Cleaner Greener China

The Scientific American ArticleScientists urge Chinese farmers to use fertilizer better was tipped me off to the recently released study
Reducing environmental risk by improving N management in intensive Chinese agricultural systems

This study examines grain yields and N loss pathways using a synthetic
approach in 2 of the most intensive double-cropping systems in China:
waterlogged rice/upland wheat in the Taihu region of east China
versus irrigated wheat/rainfed maize on the North China Plain.

When compared with knowledge-based optimum N fertilization with 30–
60% N savings, we found that current agricultural N practices with
550–600 kg of N per hectare fertilizer annually do not significantly
increase crop yields but do lead to about 2 times larger N losses to the
environment. The higher N loss rates and lower N retention rates
indicate little utilization of residual N by the succeeding crop in
rice/wheat systems in comparison with wheat/maize systems.

Conducted by a panel of 11 Chinese contributors, the core message of this article is simply that Chinese farmers use too much fertilizer, that the farmers would be more profitable using less fertilizer through higher yields and reduce inputs, and that as this message gets through and farmers reduce their usage of fertilizers, the pressure on the ecosystem will greatly subside.