Additional Comments on "Synthetic Nitrogen Fertilizers Deplete Soil Nitrogen: A Global Dilemma for Sustainable Cereal Production," by R.L. Mulvaney, S.A. Khan, and T.R. Ellsworth in the Journal of Environmental Quality 2009 38:2295-2314/Reply to Additional Comments on "Synthetic Nitrogen Fertilizers Deplete Soil Nitrogen: A Global Dilemma for Sustainable Cereal Production," by R.L. Mulvaney, S.A. Khan, and T.R. Ellsworth in the Journal of Environmental Quality 2009 38:2295-2314/Reply to Addition

(2009) to support their conclusions that synthetic N fertilization has led to declines in soil C and N. We disagree with their conclusion, as we found no consistent change in soil C and N concentrations or mass to a depth of 1 m between 1957 and 2002, the period of extensive synthetic N fertilizer u...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of environmental quality 2010-07, Vol.39 (4), p.1526
Main Authors: David, M B, McIsaac, G F, Darmody, R G, Powlson, D S, Jenkinson, D S, Johnston, A E, Poulton, P R, Glendining, M J, Goulding, K W T, Mulvaney, R L, Khan, S A, Ellsworth, T R
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Carbon
Crop residues
Crop science
Environmental quality
Fertilizers
Information storage
Mineralization
Nitrogen
Organic matter
Soil fertility
Soil organic matter
Soils
Sustainability
Sustainable production
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Summary:(2009) to support their conclusions that synthetic N fertilization has led to declines in soil C and N. We disagree with their conclusion, as we found no consistent change in soil C and N concentrations or mass to a depth of 1 m between 1957 and 2002, the period of extensive synthetic N fertilizer use. (2009) stated that White (1927) and Albrecht (1938) showed that "fertilizer N depletes soil organic matter by promoting microbial C utilization and N mineralization." White (1927) also noted that for data from Rothamsted in his Table 2, increasing N fertilizer increased soil organic matter (average 17% increase) in the N fertilizer plots compared with plots receiving only mineral salts without N. The conclusion reached by White (1927) was that a steadily smaller fraction of crop residue was stored in the soil as organic matter with increasing N fertilization, which is a very different conclusion than Mulvaney et al. [...] we disagree with Mulvaney et al.'s (2010) conclusion using our data and others that synthetic N at recommended amounts is leading to widespread declines in soil organic N concentrations due to enhanced microbial decomposition. No part of this periodical may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
ISSN:0047-2425
1537-2537