Author
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Baffaut, Claire |
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Kitchen, Newell |
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Sudduth, Kenneth - Ken |
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Lerch, Robert |
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Sadler, Edward |
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Submitted to: Ag Nutrient Management
Publication Type: Abstract Only Publication Acceptance Date: 10/19/2015 Publication Date: N/A Citation: N/A Interpretive Summary: Technical Abstract: In many watersheds, monitoring at the outlet of small watersheds has not been able to demonstrate that conservation efforts have had any impact on stream water quality. Reasons are multiple including legacy issues, time for the conservation practices to have any benefit, temporal variability of weather, and lack of replicates. Multi-scale monitoring may be one strategy to help identify the benefits. The objective of this presentation is to present monitoring efforts at the plot (0.34 ha), field (~35 ha), and small watershed scale (7,200 ha) and show how they, along with some modeling, can help demonstrate impacts of management practices on sediment and nutrient transport. Weather, management and soil properties were very well known at the plot scale and replicates allowed statistical analysis. At the field scale, weather, management, and soil properties were well known but no replicate was available. Interpretation of monitoring data at the watershed scale was affected by the lack of information and control on land use and land management in the watershed. However, simultaneous consideration of monitoring data at multiple scales helped demonstrate the effect of cover crops and no-till on flow, sediment, and dissolved nutrient transport. Similarly, we will show how simultaneous consideration of monitoring data on chemical transport helps scale conclusions obtained at the plot scale to larger drainage areas. The presentation will also touch on the challenges of year-round monitoring and data management |
