2007 Annual Report 1a.Objectives (from AD-416) Quantify how agricultural chemicals are transported to surface runoff under different cropping and management practices and identify Best Management Practices to minimize the pollutant loading to surface water sources. 1b.Approach (from AD-416) Monitor water quality parameters at the St. Joseph River Watershed in NE Indiana under different cropping and management practices. Laboratory studies are designed to further the understanding of basic sediment and chemical transport processes. The field study will be used to expand the lab findings to real-world situations. 3.Progress Report This report serves to document research conducted under a specific cooperative agreement between ARS and the St. Joseph River Watersehd Initiative (SJRWI) to implement the Source Water Protection Initiative (SWPI) and the Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP) at the St. Joseph River Watershed in northeast Indiana. Additional details of research can be found in the report for 3602-13000-008-00D – Conservation Effects Assessment for the St. Joseph River Watershed. In FY07, the SJRWI continued to provide local support to maintain the water quality monitoring equipment at twelve monitored sites and preserved samples for subsequent laboratory analyses at the National Soil Erosion Research Laboratory. SJRWI also collected approximately 95% of farm/field cropping and 30% of field management data in the monitored sub-watersheds for water quality and economic assessment.