Abstract
Nutrients, including nitrogen (N), exported from agricultural systems contribute to eutrophication and the development of algal blooms. Understanding the relative effect of farm management on nutrient export will indicate the extent to which farmers can potentially mitigate this process. Six years of monitoring surface runoff from rain-fed and irrigated dairy pastures was carried out in south-eastern Australia. Over the monitoring period, the flow-weighted mean annual total N (TN) concentrations in runoff varied between 8.2 and 29 mg/l for rain-fed pasture and 8.7 and 58 mg/l for irrigated pasture. An additive component model describing N concentrations separated the management (grazing and fertiliser) and year effects from other processes. The model accounted for 40 and 47% of the variation in N concentrations for the rain-fed and irrigated pastures, respectively. While fertiliser application, grazing and year had a significant effect on concentrations, other variables that are not necessarily under management control significantly affected N export. With current knowledge, improved management of pasture-based systems such as improved timing of fertiliser application and grazing relative to runoff may only result in a small decrease in N export. The remainder of the variability was attributed to environmentally mediated changes of N concentrations in runoff water. The collection of more detailed information on environmental parameters including soil moisture and soil temperature is proposed, to enable a better prediction of N concentrations and therefore improved understanding of potential management strategies.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
ANZECC and ARMCANZ (2000) National water quality management strategy. Australian and New Zealand guidelines for fresh and marine water quality. ANZECC and ARMCANZ, Australia
Arheimer B, Liden R (2000) Nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations from agricultural catchments—influence of spatial and temporal variables. J Hydrol 227:140–159
Austin NR, Prendergast JB (1996) Managing nutrients from irrigation drainage in south eastern Australia. Sustainability of irrigated agriculture: managing environmental changes due to irrigation and drainage. 16th ICID Congress, pp. 67–79. Cairo, Egypt: International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID)
Cameron KC, Di HJ (2004) Nitrogen leaching losses from different forms and rates of farm effluent applied to a templeton soil in Canterbury, New Zealand. N Z J Agric Res 47:429–437
Clemmens AJ, Bos MG, Replogle JA (1984) Portable RBC flumes for furrows and earthen channels. Trans Am Soc Agric Eng 27:1016–1026
Cox DR, Hinkley DV (1979) Theoretical statistics. Chapman Hall, London
Department of Natural Resources and Environment (1996) Blue green algae and nutrients in Victoria: a resource handbook, Department of Natural Resources and Environment, Melbourne, Australia
EPA Victoria (1995) Protecting water quality in Central Gippsland. Schedule F5—Waters of the Latrobe and Thomson River Basins and Merriman Creek Catchment and Draft Policy Impact Assessment. Draft State Environment Protection Policy (Waters of Victoria). Rep. 444, Environment Protection Authority, Melbourne, Australia
Government of Victoria (1996) Blue-green algae and nutrients in Victoria. A resource handbook. Government, National Library of Australia, Melbourne
Grace MR, Hart BT, Oliver RL, Rees CM (1997) Algal blooms in the Darling river—are phosphates to blame? Chem Aust 64:2–5
Grayson R, Argent R (2002) A tool for investigating broad-scale nutrient and sediment sources from the catchments of the Gippsland Lakes. CEAH Report 1/02. Rep. 1/02, Centre for Environmental Applied Hydrology, Melbourne, Australia
Heathwaite AL (1993) The impact of agriculture on dissolved nitrogen and phosphorus cycling in temperate ecosystems. Chem Ecol 8:217–31
Heathwaite AL, Griffiths P, Parkinson RJ (1998) Nitrogen and phosphorus in runoff from grassland with buffer strips following application of fertilizers and manures. Soil Use Manage 14:142–8
Hussein MH, Hussein AJ, Awad MM (1999) Phosphorus and nitrogen losses associated with runoff and erosion on an aridisol in northen Iraq. Hydrol Sci J 44:657–64
Insightful (2002) S-Plus Version 6.1. Seattle. Insightful Corporation, Washington
Isbell RF (1996) Australian soil classification. CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne, Australia
Lambert MG, Devantier BP, Nes P, Penny PE (1985) Losses of nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment in runoff from hill country under different fertiliser and grazing management regimes. N Z J Agric Res 28:371–9
Lawes Agricultural Trust (2005) GenStat Release 8.1. Hertfordshire. Rothamsted Experimental Station, United Kingdom
Ledgard S (1994) Nitrogen fertiliser, clover and the environment. Large Herds Conference, New Plymouth, New Zealand, pp 48–53
Muchovej RMC, Rechcigl JE (1995) Nitrogen fertilizers. In: Rechcigl JE (ed) Soil amendments and environmental quality. CRC Press, Inc., Boca Raton
Mundy GN, Nexhip KJ, Austin NR, Collins MD (2003) The influence of cutting and grazing on phosphorus and nitrogen in irrigation runoff from perennial pasture. Aust J Soil Res 41:675–85
Nash D, Clemow L, Hannah M, Barlow K, Gangaiya P (2005) The structure of phosphorus exports from a rain-fed and an irrigated pasture-based grazing system. Aust J Soil Res 43:745–55
Nash D, Murdoch C (1997) Phosphorus in runoff from a fertile dairy pasture. Aust J Soil Res 35:419–29
Northcote KH (1979) A factual key for the recognition of Australian soils. Rellim Technical Publications, Adelaide, Australia
Owens LB, Edwards WM, Van Keuren RW (1984) Peak nitrate-nitrogen values in surface runoff from fertilized pastures. J Environ Qual 13:310–2
Ramos C (1996) Effect of agricultural practices on the nitrogen losses to the environment. Fertil Res 43:183–189
Rayment GE, Higginson FR (1992) Australian laboratory handbook of soil and water chemical methods. Melbourne. Inkata Press, Australia, 330 pp
Ridley AM, Christy BP, White RE, McLean T, Green R (2003) North-east Victoria SGS National Experiment site: water and nutrient losses from grazing systems on contrasting soil types and levels of inputs. Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture 43:799–815
Ridley AM, Simpson RJ, White RE (1999) Nitrate leaching under phalaris, cocksfoot, and annual ryegrass pastures and implications for soil acidification. Aust J Agric Res 50:55–63
Sharpley A, Rekolainen S (1997) Phosphorus in agriculture and its envrironmental implications. In: Tunney H, Carton OT (eds) Phosphorus loss from soil to water. CAB International, Harpenden, England, pp 1–53
Sharpley AN, Syers JK, Tillman RW (1983) Transport of ammonium- and nitrate-nitrogen in surface runoff from pasture as influenced by urea application. Water Air Soil Pollut 20:425–30
Smith LC, Monaghan RM (2003) Nitrogen and phosphorus losses in overland flow from a cattle-grazed pasture in Southland. N Z J Agric Res 46:225–37
Stace HCT, Hubble GD, Brewer GD, Northcote KH, Sleeman JR, Mulcahy MJ, Hallsworth EG (1968) A handbook of Australian soils. Rellim, Adelaide, Australia
Stevens DP, Cox JW, Chittleborough DJ (1999) Pathways of phosphorus, nitrogen and carbon movement over and through texturally differential soils, South Australia. Aust J Soil Res 37:679–93
Thoma DP, Gupta SC, Strock JS, Moncrief JF (2005) Tillage and nutrient source effects on water quality and corn grain yield from a flat landscape. J Environ Qual 34:1102–11
Vagstad N, Eggestad HO, Hoyass TR (1997) Mineral nitrogen in agricultural soils and nitrogen losses: relation to soil properties, weather conditions, and farm practices. Ambio 26:266–72
Wang Q-l, Liu Y-d, Shen Y-w, Jin C-y, Lu J-s, Zhu J-m, Li S-h (1991) Studies on mixed mass cultivation of Anabaena spp. (nitrogen-fixing blue-green algae, cyanobacteria) on a large scale. Bioresour Technol 38:221–8
Whitehead DC (1995) Grassland nitrogen. CAB International, Wallingford, UK
Wild A (1988) Plant nutrients in soil: nitrogen. In: Wild A (eds) Russell’s soil conditions and plant growth. John Wiley and Sons, Inc, New York, pp 652–94
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the Victorian Department of Primary Industries (DPI) for their financial support, as well as Dairy Australia, GippsDairy, the Victorian Government’s Gippsland Lakes Rescue Package and the Natural Heritage Trust who funded the research sites. The authors would also like to thank the Macalister Research Farm Cooperative Limited, especially Karen Atkinson, Paul and Nicole Arundell, and Kane and Melinda Stephens who worked to accommodate the monitoring systems on an irrigated dairy farm; as well as Stuart and Anne Tweddle who allowed the monitoring of nutrient transport on rain-fed pastures. Finally the authors would like to acknowledge and thank the Soils and Water Team from DPI Ellinbank.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Barlow, K., Nash, D., Hannah, M. et al. The effect of fertiliser and grazing on nitrogen export in surface runoff from rain-fed and irrigated pastures in south-eastern Australia. Nutr Cycl Agroecosyst 77, 69–82 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10705-006-9046-6
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10705-006-9046-6