Leopold Center project helps farmers save money, protect groundwater

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SIOUX CENTER, Iowa -- For Iowa farmers, nitrogen loss from fields means that dollars spent on fertilizer aren’t being used effectively. For urban citizens, it means a higher risk to drinking water supplies. A project funded by the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture plans to address those problems by developing cropping systems that help keep nitrogen where it belongs. The research team will hold a field day about their work on September 8 at the Sandy Hollow Clubhouse in Sioux Center.

Robb De Haan, professor of environmental studies at Dordt College, received three years of funding for the project from the Leopold Center’s Ecology Initiative in 2009. He teamed up with Matt Schuiteman, a farmer near Sioux Center whose family has been growing corn at AJS Farms for 40 years. The project is featured in a new video, “On-farm practices to reduce nitrate loading to shallow wells.” Watch the video at www.leopold.iastate.edu (look for “videos” under the News menu) or on Iowa State’s channels at iTunesU and YouTubeU.

Shallow wells provide over half of Sioux Center’s drinking water supply. In recent years, testing has shown a slow increase in nitrate-nitrogen levels in the aquifer, and some wells have exceeded the Environmental Protection Agency’s maximum level of 10 ppm. Sioux Center blends water that contains high nitrate levels with cleaner sources to stay below the regulatory limit.

“What we’re trying to do in this study is identify cropping systems that are economically viable and reduce nitrogen loss from agricultural systems,” De Haan said. While enrolling farmland in the Conservation Reserve Program can help reduce nitrate movement, De Haan said that farmers feeling financial pressures aren’t likely to select this option. His project focuses on finding a method that offers a reasonable return to the farmer.

The project team designed five experimental cropping systems and is testing them in a replicated trial on roughly 40 acres of the Schuiteman farm. Schuiteman said he uses his standard farm equipment to make the experiment “a real-world scenario.” One end of the spectrum is a continuous corn system, typical of Iowa agriculture, and at the other is perennial grass. Three other systems experiment with various combinations of oat, alfalfa, winter wheat, corn or soybean, with cover crops of red clover, oat or winter rye. The perennial grass and alfalfa systems receive no nitrogen applications; other systems receive nitrogen as needed.

“The idea is to use perennial crops and cover crops to keep the nitrogen in the upper layers of the soil and available for the next season, and apply just what the crops need when they need it,” De Haan said. The research team is still in the processing of analyzing the data, but initial results suggest that perennial crops such as grass hay and alfalfa, which have living roots in the soil year-round, are the most effective way to prevent nitrate from escaping.

Schuiteman emphasized that a diversified farming operation is good for farmers, as well as the environment. He sells wheat and oat in local markets, but more importantly, he saves money by reducing the amount of nitrogen fertilizer he needs to apply. Schuiteman will speak about the farmer’s perspective at the September 8 field day, which will include discussion on action steps that policymakers, city managers and farmers can take to prevent nitrate loss.

“To be sustainable it’s got to work in the long run but it’s also got to make money,” Schuiteman said. “Profit is important to stay in business. If we truly can better the soil through the use of cover crops and some of the other things we’re doing, that soil is going to help us create wealth.”

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The Leopold Center was established by the 1987 Iowa Groundwater Protection Act as a research and education center at Iowa State University to develop sustainable agricultural practices that are both profitable and conserve natural resources. Iowa State does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, sex, marital status, disability, or status as a U.S. Vietnam Era Veteran. Any persons having inquiries concerning this may contact the Director of Affirmative Action, 3210 Beardshear Hall, (515) 294-7612.

This page was found at http://www.leopold.iastate.edu/news/08-30-2011/leopold-center-project-helps-farmers-save-money-protect-groundwater on 01/21/2013