Eight farmers in southwestern Indiana are on their way to realizing the Core 4 Conservation benefits of better soil, cleaner water, greater profits, and a brighter future with the help of the Owen County Soil and Water Conservation District.
“The implementation of Core 4-based conservation projects made possible by this grant will reap environmental benefits far into the future.” says Gwen Dieter, district coordinator and environmental educator for Owen County SWCD.
The SWCD coordinated a cost-share conservation project through a 319 grant administered by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management. The project aimed to reduce nonpoint source pollution in three 14-digit watersheds, which are predominantly working agriculture land, where three creeks listed on the state’s impaired water list are found.
Dieter led the charge to improve water quality by changing farming practices in the area. Using Core 4 Conservation systems (conservation tillage, nutrient management, pest management, conservation buffers) as a template for watershed-wide management to reduce nonpoint source pollution, Dieter designed the cost-share project and received funding from IDEM. Through mailings, flyers, posters, and small town word-of-mouth, local producers learned of the available 75 percent cost-share funds and were encouraged to submit applications. A steering committee established by the SWCD reviewed the applications and used the presence of Core 4 practices in the applications as criteria for allocating the funds.
One producer awarded funds was Jerry Wall. Many producers with 73 years under their belt would be reluctant to adopt new practices for their operation. Not Wall. Already conservation minded, Wall saw the cost-share project as a chance to bring his pasture ground “up to snuff” through grid soil sampling and precision fertilizer application. He also outfitted his eight-row planter for no-till. “We tried no-till last year, and it didn’t work, but we tried it again this year, and it looks good,” he says. His plans also included two watering facilities; these provide cattle that have been fenced out of the creeks with water and are surrounded by gravel to reduce nutrient runoff. “I couldn’t be more pleased with the program,” he says.
And Wall isn’t alone. Ken Sebastian, an Owen County SWCD board member, also took advantage of the grant. Although purchase of new equipment was not allowed under the grant, rental or modification of existing equipment was possible, so Sebastian and several of his neighbors used the cost-share funds to outfit their planters with no-till coulters, residue wheels and row cleaners. “There’s lots of things we’re doing that we couldn’t have done otherwise,” says Sebastian.
For example, Sebastian could not have built a winter feeding shed. During the cold months, according to Dieter, cattle feed in one area until it gets too muddy, then they are moved to another spot. Well before spring, there are no dry spots left for feeding cattle.
Winter feeders are roofed structures to shelter feeding cattle and minimize pollutant runoff. Sebastian built his on a concrete slab, so the manure is easily scraped up and held in a covered dry-stack area until it can be spread as fertilizer on pastures as part of his nutrient management plan. This keeps rain from washing bacteria and excess nutrients into streams. “These structures are a real benefit to the environment,” says Dieter.
A large portion of the project's cost-sharefunds went toward grid sampling more than 2,300 acres, about 20 percent of the tillable ground in the three watersheds. Seven of the eight farmers participating opted to sample, and with the data they will be able to apply fertilizers through precision application. This saves the producers money on fertilizer expenses and keeps unused nutrients from reaching the impaired streams. A number of the participants incorporated weed and pest management plans into the nutrient plans that were derived from the sampling.
No producers opted to participate in establishing conservation buffers. “As far as conservation buffers, it is hard to compete with the continuous Conservation Reserve Program offered by Natural Resources Conservation Service,” says Dieter.
In all, there were 18 equipment modifications, seven nutrient, pest, and weed plans, two livestock watering facilities, and a winter feeding shed. The total amount of funds reimbursed to the farmers exceeded $127,000.
The practices are leading to the Core 4 Conservation Principles of better soil, cleaner water, greater profits and a brighter future in Owen County, and their neighbors are watching. According to Sebastian, who is also participating in a watershed management planning committee that the neighboring Clay County SWCD is hosting, the word of Owen County’s success has crossed county lines. Clay County SWCD has received a 319 grant to create a watershed plan. Once this is complete, they may apply for an implementation grant based on Core 4 Conservation.
