The next Penn State Water Resources Extension webinar on Wednesday, September 24, 2014 from 12:00 to 1:00 PM EST will discuss Fertilizer Forecaster, A New Predictive Tool for Runoff. The presenter will be Dr. Tony Buda, a research hydrologist with the USDA-ARS Pasture Systems and Watershed Management Research Unit (PSWMRU), located in University Park, PA When: Wednesday, September 24, 2014 - 12:00 to 1:00 PM Title: Fertilizer Forecaster, A New Predictive Tool for Runoff Presenter: Dr. Tony Buda, Research Hydrologist, USDA-ARS Pasture Systems and Watershed Management Research Unit, University Park, PA Where: the live webinar can be viewed at https://meeting.psu.edu/water1 Webinar description: Managing the timing of fertilizer and manure application is critical to protecting water quality in agricultural watersheds. When fertilizers and manures are applied at inopportune times (e.g., just prior to a rainfall event that produces surface runoff) the risk of surface water contamination is unnecessarily increased. Therefore, timely forecasts on the likelihood of surface runoff occurrence may help farmers adjust when and where fertilizers are applied to fields in order to mitigate water quality risk and improve nutrient use efficiency. This presentation will summarize ongoing efforts in four Pennsylvania watersheds (Anderson Creek, Spring Creek, Mahantango Creek, and Conewago Creek) to develop a short-term (24, 48, and 72 hr forecasts) decision support tool for nutrient management. The tool, which combines state-of-the-art weather forecasting with digital maps of soils prone to runoff generation and models of runoff hydrology, is funded by a grant from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) program, and features collaboration with local, state, and federal action agencies, as well as several university partners. The presentation will offer background on the use of applied assessment tools in nutrient management, demonstrate a niche for short-term decision support tools like the Fertilizer Forecaster, and provide an overview of the approach, as well as our progress in developing a prototype of the tool for use and testing by farmers and land managers in each of the project basins. https://meeting.psu.edu/water1
Posted on: Thu, 18 Sep 2014 19:51:19 +0000
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