Phosphorus

Millions of tons of one of theChesapeake Bay'slargest sources of pollution continue to be dumped onto farm lands without proper regulation. Farm animals produce 44 million tons of manure annually in the bay watershed, and most of it is collected and disposed of on farmland - or left where it falls. This ranks the bay region in the top 10 percent in the nation for manure-related nitrogen runoff, and the problem of proper management of this waste is exacerbated by the fact that three highly concentrated animal feeding operation areas contribute more than 90 percent of the manure.

The Maryland Farm Bureau balks at environmentalists' efforts to classify manure as a pollutant. They say that farmers value the manure as a resource and use it in lieu of chemically enhanced fertilizer. The simple fact remains that when too much manure is applied on land, it can become a significant source of phosphorus pollution that's killing local streams, creeks and the bay itself. Up to a certain point, manure can indeed be a helpful resource. But once the soil is saturated, no more manure should be applied.

Optimism might seem out of place after the Waterkeeper Alliance's bitter loss in a recent lawsuit to hold Perdue Farms and its grower Alan Hudson responsible for polluting waterways with poultry manure. But it's possible to at least be hopeful of solutions, perhaps within the current decade, to this widespread bay pollution. Reasons for hope were less likely when the lawsuit was filed three years ago. Witness a survey recently presented by University of Maryland ag scientist Kenneth Staver.

While we've made progress on plans to clean up the Chesapeake Bay, Maryland still needs to get serious about reducing pollution from farm runoff ("Scientists criticize tracking of Chesapeake Bay cleanup," May 5). Manure runoff is a major pollutant, and our current system allows too much phosphorus-rich manure to be applied to farmlands. If soil becomes saturated with phosphorus, a bay-killing pollutant, and then still more manure is applied, it becomes easier for the phosphorus to get into nearby waterways, leading to algae blooms that choke the bay of life.

I am appalled to learn that Maryland has forced the elimination of phosphorus from liquid injector tree fertilizer. It is the phosphorus that is most important to root development. A mature tree will certainly use all the phosphorus injected into the soil with nothing left to harm the Chesapeake Bay. It is this lack of proper root development that has made falling trees, once rare, now a common occurrence. I should not have to quote tree experts on the importance of feeding trees anymore than I should have to quote nutrition experts on the importance of feeding humans.

An article in yesterday's Maryland section incorrectly reported the total fine that the state is seeking from Tyson Foods Inc. in a lawsuit over alleged improper disposal of chicken waste. The amount is $5.37 million.The Sun regrets the error.SNOW HILL -- Charging the nation's largest poultry producer with improperly dumping nearly 26,000 tons of sludge, state environmental officials went to court yesterday in an attempt to force Tyson Foods Inc. to pay nearly $536,000 in water pollution fines.

The effort to restore Chesapeake Bay still has a long way to go, but Maryland officials say they already see signs of recovery in the rivers that feed the ailing estuary.New data from long-term monitoring indicate that the Patuxent River, one of the Chesapeake's major tributaries, is getting cleaner, according to scientists with the Maryland Department of the Environment.In the past five years, there has been a dramatic drop in the river's levels of phosphorus, one of two nutrients blamed for choking off bay grasses and fish.

Farmland across the Chesapeake Bay region is overloaded with phosphorus, a new study by an environmental group finds, indicating that the bay's waters are being polluted by excessive use of animal manure and sewage sludge as crop fertilizers. In a report released Tuesday, the Environmental Working Group says soil data on file at universities show that in one of five counties in the six-state watershed, more than half of all soil samples tested are overloaded with phosphorus, a nutrient blamed for fouling the bay's waters.

THE BILL EMERGING from the House Environmental Matters Committee on control of agricultural runoff pollution is a good compromise on a contentious issue. It shows understanding for farmers, yet reflects the reality that strong steps must be taken to protect the health of the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries.Originally the bill, sponsored by Chairman Ron Guns, a Cecil County Democrat, would have retained the system of voluntary control of nutrient pollution. Mr. Guns, an ardent defender of the farming community, pitted himself against Gov. Parris N. Glendening, who wants mandatory plans to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus runoff, which causes harmful, oxygen-destroying algae blooms in the bay and is suspected of provoking toxic Pfiesteria outbreaks in bay tributaries.