Balancing Nutrient and Carbon Management in Crop Systems and Riparian Buffers
Our long-term goal with this project is to develop understanding of ecosystem processes that will encourage adoption of sustainable agroecosystem management practices for improved water quality. Non-point source pollution from agriculture is a serious problem in the upper Midwest where current agricultural practices contribute significantly to the hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico. Our central tenet is that reducing agriculture’s footprint on streams, rivers and oceans will require a multi-faceted landscape ecology approach that integrates ecosystem research at multiple scales.
We are investigating the effectiveness of coupling the filtering function of restored riparian zones with sustainable management of croplands into integrated agroecosystem management units in which nutrient cycling efficiency is significantly increased. Our study is closely linked to surrounding watersheds in Wayne and Holmes County Region. The study is providing a mechanistic understanding of carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) dynamics, and soil biotic processes, in selected reference agroecosystems within the headwaters of the surrounding watersheds and in controlled experimental watersheds on the OARDC campus on which we are implementing a range of cropping systems coupled with riparian buffers.
Our specific objectives are:
1. Quantify water quality in headwater streams and C, N, and P cycling and associated soil microbial ecology characteristics in riparian buffer zone and cropland reference sites.
2. Determine C, N, and P fluxes and associated microbial ecology characteristics in upland cropping and restored riparian buffer subsystems in controlled experimental watersheds.
3. Develop quantitative models for examining the potential for improving water quality at the landscape scale by implementing sustainable agroecosystem management systems.
Farmer involvement in both research and outreach activities is greatly increasing the probability of achieving our goal of catalyzing substantive management changes that enhance water quality.
Contact Deb Stinner, stinner.2@osu.edu for more information. |
