Here’s a reason to celebrate Ohio Agriculture Week, March 10–16:
In the Maumee River watershed in northwest Ohio, farmers are partnering with scientists to study fields with elevated phosphorus levels. Are the fields contributing disproportionately to Lake Erie’s harmful algal bloom problem? Phosphorus runoff is a driver of the blooms.
The study hopes to find answers, and then it plans to evaluate farming practices that could help—practices that reduce the runoff of phosphorus from the fields and also maintain the fields’ yields. Water quality and food production both stand to come out ahead.
A CFAES scientist is leading the work, but bottom line, farmers and nutrient service providers are helping make it all possible. Read how. (Photo: Getty Images.)