It’s been about four years since Ohio established its H2Ohio program to improve water quality around Lake Erie and in the state as a whole. In that time, 2,400 farmers have put 1.5 million acres into nutrient management plans and more than a million acres into best management practices to improve water quality.
The program focuses on reducing phosphorus runoff from farm fields, which contributes to harmful algal blooms in Lake Erie. However, researchers are still figuring out how much change will it take to fix the phosphorus problem, and what will it take to convince farmers to make those changes.
“We know that these practices work at a field level … we don’t see evidence of these practices working at a watershed level,” said Jay Martin, professor of ecological engineering at Ohio State University. It’s hard to know exactly why, but it’s likely that the practices haven’t been adopted on a large enough scale to show results.
Watershed modeling suggests with 70% of its acres enrolled in best management practices, the watershed can reach a 40% reduction in phosphorus runoff. So far, adoption rates are probably about 25% to 30% at the highest. A recently-launched pilot project Martin is directing in the Shallow Run watershed, in Hardin County, is aiming to hit the 70% target.
“It’s important to learn what works at a watershed scale, which incentives farmers respond to and what practices work for farmers, and then take what we learned to other watersheds and perhaps even beyond,” Martin said.
Project
The project kicked off in July with a meeting at Jerry McBride’s farm in Dola, Ohio. So far, Martin and others involved have focused on getting the word out about the project, their goals and the incentives available for farmers to get involved.
Practices supported by the project include soil testing, variable rate phosphorus placement, manure incorporation, overwinter cover, drainage water management, phosphorus removal structures, wetlands and buffers.
Incentives include anywhere from $40 to $120 per acre for nutrient management practices, depending on the practice and number of acres enrolled, or covering the full cost of practices like soil testing. For structural practices, like buffers, wetlands and phosphorus removal structures, incentives include covering the full cost of the project and additional payments.
“If you’re ever interested in trying any of these things that they’re offering … the incentives that are being offered this time are enough that you can afford to try a field or two,” McBride told Farm and Dairy.
Researchers are working with the Ohio Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources Conservation Service payment programs to offer financial incentives. Hardin Soil and Water Conservation District, Ohio State University Extension and ag retailers will also assist farmers with practices.
Watershed
Researchers chose Shallow Run watershed partly because there is a lot of data on that watershed. Laura Johnson, director of the National Center for Water Quality Research at Heidelberg University, and her team have been monitoring the watershed’s outlet for five years.
“There’s a historical record of water quality in this watershed,” Martin said.
Potato Run watershed is also nearby and has been monitored for five years. It’s a similar watershed, so researchers are using it as a control.
“If we get a wet year and we don’t see reductions in Shallow Run, but see increases in Potato Run, that gives us an indication that the practices are having an impact, but are being overwhelmed by additional rainfall,” Martin explained.
Researchers also picked Shallow Run watershed because the agriculture community in the area is supportive. Multiple ag retailers in the area were interested in the project and Hardin Soil and Water Conservation District has strong connections with farmers in the watershed.
Incentives
A major part of the project is understanding what incentives work to encourage farmers to adopt new practices.
“Higher payment rates are something we think will be effective,” Martin said, noting the project will offer higher rates than programs like H2Ohio offer on their own.
The project will also offer support for community projects in the village of Dunkirk, like library funding or funding for the local high school to make improvements. Farmers who participate will each get a vote on which community project to support each year. Farmers and ag retailers who participate will also have the opportunity to go on a charter fishing trip on Lake Erie in 2024 and 2026, Martin said.
“In order to transfer the results of this project to other watersheds, it’s really essential for us to understand which one or ones of the incentives are effective,” Martin said.
In McBride’s opinion, the answer is simple.
“Probably the biggest thing is, I look at it, and if it can save me money, then that’s the number one driving force,” McBride said. “Why put [fertilizer] where you don’t need it, and why spend the money if you don’t need to?”
On his farm, McBride has used a nutrient management plan and variable rate application for years. Extra financial incentives from NRCS programs didn’t hurt either, he added. They just about covered the costs of grid sampling, which helped him start those practices without additional costs.
He believes variable rate application and phosphorus incorporation are both practices that have a good chance of being adopted by more farmers.
“For the dollars they’re paying, it’s a no-brainer for me,” he said. “I don’t know why you wouldn’t want to try it. They’re basically paying for all of it upfront.”
For some, though, he added, fear of failure or preferring to keep doing things that are familiar keeps farmers from trying new practices.
“That’s two of the mindsets that I hear,” McBride said. “I don’t know how you’re ever going to change that mindset unless we get a new generation in there.”
Next steps. This fall, contracts will be made available for in-field practices for farmers interested in the program.
This winter, researchers will begin looking at structural practices, like phosphorus filters, buffer strips and more to see if farmers are interested and evaluate where they could be useful. The project will last through 2028.
In the meantime, organizers are setting up meetings with farmers and soil and water conservation district representatives to talk about the project and get farmers’ thoughts on it.
“You get to the local level and let the locals kind of decide what to do and how to do it, and you get a better response than someone from the education world trying to tell you what to do,” McBride said.
