Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP) Measuring the Environmental Benefits of Conservation Managing the Agricultural Landscape for Environmental Quality

Why CEAP?  OMB requests for outcome-based reporting  2002 Farm Bill significantly increased conservation funding  call from both inside and outside government for better accountability  Assessment is needed to guide development and implementation of future conservation programs

Overview of CEAP Watershed case studies (43) National Assessment  Cropland  Wildlife  Wetlands  Grazing Land

CEAP Highlights… Blue Ribbon Panel review National Agricultural Library bibliographies  Cropland (set of 5)  Wetlands  Grazing Lands  Wildlife Literature Syntheses on Practice Effects—What is Known and Not Known International Workshop on Managing Agricultural Landscapes For Environmental Quality— Strengthening the Science Base (Oct 2006)

Cropland National Assessment-- Goals 1. Estimate the benefits of conservation practices currently present on the landscape 2. Estimate the need for conservation practices and the benefits that could be realized under “full treatment” 3. Simulate alternative options for implementing conservation programs on cropland

Schematic for Construction of the National Assessment Farm survey data at NRI- CEAP sample points Field-level modeling APEX Watershed modeling SWAT Onsite (field-level) Effects Off-Site Water Quality Effects

NRI-CEAP Sample

Primary Sample Unit (PSU) Points Statistical Design

Activities for Construction of the CEAP Current Condition. Collect: 1. Farm survey (NASS) 2. NRI point attribute data 3. Field office records: NRCS/FSA 4. Historical weather data Field-level modeling (APEX) CEAP Current Condition, onsite estimates Select subset of NRI sample points 20,000 cropland 10,000 CRP Setup data for site specific simulations Refine APEX model Soil Data NASIS

NRI-CEAP Cropland Survey The survey obtains for each sample point:  Three years of crop and cropping practice information Crops grown, seeding rates, etc. Nutrient applications, including manure Pesticide applications and pest management practices Field operations, including tillage Irrigation practices  Conservation practices  Conservation Program participation

NASS Farmer Survey 44 pages Covers all aspects of crop production for 3 years. Tillage Fertilizers and manures Pesticides Irrigation Conservation

NASS Fertilizer

Daily weather—47-year simulation using actual weather for Hydrology Erosion Nutrient cycling Carbon cycling Pesticide fate Soil characteristics (temperature, bulk density, etc.) Crop growth Tillage and management operations Field-to-field routing used to simulate field borders, buffer strips APEX Model

Modeling Strategy 1. Estimate a CEAP Baseline using farmer survey information at NRI sample points 2. Construct an alternative scenario assuming “no practices” Difference between these two scenarios represents the benefits of the accumulation of conservation practices currently in place.

Microsimulation Modeling Thus, the resulting simulation model …  Captures the diversity of land use, soils, climate, and topography as represented by the NRI, and diversity of human behavior as represented in the NRI-CEAP survey.  Estimates the loss of materials at the field scale where the process model performs the best, using site-specific information.  Provides a statistical basis for aggregating results to the national and regional levels.

Soil Type and Management Interactions Soil Leaching Potential Management Level Soil Leaching average LowModerate Moderately High High Low Moderate Moderately High High Management average

Non-Cultivated Lands Channel/Flood Plain Processes Point Sources APEX Cultivated Fields SWAT : Off-Site Effects

EROSION Water – USLE – USLE modifications MUSLE Onstad-Foster RUSLE RUSLE 2 Wind – Manhattan, KS with Bagnolds energy equation

NUTRIENTS Nitrogen – Surface runoff  soluble and adsorbed – Subsurface flow  lateral and vertical – Mineralization – Immobilization – Denitrification – Volatilization – Nitrification – Crop uptake

Phosphorus – Surface runoff  soluble and adsorbed – Leaching – Mineralization – Immobilization – Adsorption-desorption – Crop uptake NUTRIENTS

PESTICIDE FATE GLEAMS Surface runoff – soluble and adsorbed Leaching Degradation – from foliage and soil Washoff from plants – rainfall or irrigation

Management capabilities –Irrigation –Drainage –Furrow diking –Buffer strips –Terracing –Waterways –Fertilization –Manure management –Lagoons APEX –Reservoirs –Crop rotation and selection –Pesticide application –Grazing –Tillage

ROUTING COMPONENT Water – Overland flow – Channel – Floodplain – Sub-surface Sediment – Modified Bagnolds stream power – Deposition – degradation  Overland flow  Channel  Floodplain

ROUTING COMPONENT Nutrients and pesticides – Soluble materials considered conservative – Adsorbed materials sediment transported – Enrichment ratio concept

SUBAREA FILE Management Daily weather Soil Channel parameters –Depth –Width –Length –Slope Reservoir parameters –Spillway elevation –Runoff volume –Release rate –Surface area

INPUT DATA Data Files Residing with Model –Weather –Tillage –Fertilizer –Soil –Pesticide –Management –Crop Growth Parameters

RECENT APEX APPLICATIONS CEAP – Conservation Effects Assessment Project −National assessment of the effects of conservation practices on cultivated cropland across the U.S. Distribution of APEX testing sites across the U.S. that were used in the CEAP sensitivity analysis