What is nitrogen saturation?
Before human alteration, plant growth in most natural ecosystems is often limited by nitrogen available for plant uptake, primarily due to soil microbial immobilization (microbial synthesis) of nitrogen. However, because of continued human-induced nitrogen deposition, nitrogen limitations on biological functions may be alleviated as nitrogen accumulates in the system, and a final stage of nitrogen saturation, mainly characterized by increased nitrogen leaching and other forms of N loss, may be reached to compensate for the increased input.
