Use of nitrogen fertilizers, increased concentration of nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere result in the presence of nitrites and nitrates in crop growing products, including herbs, especially in those growing close to agricultural lands.
It is not possible to exclude the negative impact from nitrogen compounds completely; however, it is essential not to let contaminated herbs get into pharmacies and for production purposes. This is the reason why recently the largest Russian scientific centres have been working with this issue; their efforts will lead to development of the standards for acceptable and safe concentration of hazardous substances in medical herbs and their inclusion into normative documents.
Nitrogen compounds are nitrogen oxides, nitrates, nitrites, nitrosamines, ammonia.
Man-induced sources of environmental pollution with nitrogen compounds are divided into agricultural (mineral and organic fertilizers, farming), industrial (production waste and effluents), and domestic.
A major part of nitrogen compounds is digested in soil by microorganisms to form nitrogen. Microbiological transformation takes place in soil rich in nitrogen-containing fertilizers with рН>4.5 and limited oxygen input, as follows:
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