Agriculture and water quality

The impact of agriculture on water quality is either stable or deteriorating, with few cases where significant improvements are reported across OECD from the mid-2000s to 2010. While the current situation varies within and across OECD countries, agriculture is often the main source of water pollution. Achieving further reductions is a challenge for policy makers, especially as a major part of agricultural water pollution is from diffuse sources. The outlook over the next ten years for agriculture and water quality suggests that the growth and intensification of agricultural production could further heighten regional pressures on water systems in some countries. But whatever the projections hold for the future, the task of achieving water quality objectives in agriculture will become more difficult in the coming years as a result of climate change, although this is a poorly understood and researched aspect of climate change science to date.

Water Quality and Agriculture: Meeting the Policy Challenge

Agriculture and water quality

Sources, trends, outlook and monitoring