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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #419140
Research Project: From Field to Watershed: Enhancing Water Quality and Management in Agroecosystems through Remote Sensing, Ground Measurements, and Integrative Modeling

Location: Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory

Title: The Long-Term Agroecosystem Research Network: Cross-site transdisciplinary science to support a sustainable and resilient agriculture

Author
item TSEGAYE, TEFERI - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA)
item MARLEN, EVE - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA)
item Hapeman, Cathleen
item KLEINMAN, PETER - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA)
item BAFFAUT, CLAIRE - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA)
item BROWNING, DAWN - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA)
item COFFIN, ALISA - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA)
item SPIEGAL, SHERI - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA)

Submitted to: Journal of Environmental Quality
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/4/2024
Publication Date: 11/5/2024
Citation: Tsegaye, T., Marlen, E., Hapeman, C.J., Kleinman, P.J., Baffaut, C., Browning, D.M., Coffin, A.W., Spiegal, S.A. 2024. The Long-Term Agroecosystem Research Network: Cross-site transdisciplinary science to support a sustainable and resilient agriculture. Journal of Environmental Quality. 53(6):777-786. https://doi.org/10.1002/jeq2.20649.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/jeq2.20649

Interpretive Summary: Today’s agricultural producer faces pressures to address productivity and environmental concerns simultaneously, while containing production costs and adapting to long-term and emergent threats from markets and climate conditions. At the same time, society also expects agriculture to contribute to the mitigation of climate change and provide a positive contribution to quality of life. Thus, a sustainable agriculture must simultaneously enhance prosperity, economic outcomes, environmental quality, and social well-being. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, recognizing the importance of this extraordinary endeavor to agricultural producers and consumers as well as the need to conduct long-term research to develop contextually relevant solutions, established the Long-Term Agroecosystem Research (LTAR) Network in 2011. This manuscript provides an overview of the LTAR Network, highlighting its vision, mission, initiatives, recent network activities, and future directions. Long-term data collection, stakeholder engagement, and the integration of scientific knowledge are needed to enhance agricultural productivity and its resiliency, environmental quality, profitability, social well-being into the future.

Technical Abstract: The Long-Term Agroecosystem Research (LTAR) Network is a collaborative initiative funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service aimed at advancing sustainable, resilient agriculture through coordinated research conducted on croplands, grazinglands, and integrated crop/livestock systems. Here we provide an overview of the LTAR Network, highlighting its vision, mission, initiatives, recent network activities, and future directions. Network level research is critical for developing contextually relevant solutions to the challenges faced by agricultural producers. Long-term data collection, stakeholder engagement, and the integration of scientific knowledge are needed to enhance agricultural productivity and its resiliency, environmental quality, profitability, social well-being into the future.