Brief Summary of Minutes of Annual Meeting

SERA-46 has continued quarterly conference calls to discuss progress on SERA-46 and Hypoxia Task Force shared priorities. We met in person with a small group of the committee in January in Ames, IA to continue work on these items and had our annual face-to-face meeting of the whole group at the same time as the Hypoxia Task Force meeting in April in St. Louis, MO. The group has continued to work to strengthen networks between the Hypoxia Task Force (HTF) and the Land Grant University system (LGU). We have provided information to the  HTF on relevant information on why there are differences in LGU recommendations on nitrogen management and a short white paper with a proposal was developed that would address differences in LGU nutrient management recommendation and integrate for 4R outreach.

We have continued through Mississippi State University leadership to review the HTF states’ nutrient reduction strategies to identify common goals, approaches and attributes. A publication has been prepared that assists with translating science regarding the issues and solutions for reducing nitrogen export in tile drained lands. This publication will be released from the University of Illinois Extension in August of 2016. A priority item of SERA-46 is to develop and implement a social indicators system that will guide, evaluate and advance implementation of state strategies for nutrient loss. Based on this item a white paper was developed and a project was funded by USEPA. The title of the project is “Using Social and Civil Engagement Indictors to Advance Nutrient Reduction Efforts.” Another priority item was to create a network of watershed practitioners and farmer leaders to strengthen the implementation effectiveness of nutrient strategies. Based on this priority a white paper was developed and a project was funded by USEPA. The title of the project is “Building Capacity for Watershed Leadership and Management in Twelve Mississippi River Basin States.” A critical group for educating producers on nutrient management are Certified Crop Advisors and SERA-46 has a priority item to work in partnership with the American Society of Agronomy (ASA) Certified Crop Advisors program. At our April meeting Luther Smith from ASA visited with SERA-46 about their program and ways we can better engage. A near term action item was to make sure we are posting events for continuing education offerings and including articles in the Crops and Soil magazine.

Another priority topic for SERA-46 is monitoring, calibration, and validation. We are continuing to work on the potential for LGUs to contribute data to the water quality portal and some pilot projects have been identified for testing this process and developing case studies. There is some potential to engage the water institutes in each state to participate in this process. SERA-46 is looking beyond our initial shared priorities to areas where we can have an impact. At our April meeting we had a presentation by Glen Salmon on the Landscape Conservation Cooperatives and plan to continue to engage with Glen on how we can better work together. In addition, we are looking at how we better factor in economics into our shared priorities and can provide information to the HTF on this item. We had presentations at both our January and April meeting on the economic evaluation of improved water quality and ecosystem services and believe this is a critical area where we need to continue efforts. Most recently we have engaged with the HTF on potential projects related to Nutrient Reduction Metrics and Measures.