5 ways urea can harm the soil organisms

Urea is one of the most widely used synthetic fertilizers. It helps the plant in photosynthesis.

However, our widespread reliance on Urea as a nutrient source for the plant has its harmful effects on the creatures of the soil. some of these are the following;

1. Increased greenhouse gas accumulation in the atmosphere. When urea is applied to the soil, it is hydrolyzed by the enzyme urease into ammonia. The ammonia will be converted by the nitrifying bacteria into nitrite and nitrate for plants to utilize. however, the problem lies when the ammonia cannot be converted into nitrite or nitrate because the microbes responsible for the nitrification were suppressed by the high pH brought by the huge amount of urea applied to the soil. Hence, this ammonia goes back to the atmosphere as greenhouse gases and adds to the problem of global warming.
2. Aquatic eutrophication. When urea is applied to the crops, some of these nutrients are carried by the rainwater to the rivers and seas. It then promotes the growth of microorganisms, algae, and plants. when this happens the oxygen the water will be used up this algal growth, leaving the water with no more oxygen. hence, other sea creatures will die due to the lack of oxygen called harmful algal blooms.
3. Stratospheric ozone depletion due to nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions. This nitrous oxide helps deplete the ozone layer, thereby decreasing our protection from UV light penetration.
4. Water quality impairment due to nitrate (NO3-) entering ground and surface waters. When this nitrate that is utilized by the plants for growth will leached its way to the groundwater it then mixed itself on the water source creating harmful effects to human health.
5. Urea decreases the soil pH. Once the pH of the soil becomes more acidic, many of the soil organisms are suppressed, hence they cannot function well on their role in the soil. Once the soil organisms responsible for the nitrogen cycle in the soil will be decreased or lost, the farmers will need more and more synthetic nitrogen to fertilized in the soil, intensifying the problem on nitrogen runoff and volatilization back to the atmosphere.

Convinsing our fellow farmers to lessen or stop the use of synthetic fertilizers will be very difficult, especially that it heps them with the short term productivity of the land. it is then very essential to educate and spread the word on the harmful effects of Urea on the soil ecosystem.