title: The social costs of nitrogen.
abstract: Despite growing recognition of the negative externalities associated with reactive nitrogen (N), the damage costs of N to air, water, and climate remain largely unquantified. We propose a comprehensive approach for estimating the social cost of nitrogen (SCN), defined as the present value of the monetary damages caused by an incremental increase in N. This framework advances N accounting by considering how each form of N causes damages at specific locations as it cascades through the environment. We apply the approach to an empirical example that estimates the SCN for N applied as fertilizer. We track impacts of N through its transformation into atmospheric and aquatic pools and estimate the distribution of associated costs to affected populations. Our results confirm that there is no uniform SCN. Instead, changes in N management will result in different N-related costs depending on where N moves and the location, vulnerability, and preferences of populations affected by N. For example, we found that the SCN per kilogram of N fertilizer applied in Minnesota ranges over several orders of magnitude, from less than $0.001/kg N to greater than $10/kg N, illustrating the importance of considering the site, the form of N, and end points of interest rather than assuming a uniform cost for damages. Our approach for estimating the SCN demonstrates the potential of integrated biophysical and economic models to illuminate the costs and benefits of N and inform more strategic and efficient N management.
authors.affiliation: Institute on the Environment, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA.
authors.forename: Bonnie L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Keeler
authors.affiliation: Institute on the Environment, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA.
authors.forename: Jesse D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Gourevitch
authors.affiliation: Institute on the Environment, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA.; Department of Applied Economics, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA.; Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA.
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-4934-2434
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Polasky
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA.
authors.forename: Forest
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-9689-769X
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Isbell
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
authors.forename: Chris W
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-8864-7436
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Tessum
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA.
authors.forename: Jason D
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-7609-6713
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
authors.forename: Julian D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Marshall
keywords: Nitrogen; agriculture; damage costs; ecosystem services; nonmarket valuation; social cost of carbon; water quality