 For most agricultural producers, activities over the winter months tend to slow down. This is an opportune time to take a look at your farming operation and determine if there are areas that could benefit from the establishment of one or more conservation practices.
For instance, do you have a ditch or stream running through your farm that needs a filter strip? Is a particular field prone to wind erosion and stands to benefit from a windbreak? How about that one area that’s hard to farm because it’s always wet? Have you considered how FSA’s Lake Erie Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (Lake Erie CREP) might benefit your farming operation and help to protect the environment at the same time? Lake Erie CREP began with the main objective to improve water quality in all of our rivers, streams, and tributaries within the Lake Erie watershed with a special emphasis on the Blanchard and Tiffin Rivers as important tributaries of the Maumee River. These conservation practices will target environmentally sensitive areas to reduce sediments and nutrients, prevent water pollution and minimize the risk of flooding and improve the habitat for multiple wildlife species. Continue reading Farmers Encouraged to Sign-Up for Lake Erie CREP |
Lake Erie
Join us for an Agriculture and Water Quality Program on August 4th
Join Paulding County Extension from 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM on Thursday, August 4th for a program titled “Agriculture and Water Quality: How do TMDLs and Edge-of-Field Monitoring fit in?”
Greg LaBarge, Field Specialist in Agronomic Systems from Ohio State University Extension and Josh Griffin, Lake Erie Programs Manager from Ohio EPA will speak at this event.
This program will focus on water quality, the agricultural practices that impact it, and the potential solutions for improving it by discussing edge-of-field research being conducted by The Ohio State University. Curious what practices could be improving and impeding water quality on your farm? Have you been thinking about how the Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) process will impact farming in Northwest Ohio? Join us to hear what the process for TMDLs consists of, where the Maumee Watershed is in that process, and what farming practices can contribute to improved water quality.
Register for this free event at go.osu.edu/TMDL. CCA credits for Soil and Water management will be provided.
Upcoming Water Quality Wednesday Winter Programming
Join the Ohio State University’s Water Quality Extension Associates for a webinar series discussing topics related to water quality, ranging from Phosphorus and agricultural Best Management Practices (BMPs) to watershed planning and technology. Continue reading Upcoming Water Quality Wednesday Winter Programming
Battle for Lake Erie includes debate over manure-based phosphorus concentration
8/31/2020
BY TOM HENRY / THE BLADE
A major agronomic debate is being played out in Columbus now, which has potentially large ramifications for western Lake Erie and goes beyond simply looking at the staggering volumes of liquid and solid excrement produced by northwest Ohio cows, hogs, and chickens.
It focuses on the minutia of agricultural science, right down to the parts per million of phosphorus applied to soil in the form of manure.
One of the many groups raising questions is the Lake Erie Foundation, a consortium of Lake Erie-area business and environmental interests. That group and others, including Lake Erie Waterkeeper, want manure-based phosphorus applications dialed down to roughly the same concentration as commercially made, synthetic fertilizers, which is about 40 to 50 parts per million. Manure has for years been applied on northwest Ohio crop farms at much higher concentrations, usually 150 ppm. Some critics, though, claim the application rate has, in reality, gotten as high as 200 ppm to 250 ppm.
From information gathered in a public records request, the foundation believes the state of Ohio has rejected a recommendation from an independent consultant, McKinsey & Co., to promote 50 ppm as a limit for manure, even though Dorothy Pelanda, Ohio Department of Agriculture director, showed support for that in 2019. The firm was paid $1.5 million to provide advice to the DeWine administration for its H2Ohio program, which aims to improve water quality statewide through better farming techniques, more and improved wetlands, better pipelines, and other measures. Continue reading Battle for Lake Erie includes debate over manure-based phosphorus concentration
Ohio Agricultural Law Blog — The Legal Challenges to the Lake Erie Bill of Rights Begin
Written by Evin Bachelor, Law Fellow, OSU Extension Agricultural & Resource Law Program
Toledo’s Lake Erie Bill of Rights (LEBOR) has been in the headlines a lot lately, and certainly on the minds of farmers in the Lake Erie watershed. So far, the Ag Law Blog has focused attention on what LEBOR is, why it was on the ballot, and what types of defenses agricultural producers can raise if sued. Because voters approved the ballot measure, the focus now shifts to how LEBOR will be treated in the courts. Continue reading Ohio Agricultural Law Blog — The Legal Challenges to the Lake Erie Bill of Rights Begin
Ohio Agricultural Law Blog–In the Weeds: Taking a Closer Look at the Lake Erie Bill of Rights
Taken from the Ag Law Blog on 2-11-2019