Plant buffers can slow runoff of veterinary antibiotics

Field tests support laboratory research indicating that vegetative buffer strips can reduce levels of herbicide and veterinary antibiotics in runoff from farm plots. Plant species tested included tall fescue, switchgrass and native warm-season grasses. Researchers applied three herbicides and three antibiotics, then generated water runoff using a rotating-boom rainfall simulator. All vegetative buffer systems significantly reduced the transport of dissolved and sediment-bound herbicides atrazine, metolachlor and glyphosate in runoff.

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