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Growing Corn Is A Major Contributor To Air Pollution, Study Finds
NPR ^ | April 1, 2019 | Jonathan Lambert

Posted on 04/01/2019 8:26:07 PM PDT by EdnaMode

You've probably heard statistics about how our diet affects the health of the planet. Like how a beef hamburger takes considerably more water and land to produce than a veggie burger or that around a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions stem from food production. In fact, there are websites that can calculate the carbon footprint of specific foods.

But you may not have considered how the food we eat contributes to the quality of the air we breathe.

Air pollution is the largest environmental health risk factor in the United States, and agriculture contributes in a number of ways. Fertilizer application, gas use, pesticide production and dust kicked up from tilling all affect air quality. But the sort of accounting done for the carbon footprint of foods hasn't been done for their air pollution footprint.

That changed Monday with a study published in Nature Sustainability. It modeled how the production of a single crop, corn, contributes to air pollution in the United States. The researchers found that corn production accounts for 4,300 premature deaths related to air pollution every year in the United States. Ammonia from fertilizer application was by far the largest contributor to corn's air pollution footprint.

(Excerpt) Read more at npr.org ...


TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Food; Science; Society
KEYWORDS: airpollution; climatechange; corn; pollution
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To: EdnaMode

NPR knows nothing about chemistry or crop physiology.
NH3 is using on crops as its a positive ion source of Nitrogen and thus immune from leaching out of the soil during rain.

Nitrate fertilizers use negative ions and they can easily end up in the water supply during a heavy rain.


21 posted on 04/01/2019 9:17:40 PM PDT by Zathras
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To: EdnaMode

I can’t eat corn or popcorn, so rely on butter-flavored puffed corn like Pirate Booty to get my popcorn fix.


22 posted on 04/01/2019 9:26:24 PM PDT by mass55th ("Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway." ~~ John Wayne)
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To: EdnaMode

NPR, in other words, fake news. NPR is our answer to Pravda.


23 posted on 04/01/2019 9:36:35 PM PDT by wjcsux (The hyperventilating of the left means we are winning! (Tagline courtesy of Laz.))
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To: HIDEK6

Might have to someday. These people are into the depopulation psychosis.


24 posted on 04/01/2019 9:39:25 PM PDT by Karl Spooner
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To: EdnaMode

I stopped reading when I read the title of the “organization” that produced this bit of drivel “nature sustainability” anything with the word “sustainable” in the title is automatic given Three strikes


25 posted on 04/01/2019 9:44:46 PM PDT by from occupied ga (Your government is your most dangerous enemy)
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To: EdnaMode

I predict “Farmers must die” will be one of the slogans of the climate terror.


26 posted on 04/01/2019 9:46:13 PM PDT by lastchance (Credo.)
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To: HIDEK6

“Can’t we just shoot these assholes”?

They need to be put out of their misery. They waste air.


27 posted on 04/01/2019 9:47:00 PM PDT by laplata (The Left/Progressives have diseased minds.)
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To: CondorFlight

Look! Today it’s corn tomorrow it’s barley and hops. These buttheads are dangerous. Only things corn should be used for is food and whiskey. Barley and hops for beer. “Whiskey for my men and beer for my horses” as Willie would say.


28 posted on 04/01/2019 9:49:47 PM PDT by Equine1952 (Get yourself a ticket on a common mans train of thought)
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To: EdnaMode

Here I thought burning wood was more ‘dangerous’. I only burned 3 cords this winter. Plan to double that next year.


29 posted on 04/01/2019 10:19:49 PM PDT by GreyHoundSailor
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To: CondorFlight

Ocasio-Cortez has said that we have to make changes in agriculture. Presumeably part of that, is banning the use of fossil fuels in farming and ranching.

If people like her get her way, we will indeed be facing food shortages and famine. People like her are dangerous. It’s easy for people like her, to sit around and spew out pablum about fossil fuels hurting the planet, but not ever thinking through the consequences of their pablum policy proposals.


30 posted on 04/01/2019 10:20:30 PM PDT by Dilbert San Diego
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To: Dilbert San Diego

No more corn, no more bourbon whiskey. Next it will be potatoes.


31 posted on 04/01/2019 11:04:04 PM PDT by jonrick46 (Cultural Marxism is the cult of the Left waiting for the Mothership.)
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To: EdnaMode

Is there a single thing they’re attributing to evil Big Corn that isn’t also accurate for soybeans?

Why the selective outrage?


32 posted on 04/01/2019 11:06:25 PM PDT by RegulatorCountry
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To: jonrick46
Hey! I live in Idaho careful about potatoes, barely, and hops. Corn scares me enough it gets cold up this way. Old NO 7 is important but so is the other stuff. 🤔
33 posted on 04/01/2019 11:08:55 PM PDT by Equine1952 (Get yourself a ticket on a common mans train of thought)
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To: EdnaMode

Coming to an NPR theater near you, “Death by Corn”, a serial like group of movies about how food causes air pollution.

Sgt. Frank Drebbin says, “Shirley you can’t be Sirius” NPR. Corn is good for you. No corn, no cows. No Cows, no hamburgers or popcorn. No corn syrup, no cheap imitation maple syrup. You are trying to destroy America”.

Down with vegetarians! Up with meat-eaters!


34 posted on 04/01/2019 11:17:53 PM PDT by MadMax, the Grinning Reaper
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To: MadMax, the Grinning Reaper

I may be jumping to conclusions but I’m guessing you wrote that post chewing on a T-bone, corn on the cob next to it, and waffles planned for breakfast. Heeheeeee! AOC the poor girls is skinney because she don’t eat good


35 posted on 04/01/2019 11:28:51 PM PDT by Equine1952 (Get yourself a ticket on a common mans train of thought)
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To: Equine1952

For goodness sake, it’s becoming obvious that all agriculture and all animal husbandry is bad for the environment. The only solution is for people to stop eating. We must do it to save the planet.


36 posted on 04/01/2019 11:33:57 PM PDT by Robwin (very)
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To: EdnaMode

This is not true. It is stupid.

All green plants, including corn, absorb CO2 and via photosynthesis, emit O2. This helps prevent global warming, not contribute to it.


37 posted on 04/01/2019 11:37:43 PM PDT by Innovative
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To: Equine1952

#35. Missed it by a mile. I ordered a double plain hamburger at Wendy’s because I’ve been sick and hamburgers help settle my stomach.

I got a double cheeseburger, pickles, onions, lettuce and tomato. Got rid of the pickles and onions and chowed down. Pretty good. Diet Dr. Pepper with Dr. Pepper Cherry mixed in for a little more flavor. Only ate a small amount of fries (not bad).

However, waffles for breakfast sounds good. We’ve bot real Blueberry syrup for them.

What are you serving at your house tonight?


38 posted on 04/02/2019 12:00:17 AM PDT by MadMax, the Grinning Reaper
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To: MadMax, the Grinning Reaper

Already ate. We had the beer can chicken on the pellet grill with a couple baked potatoes. Last night it was sirloins plus salad and a couple of bread sticks. Tomorrow it’s homemade pizza on the pellet grill with salad (salad= tomatoes, lettuce, radishes, raw turnips and baby peas. All accompanied by ice tea and a little ice cream afterwards. Breakfast is generally a little bacon plus toast with peanut butter and honey. If it’s not scones, waffles, or pancakes plus real maple syrup. We’re old so this menu is not a lot of anything. Some green beans, corn, zucchini, or other thing mixed in for dinner works too. Me and the wife are kinda hooked on agricultural and farm animals. I’ve started my garden plants. If I grow it I eat it. If I hunt it or fish for it I eat it. God Bless the USA.


39 posted on 04/02/2019 12:30:21 AM PDT by Equine1952 (Get yourself a ticket on a common mans train of thought)
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To: EdnaMode

Let’s just do away with ethanol in our gas.


40 posted on 04/02/2019 12:45:35 AM PDT by AlaskaErik (I served and protected my country for 31 years. Progressives spent that time trying to destroy it.)
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