Dennis Todey’s Twitter Takeover

Dennis Todey, the director of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Midwest Climate Hub, took the reigns of our Twitter account on April 23rd to discuss the ongoing conversation around climate and water issues in Iowa.

The climate hubs were created in 2014 by the USDA and consist of 10 hubs spread around the United States. Each hub develops the latest information regarding topics including climate change, agriculture and forestry. The hubs also help to develop new tools, work on adaption efforts in ag-climate change and several other areas of regional agriculture and forestry.

The Midwest Climate Hub (MCH) includes the states: Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio. A main objective of the MCH is working hand in hand with the National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center (NWSCPC) to compare and contrast current information with the information presented by NWSCPC to make accurate predictions of future climate issues. The MCH also revolves heavily around work with agriculture climate issues, especially impacts on specialty crops.

The MCH also collaborates with many services, including federal and regional partnerships. Some of these partnerships include National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), High Plains Regional Climate Center (HPRCC), National Drought Mitigation Center, USDA Farm Service Agency and USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. The MCH works with many extension programs across the Midwest as well to discuss climate issues and land grant programs.

Todey explains that one of the largest issues the Midwest sees in regards to climate is increased precipitation. Precipitation totals have increased 10-15% in the central United States in the last 100 years, with this causing wetter springs and falls that lead to various agriculture issues including floods and increased surface runoff. With more wetness comes with the possibilities of soil and nutrient loss, as well as an interest for more agriculture draining systems.

Picture attached in tweet:

Of course, another “hot” topic in this discussion was the increase in temperature. The temperature is rising year by year, with positives and negatives in result. One positive is that now Iowa winters are not as painful – it is still cold, but not as severe or lasting as long.

Pictures attached in tweet:

To end the Twitter takeover, Todey inquired about the community’s favorite weather based songs. Here is a link to a Spotify playlist of all of the replies – as well as some of my own additions.

Todey received his Bachelor of Science in meteorology from Iowa State University, his Master of Science in meteorology from South Dakota School of Mines and Technology and earned his PhD in agriculture meteorology from Iowa State University. He served as the South Dakota state climatologist for 13 years at South Dakota State University and has been in Iowa working with the USDA since 2016.

You can follow Dennis’ personal Twitter account, @dennistodey, the USDA Climate Hub Twitter account, @USDAClimateHubs, and of course, the Iowa Water Center account @IowaWaterCenter to see the Twitter takeovers in live action.

Working to Reduce Farm Nutrient Loss in Iowa

By: Malcolm Robertson, Program Coordinator and Lecturer, Iowa Nutrient Research Center, Iowa State University

From Getting Into Soil and Water 2018

The Iowa Nutrient Research Center (INRC) was established in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Iowa State University by the Iowa Board of Regents in response to legislation passed by the Iowa Legislature in 2013. More information is available at https://www.cals.iastate.edu/nutrientcenter

The center pursues a science-based approach to nutrient management research. Through its work, the performance of current and emerging nutrient management practices is evaluated, new nutrient management practices are developed and recommendations are initiated for implementation of nutrient management practices.

The primary role of the center is to fund science-based research that explores innovative approaches that identify gaps and needs in nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) research to address Iowa’s water quality issues.

Center research evaluates the performance of current and emerging field practices and develops tools to help farmers and landowners adopt effective management practices. Successful research outcomes will minimize the loss of nutrients into Iowa surface and groundwater. Through this research, the INRC will test the performance of current and advanced farmland management, land use and edge-of-field practices on reducing N and P loss.

The center will also develop tools that aid in decision-making and promotions for the adoption of new technologies and creative solutions for more sustainable management practices.

Working with researchers and farmers, the Iowa Nutrient Research Center funded more than 50 research projects from 2013 to 2017, led by more than 80 scientists at Iowa’s three Regents universities. The center’s competitive grants program has awarded nearly $6 million for research since 2013.

These funds are highly leveraged by water-quality scientists, who have successfully brought in over $17 million in grants from many federal and state agencies across five years. Some key results from center-funded research to date include:

  • Field and lab experiments are improving the understanding of winter cover crop management and impacts on corn yield.
  • Saturated buffers are evaluated to better assess their ability to remove nitrates from tile flow.
  • Research is evaluating the effectiveness of practices implemented around the edges of fields, such as planting strips of prairie and restoring stream banks.
  • Work is underway to better understand farm profitability impacts of precision conservation and grazing cover crops.
  • Intensive research at a watershed in Boone County is providing new insights on the contributions of stream bed and bank erosion to phosphorus transport.
  • Research is more precisely examining the movement of nutrients to surface waters.
  • How trading nutrient credits may benefit cities and farmers – and water quality – is explored in a pilot project watershed near Dubuque.
  • Work on research farms and in farmers’ fields is evaluating types of native perennials for prairie strips to reduce soil erosion and nutrient loss.
  • Research is seeking to improve performance and reduce costs of bioreactors, the practice that filters field drainage water with wood chips

In 2017 the center funded 12 projects with a total award value of almost $550,000. Below is a list of the projects awarded in 2017:

  • Total Phosphorus Loads in Iowa Rivers and Estimation of Steam Bank Phosphorus Contribution
  • Water Quality Evaluation of Prairie Strips across Iowa
  • Woodchip Bioreactors for Improved Water Quality
  • Limiting Nitrogen Immobilization in Cover Crop Systems • Amounts and Forms of Dissolved Phosphorus Lost with Surface Runoff as Affected by Phosphorus Management and Soil Conservation Practices
  • Delivery-Scale Evaluation and Modeling of Nutrient Reduction Practices • Improving the Effectiveness of Conservation Programs through Innovative Reverse Auctions and Sensible Enrollment Restrictions
  • Baseline Assessment of Geisler Farm Site: Collection of Pre BMP Monitoring Data
  • Does Quantity and Quality of Tile Drainage Water Impact In-stream Eutrophication Potential? Evidence from a Long Term Biofuel Cropping Systems Experiment
  • Successful Voluntary Watershed Improvement Projects: Do Short-Term Adoption and Outreach Lead to Attitude Changes and Long-Term Sustainable Practice Adoption?
  • Impacts of Cover Crops on Phosphorus and Nitrogen Loss with Surface Runoff
  • Evaluation of Measurement Methods as Surrogates for Tile Flow Nitrate-N Concentrations

In addition to these projects, the center also allocated $367,000 to the University of Iowa to fund a network of water-quality sensors deployed throughout eastern Iowa. These advanced remote sensors collect water-quality data that are relayed back to IIHR Hydroscience and Engineering every few minutes. The data are disseminated on a public website.

The Iowa Nutrient Research Center is dedicated to supporting impactful research in nutrient reduction. As new information, data and science become available, the center believes that the adoption of in-field and edge-of-field practices will increase, resulting in improved water quality through reduced nitrogen and phosphorus losses.

Background to the Iowa Nutrient Research Center’s Work

Scientifically Proven Effective Practices. Iowa leads the nation in corn and soybean production. Research has shown that a variety of management practices can mitigate the loss of nutrients from crop field soils. The goal is to get more of these scientifically proven practices implemented. The Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy science team, led by Iowa State University scientists, developed a list of in-field and edge-of-field practices that could reduce nutrient loss from farm lands (http://www.nutrientstrategy.iastate.edu/presentations). Nutrient and soil management practices conducted within field boundaries to mitigate nutrient loss from row-cropped acres, and are known as in-field nutrient management.

Nutrient Loss Reduction – Nitrogen. There are a number of practices that reduce nitrogen loss, including in-field nitrogen management practices such as fertilizer application timing, fertilizer source, application rate, nitrification inhibitors, cover crops and living mulches. Additional in-field practices that reduce N loss include land use changes such as the addition of perennials, extended rotations and pastures for livestock. Edge-of-field practices may take a variety of forms and include practices and/or structures such as drainage water management, shallow drainage, wetlands, bioreactors and buffers.

Nutrient Loss Reduction – Phosphorus. There are a number of in-field phosphorus management practices that may be adopted to reduce P loss, include fertilizer application, source and placement; erosion control or land use change practices such as tillage, crop choice, perennials and terraces. Wetlands, buffers and sediment control are edge-of-field practices that have been shown to reduce phosphorus loss

Soil Erosion: Who Controls Its Future?

With rising commodity prices and increasing recognition of land as a stable investment, agricultural land values have experienced unprecedented increases as evidenced by Iowa recently documenting a $20,000 per acre agricultural land sale. Rising land values and high commodity prices have many implications ranging from limiting opportunities for beginning farmers to devaluing the implementation of conservation practices; potential income losses associated with either real or perceived reduced commodity production drive the conservation practice devaluation. In selected situations, conversations suggest practices are removed simply for operator convenience. From a myopic economic perspective conservation is a cost to the producer or land owner and not an investment in the property.

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Iowa’s Nutrients: Agricultural Inputs and Exports

Iowa soils have given way to 92,000 farms across 48,100 square miles (86% of Iowa’s total land area) that lead the U.S. in two of the most versatile grains; corn and soybean. Meanwhile, Iowa also leads the U.S. in hog meat and egg production. Corn and soybeans, hog meat, and eggs annually produce a multi-billion dollar export industry. However, life vital nutrients from Iowa’s land are also exported in tremendous quantities with these agricultural exports. To sustain Iowa’s agriculture productivity, these nutrients, such as nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), must continually be replenished to the soil. To address our question regarding sustaining productivity and our natural resources we need to consider Iowa’s land as a whole including both soil and water.

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Kansas Agricultural Watershed Field Research Facility

Midwestern row-crop agriculture is recognized as being highly productive, but is also cited for impairing surrounding ecosystems and impacting environmental quality. Water quality is a key metric utilized to characterize the health of an agricultural watershed. Therefore, it is important to know how new or alternative management practices impact water quality. With this in mind, the Kansas Agricultural Watershed (KAW) Field Laboratory was created in 2014 to study the effects of agricultural systems on water, sediment and nutrient losses. The goal of the KAW field lab is to evaluate and develop sustainable conservation practices that protect water quality, maintain yield and profitability and provide producers with flexible options for management of crops and nutrients.

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The Importance of Groundwater and How to Monitor it From Space

When water from rainfall and snowmelt enters and saturates the soil column, some of that water flows to streams, some evaporates and some is absorbed by plant roots. The rest drains downward to recharge underground aquifers, where it can remain for months, years or even millennia. If you dig deep enough, groundwater can be found almost anywhere, even beneath the Sahara Desert. Groundwater is vital to both people and ecosystems because of the ability of aquifers to store water during wet periods for use during dry periods. It supports domestic, municipal, industrial and especially agricultural usage in places where surface waters are not available, and it sustains streams and rivers, via contributions to baseflow, in between precipitation events

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Managing Construction Stormwater Runoff

Since the implementation of the Clean Water Act in 1972, the Environmental Protection Agency has been able to curtail pollution to waterways from many point sources. However, pollution impacts from nonpoint source stormwater runoff continue to increase. Stormwater management has become an increasingly important topic in the state of Iowa with a large focus on finding ways of improving agricultural runoff, which pollutes streams and rivers with high nutrient and sediment loads. While the vast majority of land in Iowa is dedicated to agricultural production, there is another major culprit to non-point pollution sources: construction sites.

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