garnering local buy in swat
DESCRIPTION
69th SWCS International Annual Conference July 27-30, 2014 Lombard, ILTRANSCRIPT
Garnering Local Buy-In:SWAT Modeling of an Agricultural Watershed
Pat ConradEmmons & Olivier Resources
69th SWCS International Annual Conference
Acknowledgements
Funding and data provided by:
SWAT Modelers: Jason Ulrich - Emmons & Olivier ResourcesJames Almendinger - Science Museum of Minnesota/Emmons & Olivier ResourcesBrian Green - MPCANick Gervino – MPCANatalie Siderius – Whitewater River Watershed Project Farmer-led CouncilSheila Harmes – Whitewater River Watershed Project
Whitewater River Watershed
Whitewater Watershed History: Farming
• Treaty of 1851
• Wheat
farming until
1878
• Flooding due
to landuse
1900
Whitewater Watershed History: Erosion
• 1920’s
Abandonment of
Elba and
Whitewater Falls
• 1930’s Government
buy-out for
conservation land
Whitewater Watershed History: Conservation
• 2,700 Acre
Whitewater State
Park
• Conservation
Practices gaining
hold
• Whitewater River
Watershed Project
Whitewater Watershed Today
Whitewater River Watershed Project• Forest Stewardship Plans • Workshops and field days • Nutrient and manure management planning • Customized GIS mapping • Neighborhood meetings • One on one contacts with watershed
residents • Newsletters & Brochures
**Farmer-Led Council – Advisory Board **
MN Watershed Assessment
10 Year Cycle
Monitoring & Assessment
Watershed Restoration &
ProtectionImplementation
Watershed Assessment Findings
Multiple Impaired Stream Reaches
BacteriaTurbidityNitrate
TMDL StepsWatershed CharacterizationImpairment StatusData Gaps and Monitoring ReportSource AssessmentLoad Allocation Set TargetsImplementation Strategies
Farmer-Led Council Meetings
Objectives• Introduce SWAT modeling
• Review input parameters
• Determine scenarios to
evaluate
• Present results
SWAT Modeling
All models are wrong, but some are useful – George E.P. Box
Relative crop areas: 2007-11 averages
Whitewater
Garvin
Mississippi
Cropland Rotations
Continuous Corn24%
Corn/ Soybean
47%
Corn/ Alfalfa17%
Sweet Corn/ Soybean
7%
Corn/ Peas-Oats5%
FLC Input: Tillage Practices• Changed all disk operations to a shallow field cultivator• When soybeans follow Corn, chisel plowing is done in
fall, not spring• Chisel (not moldboard) plow in the fall of the last year of
alfalfa• Current no-till occurs in corn-soybean rotations, where
soybeans are no-till planted into corn stubble. In contrast, Corn is not no-till planted into bean stubble
• After no-till planting of soybeans, the field is "rolled" to smooth the surface a bit and improve soil-seed contact
• No-till is more common on the sandier soils within the watershed
• In corn soybean rotation, all fertilizer is applied in the corn year, none in soybean year
• For nitrogen, the application rate is 200 lb N/acre for corn• In corn soybean rotation, allow 40 lb N/acre credit for
soybeans the previous year, so add a total of 160 lbN/acre more in the corn year
• Apply mostly as urea (46-0-0), and rest with starter fertilizer
• 300 lbs of 46-0-0 gives 138 lbs N/acre • Add enough starter fertilizer to get N up to 160 lb/acre
FLC Input: Fertilization Practices
• Corn stalks are removed (bailed) after harvest for bedding material.
• Common cover crops: winter grains are used rather than oats: winter wheat, winter rye, or triticale.
• Cover crops ONLY after crops that are harvested early, like sweet corn, peas, and corn silage.
FLC Input: Cover Practices
Existing BMPs – Ponds and Grassed Waterways
Scenario Selection
Appropriately sited
Acknowledge local conditions
Footprint – loss of land
Cost
Scale of adoption
*
*
*
*
Whitewater Watershed Today
• Voluntary Program
• Farm-field certification:o Physical field characteristics o Nutrient management o Tillage management o Pest management o Irrigation and drainage management o Conservation practices
• Regulatory “certainty” for 10 years
http://www.mda.state.mn.us/protectin
g/waterprotection/awqcprogram.aspx