Question

Farmers in Nick’s village are using excessive chemical fertilizers for increasing the productivity of their crops. Nick and his team of other community activists are concerned that prolonged use of chemical fertilizers will impact the environment. How can excessive use of fertilizers affect the environment in a negative way?

Answer 1

artificial fertilizers and pesticides we use make a severe impact on the nature of the soil and these chemical degrades the nutrients present in the soil and these chemicals also effect the lives of earthworms which play a key role in agriculture and also many micro organisms live in the soil

Answer 2

The biggest problem with the use of chemical fertilizers is that groundwater contamination may happen.

Nitrogen fertilizers may break down into nitrates and it can travel easily within the soil.

Since it is water-soluble and it can remain in groundwater for a long time, the more addition of it over the years may have an accumulative effect.

Effects of chemical fertilizers can be compounded when they are mixed with one pesticide more than others.