As a readily bioavailable source of nitrogen for plants, fertilizer produced using the Haber-Bosch process has boosted crop yields and food production significantly worldwide, but it has also dramatically increased the total amount of reactive nitrogen in the environment, overwhelming the capacity of natural processes to recycle it back to the atmospheric N2 state. The nitrogen not incorporated into crops or conserved in the soil can become a greenhouse gas and/or pollutant in air and in water. This long-standing problem is becoming worse with climate change. The Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine has identified controlling excess nitrogen in agriculture as a top priority to address.

The public is invited to join the members of the Board on Monday, June 28, 2021 from 1:00 to 3:00 pm ET (via Zoom) to hear presentations on the dimensions of the problem and current thinking about solutions. The webinar will set the stage for further exploration and deliberation by the Board in the coming year to identify a path forward to make progress on controlling nitrogen used in agriculture.

Brief presentations from:

• James N. Galloway (NAS Member), University of Virginia, Sidman P. Poole Professor of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia

• Jerry L. Hatfield, Laboratory Director (retired), National Laboratory for Agriculture and the Environment in Ames, Iowa U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS)

• David Kanter, Associate Professor of Environmental Studies, New York University and Vice-Chair of the International Nitrogen Initiative

Presentations will be followed by a panel of discussants:

• Alan Blaylock, Nutrien

• Bonnie Keeler, Hubert Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota

• Alison Eagle, Environmental Defense Fund (invited)