Pollution such as insecticides, pesticides, fertilizers, and animal waste can easily be washed off of agricultural fields during a heavy rainstorm. These chemicals and bacteria can remain attached to soil and eroded into nearby streams, rivers, and lakes. While individual farms produce relatively small amounts of pollutants, there are so many non-point sources that collectively they are the greatest threat to America's water quality.

One of the biggest problems to cleaning up agricultural non-point source pollution is how to handle chemicals and animal waste responsibly. Manure contains bacteria and viruses. Fertilizers contain nutrients that can lead to eutrophication. The following video explains some techniques used to help reduce agricultural pollution.