{"id":397,"date":"2025-01-23T11:01:01","date_gmt":"2025-01-23T18:01:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/?p=397"},"modified":"2025-01-23T13:50:21","modified_gmt":"2025-01-23T20:50:21","slug":"how-agriculture-impact-water-systems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/23\/how-agriculture-impact-water-systems\/","title":{"rendered":"How agriculture impact water systems?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Human manipulation of Earth&#8217;s water systems is arguably the greatest accomplishment of our civilization. But our efforts to water crops, provide clean drinking water and remove waste from our living spaces may also be the worst thing we&#8217;ve done to the planet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-secondary-color\">Earth&#8217;s Water Cycle<\/mark><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-1 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>Hopefully by the time you&#8217;ve found this page, you&#8217;re pretty comfortable with the repeating process of<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Evaporation (water rising into air)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Condensation (cloud formation)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Precipitation (rain, snow, hail)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Water flowing downhill and collecting in large sources to evaporate again.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"408\" height=\"365\" src=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Watercycle.gif\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-472\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-secondary-color\">How do we get water to our homes?<\/mark><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Requiring water for the function of our bodies and growth of crops meant the earliest people had to stay close to rivers and lakes. But as civilizations grew, the need for storing and transporting water over greater distances to more people changed the landscape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"How do we get water?\" width=\"950\" height=\"534\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/KZ16y-3MuRg?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-secondary-color\">How does our water use impact the planet?<\/mark><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"How do we pollute water?\" width=\"950\" height=\"534\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/PkPV_sPty84?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-secondary-color\">How do agricultural chemicals impact water?<\/mark><\/h1>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Agriculture chemicals &#8220;runoff&#8221; into water systems<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-2 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>Most farming chemicals are dissolved into water and sprayed onto croplands. These pesticides and fertilizers are meant to stay on the field and do their job, but rainfall will often re-dissolve excess chemicals on the surface and carry them off into the waterways where they don&#8217;t belong.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"575\" src=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/farmfield-runoff-1024x575.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-484\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/farmfield-runoff-1024x575.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/farmfield-runoff-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/farmfield-runoff-2000x1123.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Excess Fertilizer causes algae blooms<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-3 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>In wild ecosystems, plants remove nutrients like Nitrogen, Potassium and Phosphorus to create their body structure and food and animals return them to the soil after eating in their waste. But since humans don&#8217;t return our waste to crop fields, chemical fertilizers are used to give the plants these nutrients. When fertilizers build up in lakes or shorelines, water plants called algae to grow out of control (aka Bloom), which then cause fish to die off.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"719\" src=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/algae-bloom-1024x719.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-477\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/algae-bloom-1024x719.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/algae-bloom-300x211.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/algae-bloom.jpg 1810w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Fish choking algae blooms in waterways result from excess fertilizer flowing and collecting downstream to enhance the water plant&#8217;s growth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Pesticides in runoff kill unintended targets<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Pesticide is a broad term used to describe chemicals that kill things that bother crops<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-4 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>Pesticide is a broad term used to describe chemicals that kill things that bother crops. But unfortunately, things designed to kill one living thing typically cause harm to other species. Evidence is mounting that the majority of species (ourselves included) are experiencing negative health effects from these chemicals.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"685\" height=\"372\" src=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/herbicide-ricks.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-485\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/herbicide-ricks.png 685w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/herbicide-ricks-300x163.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 685px) 100vw, 685px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Pesticides don&#8217;t just stay on the fields!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"885\" height=\"497\" data-id=\"486\" src=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/dead-mangroves.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-486\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/dead-mangroves.jpg 885w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/dead-mangroves-300x168.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 885px) 100vw, 885px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Native plants die from herbicide exposure<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" data-id=\"488\" src=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/dead-salamander-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-488\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/dead-salamander-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/dead-salamander-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/dead-salamander-2000x1500.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Aquatic reptiles can&#8217;t tolerate high levels of pesticides<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"480\" height=\"360\" data-id=\"487\" src=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/rotenone-fish.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-487\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/rotenone-fish.jpg 480w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/rotenone-fish-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 480px) 100vw, 480px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Huge fish die offs often follow planting seasons from chemical runnoff<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Check out the data on Fish Populations and Farming Chemicals<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-5 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>Fish of course! Our scaley friends are being assaulted on a number fronts. But let&#8217;s focus on chemicals from agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Figure 1: Freshwater Fish Abundance<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/freshwater-fish-populations-1024x576.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-474\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/freshwater-fish-populations-1024x576.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/freshwater-fish-populations-300x169.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/freshwater-fish-populations-2000x1125.jpeg 2000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">What pattern can we see in the number of freshwater fish on Earth?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><strong>Figure 2: Global Synthetic Fertilizer Use<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"672\" height=\"526\" src=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/fertilizer-use.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-475\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/fertilizer-use.png 672w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/fertilizer-use-300x235.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 672px) 100vw, 672px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">What pattern can we see in the amount of synthetic fertilizers used?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Figure 3: Glyphosate (Roundup) Pesticide use by crop, year and US location.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"792\" height=\"327\" src=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Screenshot-2025-01-22-165658.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-476\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Screenshot-2025-01-22-165658.png 792w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Screenshot-2025-01-22-165658-300x124.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 792px) 100vw, 792px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Are all areas equally impacted by pesticides?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-secondary-color\">What conclusion can be drawn from the Figures above?<\/mark><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Pesticides are harming humans too<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-6 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>While the original intention with pesticides was to provide more food to more people, we are realizing that they are harming us too! People who work at or live near farms obviously get higher doses. But all of us ingest small amounts that don&#8217;t wash off our food each day. And water treatment facilities aren&#8217;t capable of removing all of the fertilizer and pesticides that make their way to our drinking water in rivers and streams. So this buildup of tiny amounts of these chemicals is creating lots of health problems as seen here:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"766\" height=\"461\" src=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/pesticides-human-health.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-489\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/pesticides-human-health.jpg 766w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/pesticides-human-health-300x181.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 766px) 100vw, 766px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Between direct exposure when spraying and residue on food and in water runoff, human are being exposed all the time!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-secondary-color\">So how are we supposed to feed 8 Billion people without chemical fertilizers and pesticides that are ruining our water ecosystems?<\/mark><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:25%\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:50%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"513\" height=\"440\" src=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Screenshot-2025-01-22-171958.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-479\" style=\"width:234px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Screenshot-2025-01-22-171958.png 513w, https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Screenshot-2025-01-22-171958-300x257.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 513px) 100vw, 513px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:25%\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Human manipulation of Earth&#8217;s water systems is arguably the greatest accomplishment of our civilization. But our efforts to water crops, provide clean drinking water and remove waste from our living spaces may also be the worst thing we&#8217;ve done to the planet. Earth&#8217;s Water Cycle Hopefully by the time you&#8217;ve found this page, you&#8217;re pretty &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/23\/how-agriculture-impact-water-systems\/\" class=\"more-link\">Read more<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;How agriculture impact water systems?&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":480,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,24,23],"tags":[28,7,15,25,20,18,29],"class_list":["post-397","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-how-agriculture-changed-earth","category-environmental-impact","category-food-genetics","tag-agriculture","tag-chemistry","tag-ecology","tag-matter","tag-middle-school-science","tag-science","tag-water"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/397","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=397"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/397\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":494,"href":"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/397\/revisions\/494"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/480"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=397"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=397"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sciencegonnagetyou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=397"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}