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THE IMPACT OF FERTILIZERS ON SOIL HEALTH
During World War I, Germany made a special kind of poison to destroy the crops of their enemies. This poison used a strong chemical called ammonia. But after the war, scientists found out that ammonia could also help plants grow really well. This was how synthetic fertilizers started.
The United States saw that these fertilizers could help farmers grow a lot more food. Farms started using them and saw their crops get much bigger. It seemed like a great way to grow more food for everyone.
But after some time, people started to see some big problems. When farmers used a lot of fertilizer, it didn't just stay in the fields. It washed away into rivers and lakes and caused trouble there. The extra stuff from the fertilizers made tiny plants in the water, called algae, grow too much. When there's too much algae, they use up all the oxygen in the water. This makes it hard for fish and other water animals to live. This problem, when there's no oxygen left in the water because of too much algae, is called 'eutrophication.' It can create dead zones in the water where no animals can live. One really big dead zone is in the Gulf of Mexico.
But that's not all. Too much fertilizer can also make the soil unhealthy. Soil isn't just dirt. It's full of tiny living things that help plants grow. But when there's too much fertilizer, it can hurt these tiny creatures and make the soil bad. When the soil is unhealthy, it can't hold water well, and plants don't grow as well. Also, when the soil gets unhealthy, many kinds of plants and animals start to disappear. This is bad for biodiversity, which means having many different kinds of living things. Biodiversity is important because all the different plants and animals work together to keep nature healthy.
Even though fertilizers helped farmers grow more food, using too much of them can cause big problems for our water, soil, and all the different living things that make our planet a healthy place. It reminds us that we need to be careful with how we use things like fertilizers.
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