Phosphorus inputs to Lough Neagh. The increasing impact of agriculture Table of contents Introduction Why does phosphorus create water quality problems? An algal bloom Eutrophication and phosphorus How bad is the problem in lakes in Northern Ireland? A standard for lake phosphorus Phosphorus concentrations of Irish lakes Is the problem getting worse? Phosphorus trends 1987-1998 Lough Neagh and Lough Erne Where does this phosphorus come from? Phosphorus sources Lough Neagh and Lough Erne What is being done to reduce phosphorus coming from towns and industry? Point source phosphorus loadings Lough Neagh catchment 1974-1997 What about detergents? UK detergent phosphorus consumption 1950-1998 Septic tanks as a phosphorus source Diffuse river loading and septic tank phosphorus loadings Lough Neagh catchment 1974 vs1997 Septic tanks as a driver of change? Since 1974 annual losses of phosphorus to Lough Neagh from diffuse sources have increased by 143 tonnes P Are agricultural phosphorus losses increasing? Soluble phosphates from diffuse sources & river flows: Lough Neagh rivers 1974-1997 What causes agricultural phosphorus losses? Is it farm-yards? Farm pollution incidents in Northern Ireland 1987-1998 Could it be manures then? Manure P and diffuse phosphate loads Lough Neagh catchment 1975-1998 Fertilisers?? Phosphorus fertiliser use Northern Ireland 1974-1998 So fertilisers aren t a problem? Phosphorus balance in agriculture Northern Ireland 1998 Is it the phosphorus surplus? Northern Ireland Farm Phosphorus Budget 1974-1998 Surplus phosphorus and fertiliser phosphorus Phosphorus surplus & fertiliser trends Northern Ireland agriculture: 1974-98 Surplus phosphorus and soil phosphorus Impact of P surplus on soil P 1940s vs 1990s Increasing soil P - Is it a phosphorus time-bomb? Soil P accumulation & L. Neagh diffuse phosphate loss rates Since 1974 soils in the Lough Neagh catchment have accumulated a surplus 76,000 tonnes of phosphorus. So we can forget about manures then? - No! So we can forget about manures then? What can we learn?
Introduction This slide-show shows how phosphorus inputs to Lough Neagh have changed since 1974. The data presented are based on monitoring of Lough Neagh and the inflowing rivers to Lough Neagh undertaken by the staff of AESD. Comments should be addressed to Bob Foy (bob.foy@dardni.gov.uk) Why does phosphorus create water quality problems? 1. Phosphates are non toxic - indeed they are vital for life. 2. That is the problem. Small amounts of phosphorus promote more plant life than a lake can cope with. 3. The phosphorus problem usually manifests itself by excessive amounts of algae. 4. Leading to decline in fish stocks, low oxygen levels, toxins, tastes and poor amenity value. An algal bloom Eutrophication and phosphorus Eutrophication is the term used to describe the process of phosphorus enrichment. It can be defined as: The over-enrichment of lakes and rivers with nutrients, usually phosphorus, leading to excessive growth of algae and other aquatic plants. How bad is the problem in lakes in Northern Ireland? Proposals for a strategy to control nutrient enrichment published by DOE (NI) 1999 stated that: Eutrophication is considered to pose the most widespread single threat to good water quality in Northern Ireland. A standard for lake phosphorus There is no legislative standard for phosphorus in lakes as there is for nitrates. The classification system given in the OECD report of 1980, Eutrophication of Waters is widely used. This defines lakes as eutrophic when annual lake P exceeds 35 µg P/l. By this standard both Lough Neagh and Lough Erne are highly eutrophic
Phosphorus concentrations of Irish lakes 0 Total 50 Phosphorus (µg P 100 l -1 ) 150 Neagh Upper Erne Lower Erne Derg Sheelin Macnean (lower) Macnean (upper) Melvin Ennell Corrib Mask Leane Conn OEC Is the problem getting worse? Yes Current trends over the past 10 years show a 50% increase in lake P in both Lough Erne and Lough Neagh. Phosphorus trends 1987-1999: Lough Neagh and Lough Erne Lake Phosphorus (1987 =100) 180 140 100 60 Neagh Erne 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999
Where does this phosphorus come from? Phosphorus principally originates from: 1. Towns 2. Septic tanks serving the rural population. 3. Industry mostly creameries. 4. Agriculture which is now the biggest single source to Lough Neagh and Lough Erne Rainfall is a very small (c1%) direct input to Lough Neagh and Lough Erne. Phosphorus sources: Lough Neagh and Lough Erne What is being done to reduce phosphorus coming from towns and industry? Phosphorus reduction began in 1981 at major sewage treatment works in the Lough Neagh catchment. It now removes about 100 tonnes P /yr. Plant closures and a switch from P based cleaning agents has reduced the P load from industry.
Point source phosphorus loadings Lough Neagh catchment 1974-1997 What about detergents? SOME detergents contain significant amounts of phosphorus. Washing up liquids do not. Dishwasher powders contain a lot of P. BUT Since 1985 the amount of P used in these products has declined by 50%. UK detergent phosphorus consumption 1950-1998 Detergent P (kg P person -1 yr -1 ) 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0 1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995
Septic tanks as a phosphorus source If a septic tank discharges to a soakaway, it should lose little phosphorus to streams and rivers. BUT many tanks discharge to drains etc. Best guesstimate is that 60% of septic tank discharges reach surface waters. Diffuse river loading and septic tank phosphorus loading: Lough Neagh catchment 1974 vs1997 Septic tanks as a driver of change? It is unlikely that septic tanks are the cause of change seen in Loughs Neagh and Erne given the: modest increase in rural population and the decline in detergent P usage, Since 1974 annual losses of phosphorus to Lough Neagh from diffuse sources have increased by 143 tonnes P Equivalent to A rural population increase of 274,000 or An urban population increase of 165,000. Actual changes The rural population increased by 14,000. and a P reduction from towns equivalent to an urban population decrease of 102,000
Are agricultural phosphorus losses increasing? Yes - Since 1974, there has been a steady increase in agricultural P losses. This increase has been more than enough to cancel out the benefits of reducing P from other sources. Annual P losses are highly related to river flow. Losses are much higher in winter than in summer. Soluble phosphates from diffuse sources & river flows: Lough Neagh rivers 1974-1997 What causes agricultural phosphorus losses? Is it farm-yards? Dirty water from farm-yards, leaking tanks etc are the most visible form of P losses. Results from the Colebrooke catchment suggest they may contribute 15-20% of P losses. It is unlikely that P losses from farm-yards are increasing. Farm pollution incidents are down since 1987. Farm pollution incidents in Northern Ireland 1987-1998 Farm pollution (incidents yr -1 ) 750 500 250 0 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997
Could it be manures then? Land spreading of manures will lead to P losses to water if the ground is wet or spreading is followed by rainfall and drain-flow. Manure P produced in the Neagh catchment has increased by only 25% since 1974. This is a smaller increase compared to the diffuse P increase measured in rivers. Manure P and diffuse phosphate loads: Lough Neagh Catchment 1975-1998 Fertilisers?? Fertilisers are spread in spring and summer when runoff and diffuse P losses are small. The direct impact of fertiliser P applications on P in lakes and rivers is likely to be small. There has been no real increase in fertiliser P use since 1974 (or since the 1940s). Phosphorus fertiliser use Northern Ireland 1974-1998
So fertilisers aren t a problem? Except that NI Agriculture imports a large amount of P in animal feed-stuffs - referred to as concentrate P. Combined with fertiliser P, inputs of P to agriculture exceed outputs in crops, meat, milk products and wool. This means agriculture operates a P surplus. Phosphorus balance in agriculture Northern Ireland 1998 Is it the phosphorus surplus? As inputs have consistently exceeded outputs of P in farm production, there has been a P surplus. The P surplus has remained fairly constant since 1974. Almost all of this P surplus accumulates in the soil. Northern Ireland Farm Phosphorus Budget 1974-1998
Surplus phosphorus and fertiliser phosphorus The annual P surplus in Northern Ireland agriculture is roughly equal to annual P fertiliser use. Changes in the P fertiliser use are clearly reflected in the P surplus for Northern Ireland agriculture. Phosphorus surplus & fertiliser trends Northern Ireland agriculture: 1974-98 Surplus phosphorus and soil phosphorus A long-term effect of this surplus is an increase in soil P levels in Northern Ireland soils since the 1940s. Soil P can now be classed as at excess levels on more than 40% of soils. Grass grown on soils which have excess P will not respond to more P added either as fertiliser or manure P. Impact of P surplus on soil P 1940s vs 1990s
Increasing soil P - Is it a phosphorus time-bomb? The sustained annual P surplus is resulting in an increase in soil P. This increase is related statistically to the increase in soluble P from diffuse sources measured in the Lough Neagh rivers. The P surplus could be reduced by cutting back on fertiliser P use on high P soils. Soil P accumulation & L. Neagh diffuse phosphate loss rates Since 1974 soils in the Lough Neagh catchment have accumulated a surplus 76,000 tonnes of phosphorus. Annual phosphate losses to Lough Neagh from agriculture have increased by 143 tonnes P. This is represents 0.2% of the accumulating phosphorus. Assuming that soil phosphorus cannot move from soil to water may only be 99.8% true. So we can forget about manures then? - No! Halting the P surplus may only stop the situation getting worse. Tackling manure P losses will be crucial in achieving significant improvements. So we can forget about manures then? P losses from a field drain at Greenmount show annual P losses varying at least ten-fold High P losses were caused by slurry applications followed by high drain-flows. The highest single manure P application was during a dry summer. It produced the lowest annual P loss.
What can we learn? There is no prospect for improving water quality unless P losses from agriculture are substantially reduced. P use in agriculture must be critically reviewed - as many farms now have fields with high soil P levels. This review is best done in the context of nutrient management planning - when crop requirements for all nutrients are assessed - a field that is rich in soil P may not be rich in potash or sulphur. The plant nutrient value of manures must be better recognised and utilised on farms. The storage, containment and spreading of manures must be improved if river P loads are to decline.