The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship recently announced the expansion of its Water Quality Initiative (WQI) into five more counties, namely Carroll, Guthrie, Cherokee, Ida, and Woodbury. This move is part of the department's efforts to support farmers and landowners in implementing conservation practices that would help the state achieve its Nutrient Reduction Strategy goals while keeping Iowa's farmland productive.
The WQI is a demonstration project that uses precision ag tools to identify, build, and expand opportunities for forage-based crops where row crops are less profitable. Assistance is provided to cattle producers on an individual basis to evaluate their operations and goals on a sub-field level and to identify the best opportunities to target conservation practices.
Since 2016, the project has been successful in reducing soil erosion and improving water quality through practices like cover crop planting, cropland conversion, and grade stabilization structure construction. With the expansion into five more counties, the project aims to continue promoting practices like grazing and hay land planting, extended crop rotations, and the use of cover crops in livestock operations.
The project coordinators in the new counties will provide technical expertise and resources to farmers and landowners at the local level, with the first phase expected to cost approximately $465,000 and last through 2025. The initiative seeks to harness the collective ability of both private and public resources and organizations to deliver a clear and consistent message to stakeholders to reduce nutrient loss and improve water quality.
Cattle and conservation make for a great combination in achieving the Nutrient Reduction Strategy goals, as demonstrated by the success of the WQI project. With the expansion into five more counties, the project is expected to help more farmers and landowners implement conservation practices that would benefit the environment and their operations.
Photo Credit: Environmental Protection Agency
Categories: Iowa, Sustainable Agriculture