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Role of agricultural land practices in the behaviour of nitrates in groundwater

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International Journal of Energy and Water Resources Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Nitrate contamination is a major issue in aquifers that are being exploited for drinking water. Exceeding maximum contamination levels (MCL) of nitrates in drinking water can cause acute and chronic health problems. In agricultural areas, aquifers are vulnerable to nitrate contamination due to the excessive use of fertiliser. This research study investigated the potential impacts of anthropogenic nitrates on the giant Guarani Aquifer System (GAS) in Brazil, where nitrogen-based fertiliser use had doubled from 2005 to 2016. The study results indicated that there exists two different systems for the behaviour of nitrates in groundwater, above and below a 150 m depth of the aquifer. For the aquifer depth above 150 m, Cl− (positive influence) and F− (negative influence) were found to significantly influence NO3− contamination (p < 0.05). However, statistically significant relationships between NO3− and other influential factors were not found for the aquifer depth below 150 m. Even though agricultural practices do not pose a direct impact on NO3− contamination of groundwater, it was evident that anthropogenic inputs of NO3− could elevate the concentrations in the aquifer depth reaching 150 m.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank all who assisted in conducting this work.

Funding

This study was funded by Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP), Brazil and Australian Technology Network (ATN) (Sprint Grant ID: 2016/50327-4), and by Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation, China (2019A1515110353).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Science and Engineering Faculty, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), GPO Box 2434, Brisbane, QLD, 4001, Australia

    A. Jayarathne, B. Wijesiri & A. Goonetilleke

  2. Instituto de Geociências e Ciências Exatas-IGCE, Universidade Estadual Paulista-UNESP, Av. 24-A No. 1515, P.O. Box 178, Rio Claro, São Paulo, CEP 13506-900, Brazil

    D. M. Bonotto

  3. College of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518060, China

    B. Wijesiri

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  1. A. Jayarathne
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  2. D. M. Bonotto
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  4. A. Goonetilleke
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Contributions

All authors AJ, DB, BW and AG contributed to the study conception and design, as well in the acquisition, analysis and interpretation of data, reading and approving the final version of the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to D. M. Bonotto.

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All authors AJ, DB, BW and AG give explicit consent to participate in the publication of this manuscript into International Journal of Energy and Water Resources.

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All authors AJ, DB, BW and AG declare no conflicts of interest/competing interests for the publication of this manuscript into International Journal of Energy and Water Resources.

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This is an observational study that did not involve human participants or biological materials, thus, not requiring ethical approval of the Research Ethics Committee of the authors’ institution.

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Jayarathne, A., Bonotto, D.M., Wijesiri, B. et al. Role of agricultural land practices in the behaviour of nitrates in groundwater. Int J Energ Water Res 6, 437–444 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42108-022-00208-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42108-022-00208-x

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