The central Bekaa valley in Lebanon is a region of intensive agricultural practices. Farmers are being highly applying fertilizers, especially nitrogen. Large amounts of nitrate are being leached to the soil and groundwater systems, leading to ecological and health hazards. For this reason, this thesis will characterize the amounts of nitrate in the soil and asses groundwater as affected by agricultural practices. This was done through soil and groundwater sampling and analysis in relation to four different cropping patterns from the Terbol area in the central Bekaa Valley. The study also focuses on the hazard of nitrate from food consumption. The results showed high amounts of nitrate in both, soil and groundwater. The current ecological status reveals a great health danger for a large public and land degradation issue.
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For this reason a nitrogen management plan should be initiated in order to reduce and stop the contamination of the ecosystem.
