Study separates human and hydrological causes of nitrogen loss in Mississippi Basin

Scientists at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have developed a method to differentiate between human-derived and hydrological contributions to riverine nitrogen pollution in the Upper Mississippi River Basin. This advancement, published in Environmental Science and Technology, aims to improve policy and management of nitrate and nitrite, which negatively impact drinking water quality and contribute to the formation of "dead zones" in the Gulf each year.