Doering says that farmers can reduce nitrogen loss by 20 percent by improving farm management practices. No more fall fertilization. More precise application in terms of place and time for spring planting. Buffer zones along streams. If a farmer just reduces the amount of fertilizer without improving management practices, the farmer would have to cut the nitrogen application by as much as 45 percent to achieve the same results, Doering says.
Agriculture also can reduce nitrogen loss by reconstructing more wetlands.
The wetlands allow you to hold the water for periods of time, and the nitrogen tends to go into the atmosphere. Doering says that wetlands have their own economic benefits for those living near them. With wetlands the benefits accrue, if not to the farmer, at least to his immediate neighbors. That makes a certain amount of wetland reconstruction an attractive component of reducing nitrogen loss.