Location: Cropping Systems and Water Quality Research
Project Number: 5070-12000-001-011-I
Project Type: Interagency Reimbursable Agreement
Start Date: Sep 2, 2022
End Date: Sep 30, 2027
Objective:
1. Quantify impacts of conservation practices on soil health, water quality and quantity at the Goodwater Creek Experimental Watershed (GCEW) in Central Missouri.
2. Assess new monitoring techniques that enhance data collection for water quality and quantity.
Approach:
Conservation practices assessed will be those commonly implemented in the GCEW, including nutrient management, conservation tillage, terraces, grass waterways, cover crops, and riparian buffers. The assessment will focus on the linkage between conservation practices, soil health metrics such as soil organic C and microbial activity measurements, and water quantity and quality. We will use current plot and field experiments to assess the effects of combining practices such as conservation tillage and upland buffers. Computer simulations with the Agricultural Policy / Environmental eXtender (APEX) will complement measured data to assess impacts over a range of weather inputs and alternate conservation practices. In the evaluation of monitoring techniques, we will continue to assess the accuracy and precision of radar systems to measure stage, as well as how water quality sondes that measure pH, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, water temperature, and soluble reactive phosphorus perform and how they can further inform stream water quality processes.
