The Trade-off between Yield and Nitrogen Pollution under Excessive Rainfall

Abstract

Climate change is expected to intensify rainfall, increasing the likelihood of nitrogen leaching in agriculture. This study incorporates the effects of excessive rainfall on corn yield and water pollution into a simple economic model for managing nitrogen. We then empirically test this model using data from on-farm experiments conducted in Iowa. Our findings indicate that both optimal nitrogen application rates and environmental damage increase with excessive rainfall. As the marginal product of nitrogen increases under excessive rainfall, the cost of controlling nitrogen pollution escalates. However, our study highlights resilient management practices such as split nitrogen application with sidedressing.