Director’s Desk
The USDA is seeking public comment on conservation practices standards that support EQIP and CSP by April 25, 2019. USDA Seeks Public Comments
Illinois LICA is participating in a Saturated Buffer Field Day on March 20 near Sullivan, IL. Please click here for more information.
I attended the annual Iowa Water Conference in Ames, IA this past week. There were a number of great speakers. Dustin Miller, attorney at Nyemaster Goode PC, gave an update on the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Exchange. Mark Imerman, senior consultant at Regional Strategic Ltd., made the case to link nutrient reduction practices to flood control. The premise being that there is not enough money or motivation to get where states need to be to meet their nutrient reduction goals. Flood control is another driver to install practices and those practices should provide dual purposes. A scenario in the IA Nutrient Reduction Strategy makes the case for needing $36 per cropped acre in IA to meet the goals, but even with SF512, the state only has dedicated resources of $0.61 – $0.87 for nutrient removal practices. However, the state and cities dedicate major funding to flood control projects. This money could be better utilized in the watershed to prevent the major flooding and achieve nutrient reduction goals. Getting from Push to Pool – An Alternative Starting Point to the Water Quality Debate
The CTIC conservation training at the Agribusiness Showcase took place on 2/13/19. There were over 60 in attendance for the event even though an ice storm may have prevented people from eastern IA from attending. The primary audience was Certified Crop Advisors who could earn CEUs. There were nearly 40 people that attended the ADMC led breakout which generated great discussions about managing drainage systems.
The ADMC abstract titled “Scalability and impact of implementing saturated buffers throughout the Midwest” has been accepted as an oral presentation at the 74th Annual International SWCS Conference.
Be on the lookout for media coverage from ADMC’s press release about the FSA saturated buffer story. Interviews were given to Brownfield, DTN Progressive Farmer, High Plains Journal, and the Minnesota Farm Guide. The Brownfield interview can be found here.
The Advanced Conservation Drainage Training steering committee has made great progress on the upcoming summer series in Illinois. The curriculum is near final for the constructed wetland, saturated buffer, and drainage water management classes. To be a part of the training please look at the following blog post from TNC for more information and to learn how to apply.
Illinois Sustainable Ag Partnership Advanced Conservation Drainage Training Blog Post
Keegan Kult ADMC Executive Director
ADMC Diamond Members
ADMC Member Spotlight
ADMC Silver member ISG, who also participate as a volunteer ADMC board member, integrates water quality practices into many drainage projects. A recent drainage ditch upgrade for Judicial Ditch 9 in Blue Earth County Minnesota underwent an ISG led multi-purpose drainage management plan. The plan included a 2 stage-ditch and a 37 acre wetland, while improving the drainage coefficient of the watershed to 0.5-1.0 inches per day. Please follow the link below to learn more about the project.
ISG Judicial Ditch 9 Multi-purpose drainage management
ADMC Welcomes New Silver Member
J. Pettiecord, Inc. has joined ADMC as a new member at the Silver level. They are an Iowa based company that specializes in large-scale land clearing, wood waste grinding, construction and demolition grinding, underground storage tank removal, contaminated soil removal, demolition, heavy haul trucking, dump trucking and snow removal. Also experts at hazardous material cleanup, the Pettiecord crew is prepared for any long-range, short-term or emergency project. They support ADMC’s efforts as they supply woodchips for bioreactors which are screened free of fines. ADMC would like to thank J. Pettiecord, Inc. for their support and look forward to building the relationship.
Conservation Drainage Events
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