systems would greatly

reduce pollution and contamination in the lake.

Swales, ditches, and buffer strips are all words that describe areas or strips of land that have a

depression and dense cover of vegetation. They can placed in urban areas to mainly supplement

local drainage. They can be used to provide green cover and encourage biodiversity but this

secondary. In agricultural fields they are mainly used to slow down runoff and retain nutrients

within the field. Buffers capture pesticides, disease causing bacteria, and promotes infiltration

within the field. Grasslands and wetlands also perform similar functions but over larger areas.

These are all important in reducing not only the runoff leaving fields, but reducing all chemicals

entering Lake Erie [13].

Aquaponics is the cultivation of both fish and plants in a mutually beneficial relationship.

Aquaponics utilizes the waste from the aquatic organisms and that acts as a fertilizer for the

plants, whose roots touch the water. The waste from fish is rich in ammonia (a compound of

nitrogen) and is necessary for plant growth. Bacteria is added to the system to convert the

ammonia into nitrate, which can then be absorbed by the plants [14].

There are a number of benefits to using an aquaponic system. Firstly, an aquaponics doesn’t

require arable land which means it can be utilized in urban communities more easily. Secondly,

aquaponics is efficient in conserving water. The water used in an aquaponic system is the

minimum required to grow the plants and for plant processes. Thirdly, aquaponics uses a

minimal amount of fertilizer and there is no runoff due to the daily monitoring and the tanks.

(FAO, n.d.) The following table shows the lack of fertilizer an aquaponic system requires:

Table 2: Minimal amount of fertilizer used in aquaponics among other information [15].

The above table compares the benefits and downsides of using soil based agriculture compared

to soil-less. To summarize, the table shows how soil-less agriculture has a very low risk of

contamination of watersheds and waterways. It also shows that there is more control of nutrient

delivery to the soil. However, soil-based production can grow a wider variety of crops compared

to soil-less.

Aquaponics solves the issue of fertilizer runoff by providing an alternative method of producing

food that doesn’t require additional fertilizer outside the fertilizer the fish provide for the plants.

There is a very low amount of runoff, because the fish and the waste are in a tank and it is easier

to monitor [15]. The water in an aquaponic system can be reused many times, because the plants

are using the waste from the fish. An aquaponic system is comprised of many components, all of

which are crucial to its functionality.

An aquaponic system is comprised of a shallow wooden tray which is the tank for the fish. The

number of trays depends on the size of the system [16]. Plastic liner lies on the trays and a cover

lies on top of the plastic [16]. There are holes in the cover and plastic and plants lie inside of net

pots which rest in the holes. The plants roots will touch the water and grow from the waste of the

fish. There is also a water pump that is connected to the tanks which can regulate the levels of

water [16].

Figure 3: An Aquaponics System with Plants Resting in Nets [16]

5. Implementation

This section deals with the implementation of the solution now that what it is has been

thoroughly explored. A general view of the proposed mandate is as follows:

1. Creation of publicly owned aquaponics farms and community farms.

2. Encouraging private businesses to start.

a. FarmersFarmer’s markets open all weekdays

b. Creating incentives like easier loans for those starting an urban farming business

3. Installing buffer strips around major farms in watershed as well as encouraging smaller

farms to install them.

4. Implement laws that require farms to apply fertilizer to the subsurface of the soil, but be

lenient in enforcement in the beginning.

5. Rewarding rural farms who proactively work to implement the 2 points and penalizing

farms that are not co-operative.

The creation of a publicly owned aquaponics farm would be a great boon for the environment

and the local economy. Given that it is marketed properly, placed in a strategic place, and has

competitive prices, it has the potential to greatly reduce the demand for produce from rural

farms. It would provide food security and jobs to local jobs to Torontonians. The building of

community aquaponics farms would serve as a way to introduce and explain to locals about the

importance of local farms. This would in-turn influence locals to purchase from the publicly-

owned aquaponics farm.

In addition to the creation of public farms, private businesses that practice urban farming should

be given an environment in which it is easier for them to prosper. One of the prominent ways in

which local farmers farmer’s sell their crops is at a farmers farmer’s market. However, most

farmers farmer’s markets are only open on weekends or two days out of the week. This makes it

difficult for it to be a consistent option for consumers. These. Farmer’s markets would be open

five days a week and this combined with easier loans for urban farming startups will make local

produce a mainstream and consistent option for consumers.

The installation of buffer strips around major farms will have to include a joint effort from both

farmers that are contributing the most to fertilizer runoff and the government of Ontario. The

runoff from the biggest contributors to runoff must be targeted since, because controlling the

runoff of a few major farms will reduce the amount the runoff dramatically instead of penalizing

small farmers who might be struggling with their expenses.

There will be a general incentives system that will make it easier for farmers who voluntarily

strive to install buffer strips, practice good fertilization management practices, and co-operate

with the government which will have to be the main player in getting the implementation of the

plan into action. Some suggestions for rewards include: tax cuts, business contacts, and the

promotion of the farm as one that practices good environmental principles.

Add concluding statement

References

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solved-in-the-70s.html

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http://www.epa.gov/agriculture/tfer.html

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