Nitrogen Biogeochemistry of an Urban Rooftop Farm

Harada, Yoshiki; Whitlow, Thomas H.; Templer, Pamela H.; Howarth, Robert W.; Walter, M. Todd; Bassuk, Nina L.; Russell-Anelli, Jonathan

doi:10.3389/fevo.2018.00153

Cited by 15 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 77 publications

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“…To achieve self-sufficient water use within rooftop farming systems, improved soil design could be complemented by recycling leachate from drainage outfalls. Also, rainwater can be harvested from uncropped roof surfaces (35-60% of total roof area) and stored for use during rainless periods (Orsini et al, 2014;Harada et al, 2018a). An example of this strategy is a rooftop greenhouse near Barcelona, Spain where the irrigation system from an adjacent rooftop satisfies 80-90% of the total water demand (Sanjuan-Delmás et al, 2018).…”

Section: Sustainability Of Rooftop Farmingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Non-synthetic N was the only N source for all mixes in this study because organic cultural practices are an important marketing strategy for urban agriculture (Ackerman et al, 2013;Pölling et al, 2016Pölling et al, , 2017Harada et al, 2018a). Total inorganic N (TIN = NO 3 -N + NH 4 -N) is readily available to plants, while nonsynthetic N contains organic N, which must be microbially converted to TIN for enhancing the levels of yield, making the control of N mineralization an integral part of soil management (Cameron et al, 2013).…”

Section: N Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…(A) Evapotranspiration for 10 cm pots, (B) evapotranspiration for 30 cm pots, (C) soil volumetric water content for 10 cm pots, (D) soil volumetric water content for 30 cm pots, (E) water retention for 10 cm pots, (F) water retention for 30 cm pots, (G) drainage N output for 10 cm pots, (H) drainage N output for 30 cm pots. * 1 Levels of the Brooklyn Grange, reported byHarada et al (2018a), * 2 levels of the Brooklyn Grange, reported byHarada et al (2018b).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rooftop Farm Soils for Sustainable Water and Nitrogen Management

Harada

Whitlow

Bassuk

et al. 2020

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

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Rooftop farming intends to diversify options for enhancing sustainability of cities. From a policy perspective, vegetable production and stormwater management are among important goals of rooftop farming for bolstering public funding and policy support. However, crops with high value and market demand like salad greens often have high irrigation requirements, which risks increasing drainage output of water and nutrients. To date, no studies have compared various soil mixes intended for rooftop farms in terms of stormwater retention and yield of drought-sensitive crops constrained by regional precipitation patterns. Here, we report the results of a 5-week greenhouse experiment with leaf lettuce comparing five soil mixes made of coconut coir, biochar, and animal manure compost, plus a commercial rooftop farm soil using expanded shale, using an irrigation rate mimicking average growing season precipitation for New York City, USA. Three soil mixes had good yield, with water retention rates ranging up to 100%, while levels of drainage nitrogen output were <13% of current levels at the Brooklyn Grange, an operational rooftop farm in NYC. This finding suggests that improved soil design could enhance sustainability of rooftop farming in terms of water and nutrient management. Further research is needed for adjustment of nitrogen mineralization rates, long-term amendment plan, locally available waste inventory for substituting coconut coir, and leachate and rainwater harvesting systems.

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Section: Sustainability Of Rooftop Farmingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: N Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rooftop Farm Soils for Sustainable Water and Nitrogen Management

Harada

Whitlow

Bassuk

et al. 2020

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

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“…Both nutrients can be recovered from wastewater treatment with constructed wetlands (Polomski et al, 2007), strategies that could be boosted with a georeferenced identification of hotspots for intervention (Wielemaker et al, 2020). The use of compost from organic waste promotes nutrient cycling (Shrestha et al, 2020) in urban and rural agriculture; however, rooftop farming requires extra attention to reduce nutrient loss to storm drains (Harada et al, 2018).…”

Section: Nutrient Flowsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bioconnections as Enablers of Regenerative Circularity for the Built Environment

Benites

Osmond

2021

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<p>Learning from nature may be the most important step towards improving cities in the context of environmental and climate issues. However, many of the current approaches to make cities greener or more sustainable are still linear and insufficient to deal with these growing challenges. In this scenario, the adoption of regenerative and circular lenses for the built environment may foster a more holistic development based on what is good rather than what is less bad. In this article, we propose that bioconnectivity or bioconnections—a nature-focused approach based on biophilic design, biomimetics, and ecosystem services—may be an important enabler for the regeneration of the ecological and social boundaries of the planetary boundaries and doughnut economics models. We examine the literature to identify in what ways bioconnections could facilitate circular and regenerative processes for the local scale of the built environment domain. We complement the discussion with some real-world examples from selected urban communities or interventions in existing urban areas around the globe that claim a green approach. In the end, we propose a framework of relevant bioconnections for the built environment that could facilitate addressing ecological and social boundaries at the local urban scale and facilitate processes of regenerative transitions towards thriving communities.</p>

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“…Some hydroponic systems may even be designed as closed-loop systems where losses of water, and thus nutrients, are minimized if not eliminated (Rufí-Salís et al, 2020). Rooftop farming on the other hand might lead to increased nutrients in a city's stormwater system if leachate from the roof is channeled toward the street in the same way rainwater would be (Harada et al, 2018). Hence, different nutrient and water management systems in UA can result in different nutrient losses.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Review of Nutrient Losses to Waters From Soil- and Ground-Based Urban Agriculture—More Nutrient Balances Than Measurements

Vlasakker

Tonderski

Metson

2022

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

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Urban agriculture has a high potential to contribute to local circular economies, for instance by using nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium in city organic waste streams as fertilizer inputs. However, inefficient use of waste-derived fertilizers could contribute to local water quality impairment related to nitrogen and phosphorus losses. Organic waste derived fertilizers are particularly challenging from a nutrient stoichiometry perspective, making over- and under-application of a particular nutrient likely. Where, and under what conditions, urban agriculture acts as a net positive for a circular nutrient economy vs. a nutrient water quality risk remains unclear. Here we review empirical peer-reviewed studies (2000–2021) on soil- and ground-based urban agriculture with a stated concern for nutrient losses to water. Of the 20 publications retained and reviewed (out of 241 screened), only seven measured losses to waters. There were four experimental studies, of which three measured nutrient leachate losses under different garden management practices. Of the 16 studies done in real-world conditions, only four quantified losses to water as leachate; average losses spanned 0.005 to 6.5 kg ha−1 for phosphorus, and 0.05 to 140 kg ha−1 for nitrogen. 13 of the 16 non-experimental studies provided data on nutrient inputs and harvested crop outputs, which could be used to calculate garden nutrient balances—an indicator of nutrient use efficiency. Although the value ranges were large, most studied gardens showed nutrient surpluses (inputs > crop harvest) for nitrogen and phosphorus (but not potassium); these surpluses were identified as a risk for losses to water. Contextual factors such as different access to fertilizers and knowledge, along with regulations and environmental factors can help explain the wide range of balance values and nutrient losses observed. Although a large surplus of inputs was often linked to increased leachate losses, it was not always the case in the limited number of studies we identified. Our review suggests that more field studies that measure losses to waters, and document contextual factors, are needed to determine how urban agriculture may contribute to a sustainable circular economy for all three nutrients without nutrient-related water quality impairment.

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Nitrogen Biogeochemistry of an Urban Rooftop Farm

Cited by 15 publications

References 77 publications

Rooftop Farm Soils for Sustainable Water and Nitrogen Management

Rooftop Farm Soils for Sustainable Water and Nitrogen Management

Bioconnections as Enablers of Regenerative Circularity for the Built Environment

A Review of Nutrient Losses to Waters From Soil- and Ground-Based Urban Agriculture—More Nutrient Balances Than Measurements

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