Module 13: Agricultural BMPs and Wetlands Flashcards
what are the two major pathways for implementation of the CWA’s watershed approach to maintain water quality?
- stricter permits through the national pollution discharge elimination system (point)
- incentives, training, research, and outreach for BMP (non-point)
BMPs for non-point source pollution
- Adopt standards
- Monitor and assess
- List impaired waters
- Implement plan
what are the purposes of best management practices?
- Technically feasible
- Economically viable
- Socially acceptable
- Based on sound science
nutrient management
reduce fertilizer use, reduce leaching losses
water or irrigation management
conserve water, reduce leaching losses
Manure management
store/utilize animal manures safely, reduce leaching losses
integrated pest management
reduce pesticide use
factors related sol quality
- Soil texture
- Soil organic matter
- Soil quality impacts plant growth
what does the USDA conservation reserve program has what?
- Prevented 600 million dump truck loads of soil from eroding
- Reduced nitrogen and phosphorous runoff
- Created 2.7 million acres of restored wetlands
nutrient management plan purpose
- reduce fertilizer use
- reduce leaching losses
nutrient management plan principles and practices
- right source, right rate, right place, right time
- use soil data to inform nutrient additions
water/irrigation management plan purpose
- conserve water
- reduce leaching losses
water/irrigation management plan principles and practices
- manage fertilizer and irrigation together
- use soil data to inform water additions
manure management plan purpose
- store/utilize animal manures safely
- reduce leaching losses
manure management plan principles and practices
utilize the six basic waste management function
IPM plan purpose
- reduce pesticide use
- improve soil quality
IPM plan principles and practices
- pest monitoring
- economic injury level
- cultural, biological, mechanical, and chemical controls
- make soil habitat unfavorable to pest
high soil quality
- Higher organic matter = stable soil structure
- Water infiltration
- Soil surface protected with decomposing plant debris
- Little to no erosion
degraded soil
- Low organic matter = weak soil structure
- Low water infiltration into soil pores
- Soil surface: a crust created from splash erosion
- Splash erosion: leads to rill erosion
what are soil conservation strategies?
- Right plant, right place
- Enrich soil with organic matter
- Adopt rotational grazing
- Control tile drainage
how do you enrich the soil with organic matter?
- Compost
- Fresh manure
- Composted manure
- Green manure
- Direct incorporation of organic amendments
Conservation tillage
residues left on surface, minimal to no soil tillage
Conventional tillage
mixes soil to bury residues or prepare soil for planting
Advantages of conventional tillage
- This process buries weeds so seeds cannot germinate
- Mixing of soil also buries and physically destroys disease organisms and insects
- In some regions with wet springs tillage speeds up the drying of the soil
- It may be required for certain crips, like potatoes and peanuts
Disadvantages of conventional tillage
- Soil is prone to erosion if left bare
- Soil organic matter decreases and so does soil quality (requiring increased inputs of nutrients, water)
- It can lead to a loss of beneficial insects
control drainage
Maintaining carbon content in organic soils with BMPs in water table management
what does soil texture and soil qualities?
determine the porosity, water holding capacity, and nutrient holding capacity
how can erosion losses occur?
wind and water action
offsite erosion
- erosion is a source of sediment pollution to downstream water bodies
- Phosphorous readily absorbs onto soil particles, erosion is likely a source of phosphorous nutrient pollution to surface water bodies
onsite erosion
- erosion decreases soil quality by removing the most valuable layer of soil, the surface later or A horizon
- Has highest organic matter content and where most crop roots are
riparian buffers
- Planting crops right up to a water body offers no protection from agricultural runoff and stream and bank erosion
- Permanent buffers stabilize stream banks and filter runoff water
- Sediment and nutrients entering the water are reduced significantly
