Nitrogen and phosphorus balance

Dátum poslednej aktualizácie:22.12.2021

Téma

Indikátory zeleného rastu

Značky

Definícia indikátora

The nutrient balance (nitrogen, phosphorus) points to the relationship between the nutrients supplied to the soil and those extracted from one hectare of agricultural land. 

Jednotka indikátora

Index 2000 = 100

Metadáta

 

Methodology:

 

Selection and methodology of indicator’s assessment is based on the set of indicators proposed by the OECD and addressed by the report: "Green Growth: Monitoring progress towards green growth“. Data relating to the national situation are usually presented in the period between 2000 and 2012. Basic time sequence is changed in those cases when the data are not accessible or when their comparison is not possible due to differing approaches in their collection, assessment, changes in methodology, classification, etc.  Summary assessment of indicator’s trend from the green growth perspective is based on a subjective evaluation of the responsible assessor due to the fact that the strategy is not officially implemented in the Slovak Republic and therefore specific objectives have not been defined.  Naturally, this assessment builds on the analysis of the past trends, as well as their anticipated direction in view of the measures adopted as to date.
Selected indicators characterize Slovakia's initial position as seen from the perspective of the green growth and were to be used as a measuring tool before further steps are taken in the process of implementation of this strategy and for a complex assessment of the future trend of the Slovak economy.  Present set of green growth indicators comprises 32 individual indicators that are relevant in Slovakia's conditions. Four of them are national indicators that describe voluntary instruments of the environmental strategy.


Data sources:

Data used in this document come from the official national or international sources and databases.  Assessed trend was reviewed and discussed with the state administration specialists (individual departments of the ministries of Environment, Economy, Labour and Social Affairs and Family, Finance, Agriculture and Rural Development) and their professional organisations (Slovak Hydrometeorological Institute, State Geological Institute of Dionýz Štúr, Slovak Environmnet Agency, State Nature Consservancy, Institute for Financial Policy) and also the Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic whose databases furnish most of the information.

 

Related indicators:

 

Linked references:

 

Kľúčové zistenia

Sustainability of agricultural and food production system remains the central green growth theme and as such is assessed on the basis of the changes to the balance of nutrients in agriculture and the corresponding intensity of the economic indicator within agriculture.  Permanent surplus of added nutrients points to the potential risk of generated environmental problems - threats to the quality of surface and ground water.  Permanent lack, on the other hand, poses a risk of draining natural nutrients from the soil.  Weight balance of nutrients is the basic method of system stability assessment.   Balancing nitrogen and phosphorus involves their inputs into the ground (e.g. industrial and organic fertilizers, biological nitrogen fixation) and outputs (e.g. draining nutrients through crops). Mutual calculation of inputs and outputs results either in surplus or shortage of nitrogen and phosphorus in the soil.  Our objective is to reach well-balanced nutrients in the soil.
 
Since 2005, a positive nitrogen balance in the soil has been recorded due to a gradual increase in nitrogen fertilizer doses. In 2019, compared to the previous year 2018, the amount of total nitrogen per hectare of agricultural land increased slightly. The phosphorus balance during the years 2005 - 2019 had a variable trend, while the amount of phosphorus in agricultural land types remains below the limits.


 

Sumárne zhodnotenie

Medzinárodné porovnanie

The OECD Green Growth database contains selected indicators for monitoring progress towards green growth to support policy making and inform the public at large. The database provides a synthesis of data and indicators available across a wide range of domains. The sources of the underlying data used to populate the Green Growth Indicators, as presented here, include a range of OECD databases and, in some cases, external data sources. The database covers OECD member countries, accession countries and selected non-OECD countries (including the BRIICS economies - Brazil, Russian Federation, India, Indonesia, China and South Africa).


OECD Green Growth Indicators Database

Kontakt na spracovateľa

Ing. Beata Kročková, SAŽP, beata.krockova@sazp.sk