RCN: Reactive Nitrogen in the Biosphere

随着人口的增长、饮食的改善和生物燃料作物产量的扩大，对氮肥的需求正在增加。不幸的是，只有大约一半的氮肥被农作物利用，其余的无意间被释放到地下水、河流和空气中，给人类健康和生态系统健康带来了问题。燃烧用于工业和运输的化石燃料还会向空气中释放氮气，氮气会落在土壤和水体上。这个研究协调网络的目的是让来自许多学科的研究人员组成一个社区，包括大气化学、农学、陆地和水生生态系统、社会科学以及人类和野生动物健康，他们单独研究这一问题的各个方面，但需要他们的集体跨学科综合来确定综合的潜在解决方案。将召开一系列研讨会，讨论过量氮素对气候、空气污染、水污染和农业生产的影响等问题。在与人类和生态系统健康相关的背景下阐述环境中过量氮素的科学问题，将增进科学和非科学受众对与过量氮素有关的健康和污染问题的程度的了解，以及寻找解决办法的选择和取舍。

Demand for nitrogen fertilizers is increasing in response to growing human population, improving diets, and expanding biofuel crop production. Unfortunately, only about half of the applied nitrogen is used by crops, and the rest is unintentionally released to groundwater, rivers, and to the air, where it presents problems for human health and ecosystem health. Burning fossil fuels for industry and transportation also releases nitrogen into the air, which falls on soils and water bodies. The objective of this research coordination network is to engage a community of researchers from many disciplines, including atmospheric chemistry, agronomy, terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, social science, and human and wildlife health, who individually study aspects of this issue, but whose collective, inter-disciplinary synthesis is needed to define integrative potential solutions. A series of workshops will be convened on topics such as impacts of excess nitrogen on climate, air pollution, water pollution, and agricultural production.Framing the scientific issues of excess nitrogen in the environment in a context relevant to human and ecosystem health will increase understanding for both scientific and non-scientific audiences of the extent of the health and pollution problems associated with excess nitrogen, as well as options and trade-offs for finding solutions.