Breakdown of nitrate in groundwater

The introduction of reactive nitrogen to the waters of the world is causing serious ecological damage. All the more important, then, are natural purification processes in the subsurface, which can eliminate at least a part of this pollution. An international research team led by the University of Rennes (France), in which hydrologists from the University of Bayreuth and from the Helmholz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ participated, comes to the conclusion that the capacity of many deep aquifers to remove nitrate is likely higher than often assumed. In the renowned scientific journal PNAS, they present a robust method for assessing this self-purifying potential.