NAIROBI, Feb. 27 (Xinhua) -- Pollution of freshwater bodies, including lakes, rivers and boreholes, has escalated due to the unregulated application of nitrogen in food production, United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) officials said on Monday.
Leticia Carvalho, the head of the Marine and Freshwater Branch at UNEP, said that despite nitrogen's critical contribution to achieving food security, its overuse has worsened the pollution of vital ecosystems, increasing the global disease burden.
"Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for boosting food production, but its excessive use is polluting both surface and groundwater sources," Carvalho said on the sidelines of the sixth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-6) underway in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital.
The fourth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-4) held in March 2019 passed a resolution to promote sustainable nitrogen management and tackle pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, according to Carvalho. However, she said, multilateral action to reduce nitrogen waste has gained steam, informed by the growing threat of eutrophication and soil contamination linked to the overuse of the element.
According to Carvalho, UNEP has convened several working groups on nitrogen management while encouraging national governments to develop action plans to reduce pollution associated with the overuse of the element in farming.
Mihai Constantinescu, the co-chair of the UNEP Working Group on Nitrogen, said that a growing number of countries have endorsed the resolution to accelerate action on nitrogen pollution.
Constantinescu said that the implementation of a nitrogen roadmap covering 2024 to 2030 has been prioritized by the international community in line with multilateral environmental agreements that aim to secure a clean and green future for the planet.
David Cooper, the acting executive secretary of the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, said that sustainable agricultural practices will be key to limiting nitrogen use and protecting habitats from pollution.
Paying attention to Sustainable Development Goal 12, which advocates for a shift to sustainable production and consumption patterns, will aid efforts to control nitrogen waste, Cooper added. ■
