Environment & Consumption - Agricultural Runoff

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and the goal is to verify if the quality is able to be improved by agricultural conservation practices. "Through EQIP, edge-of-field monitoring projects are taking place in a select number of NWQI watersheds in order to assess the impact of conservation practices at the field scale, calibrate USDA water quality models, and inform adaptive management" (EPA, 2014).

Proposed Solution

As previously mentioned, there are a lot of people who are involved in trying to make a big difference when it comes to agricultural runoff. Dr. Stephen R. Overmann, from Southeast Missouri State University, suggested a few education-based solutions which could make a great difference if utilized. He suggested the following initiatives to take place: "Improved understanding of and data on agricultural impacts on water resources… Improved utilization and management of fertilizers and nutrient-rich wastes… Improved management of riparian and wetland areas in agricultural regions… Increased utilization of integrated pest management… Increased utilization of organic farming techniques" and gaining assistance from governmental programs. (Overmann, n.d.). So, the more that people are educated about the impacts their practices are having on the quality of our water, the better chances of alternative, more environmentally friendly practices being adopted. Suggesting alternative ways of completing tasks that are more environmentally friendly and also financially beneficial to farmers in addition, is a promising (and convincing) approach to making a difference. Also, the government is a very beneficial support system when it comes to "technical assistance, education, cost-sharing, and incentive payments to agriculturists who adopt environmentally beneficial farming practices" (Overmann, n.d.)

Conclusions

When looking at the overall practices that are being implemented within our agricultural world, there is obviously great room for change. It is necessary for these different practices to be implemented so that the damage to the quality of our water is at least greatly reduced. It is necessary to make as many people aware of these practices and of the possible alternatives. The well-being and sustainability of our environmental water sources depend on this education and these changes taking place. This means that the lives of animals which reside in our bodies of water, the quality of our drinking water, and therefore our health also depends on the awareness of our society when it comes to the negative impacts of agricultural runoff.

Bibliography

Clear Water Action Council of Northeast Wisconsin (2015). What is CWAC? Retrieved on March 3, 2015 from http://www.cleanwateractioncouncil.org/about/

EcologyDictionary.org. (2008). Agricultural Runoff. Retrieved on January 11, 2014 from: http://www.ecologydictionary.org/AGRICULTURAL_RUNOFF

Overmann, S. R. (n.d) Water Pollution by Agricultural Chemicals. Retrieved on March 3, 2015 from http://wps.prenhall.com/wps/media/objects/1027/1052055/Regional_Updates/update30.htm

The Nature Conservancy. (2015). Water Retrieved on March 2, 2015 from http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/habitats/riverslakes/protecting-clean-water-for-people-and-nature.xml

U.S. National Library of Medicine/Tox Town. (2014). Agricultural Runoff. Retrieved on January 12, 2015 from: http://toxtown.nlm.nih.gov/text_version/locations.php?id=1

U.S. Water Alliance. (2015). The Northwest Experience with Water Quality Trading for Compliance. Retrieved on March 3, 2015 from http://www.uswateralliance.org/tag/clean-water-act/

United States Environmental Protection Agency. (2014). Agriculture. Retrieved on January 12, 2015 from http://water.epa.gov/polwaste/nps/agriculture.cfm

United States Environmental Protection Agency. (2014). Nonpoint Source Pollution: The Nation’s Largest Water Quality Problem. Retrieved on March 2, 2015 from http://water.epa.gov/polwaste/nps/outreach/point1.cfm