Project Search
Since its inception in 2004, CIG has funded hundreds of projects, boosting natural resource conservation while helping producers improve the health of their operations for the future. Use this tool to search for CIG projects based on any of the criteria listed below.
CIG projects from 2004-2009 may be missing information in the following categories: Resource Concern (specific), Conservation Practice, Production/Use.
Showing 1441 - 1450 of 1802 projects
Resources First Foundation
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ME
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2007
The purpose of this award is for the grantee to promote and facilitate improved resource management through increased efficiency of information delivery systems for private sector adoption of USDA NRCS market-based incentive programs for conservation.Resources First Foundation (RFF) proposes to build an online Program Finder Search Tool enabling private landowners to access pertinent NRCS conservation and technical assistance program information based on their location, conservation objectives, and program availability in their region.
Nathan Mudd
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AL
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2007
Grazing management is the foundation of grassland-based livestock production since it affects both animal and plant health and productivity. This project will develop and implement an innovative solution to overgrazing on remote islands in Alaska. A calculated prescription for annual harvest of livestock will be made available to producers for attaining proper management and conservation of remote island natural resources. Project will monitor rangeland healthy for results, create technical information useful for resources conservation, assist in creating eligibility for cost-share programs for producers, and encourage early adoption.
Conservation Technology Information Center
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IN
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2007
The purpose of this award is for the grantee to advance implementation of water quality trading in Maryland, Ohio and Virginia.
The Conservation Technology Information Center together with partners – Environmental Trading Network, the International Certified Crop Advisers and the Water Environment Federation – proposes to develop and deliver a detailed, intensive training program on water quality trading for agricultural operators, ag advisors, and municipal wastewater facilities. The training will introduce the concepts of trading, the benefits and challenges of trading and the steps involved in developing a trading program. Key to these trainings will be interactive sessions for participants – including working collaboratively to simulate a trading scenario – to encourage communication between point and non-point sources and to help them to better understand buyer and seller concerns, issues, and challenges.
The Conservation Technology Information Center together with partners – Environmental Trading Network, the International Certified Crop Advisers and the Water Environment Federation – proposes to develop and deliver a detailed, intensive training program on water quality trading for agricultural operators, ag advisors, and municipal wastewater facilities. The training will introduce the concepts of trading, the benefits and challenges of trading and the steps involved in developing a trading program. Key to these trainings will be interactive sessions for participants – including working collaboratively to simulate a trading scenario – to encourage communication between point and non-point sources and to help them to better understand buyer and seller concerns, issues, and challenges.
Washington State University
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WA
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2007
The purpose of this award is for the grantee to develop and demonstrate an innovative technology for recovering phosphorus (P) and fiber solids from anaerobically digested dairy manure.Anaerobic digester offers a great potential for harvesting renewable Energy and reduce greenhouse gas emission from animal manures. Farmers, especially large animal feeding operations (CAFOs), will be much more motivated to adopt the technology if anaerobic digesters can also help with nutrient management to address the water quality regulation concerns. Unfortunately, nutrient recovery is a major missing component from the current anaerobic digesters marketed by the major technology providers. The ultimate goal of this project is to develop and demonstrate the necessary nutrient recovery process to fill this technology gap. The specific objectives are to: (1) design a new process for P recovery and solids removal from dairy manure, (2) demonstrate the process and technologies at a pilot scale (3) conduct market and cost/benefit analysis of the process and resulting rich-P fertilizer, and (4) disseminate the technology and information. The project results will be disseminated to various audiences through publishing fact sheets, process illustration on the web and DVD, site visits, and workshops. The measurable project impacts include the technology adoption, publications of refereed and extension materials, the number of people connected by the project, and an increased number of anaerobic digesters built because the results of the project will make it possible for the anaerobic digesters to address nutrient and water quality problems in addition to harvesting bioEnergy.
North Carolina Department of Environmental & Natural Resources-Division of Soil & Water Conservation
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NC
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2007
The purpose of this award is for the grantee to address nutrient, pesticide, and pathogen transport to surface water and groundwater; Energy consumption; and air quality.The Division will produce an educational brochure and distribute it to all Soil and Water Conservation Districts throughout North Carolina informing them of the innovative mortality management tools available and the associated environmental and long-term economic benefits. The districts will then share the brochure and information with dairy and swine producers. The Division will install these innovative technologies on 10-11 commercial farms across the State. The use of forced aeration composting and gasification for swine, dairy, and poultry mortalities will assist in reducing surface and ground water pollutants from animal agriculture operations and in reducing Energy consumption for managing mortalities.
Oregon State University
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OR
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2007
During the past the past two years Oregon State University has developed a Web-based irrigation advisory service for optimum irrigation planning, scheduling, and design. That program, referred to here as OISO (Oregon Irrigation Scheduling ~ On-line), links with existing weather station networks to provide individual farms with the following advisory services:
1) conventional irrigation scheduling, tailored to the circumstances of specific fields;
2) extended irrigation scheduling procedures to manage multiple fields simultaneously, taking into account farm water supplies, irrigation system capacities, and farm management strategies;
3) automatic data display and record keeping that support requirements of EQIP; and
4) advanced techniques for analysis of alternative irrigation strategies to maximize net economic returns when water supplies or system capacities are limited.
OISO also provides a tool for design of irrigation systems to improve system sizing and enable more effective water management, resulting in water conservation and reduced non-point pollution. In July of 2006 NRCS personnel, several State extension specialists, the director of the BOR Agrimet system and others met at NRCS offices in Portland, Oregon, to review the program. There was unanimous agreement that this Oregon-based advisory service should be extended to the other States of the Pacific Northwest for evaluation and testing under a wide range of conditions, and that it should ultimately be made available nationally.
1) conventional irrigation scheduling, tailored to the circumstances of specific fields;
2) extended irrigation scheduling procedures to manage multiple fields simultaneously, taking into account farm water supplies, irrigation system capacities, and farm management strategies;
3) automatic data display and record keeping that support requirements of EQIP; and
4) advanced techniques for analysis of alternative irrigation strategies to maximize net economic returns when water supplies or system capacities are limited.
OISO also provides a tool for design of irrigation systems to improve system sizing and enable more effective water management, resulting in water conservation and reduced non-point pollution. In July of 2006 NRCS personnel, several State extension specialists, the director of the BOR Agrimet system and others met at NRCS offices in Portland, Oregon, to review the program. There was unanimous agreement that this Oregon-based advisory service should be extended to the other States of the Pacific Northwest for evaluation and testing under a wide range of conditions, and that it should ultimately be made available nationally.
Pennsylvania Environmental Council
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PA
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2007
The purpose of this award is for the grantee to expand, implement, monitor and evaluate a commercial scale mine land reclamation project using composted poutry manure as a soil amendment to cultivate switchgrass and high-diversity native grass, forb, and legume stands (HDNS) for biofuel production.The project partnership will implement a commercial-scale demonstration project using composted poultry manure from EQIP eligible poultry farms located in nutrient impaired watersheds in the Susquehanna Basin in Pennsylvania. Manure will be applied as a soil amendment on parallel plots on nutrient deficient mine lands in Schuylkill County Pennsylvania. The parallel plots will be used for the cultivation of switch grass and native grassland perennials for biomass production on a minimum of 40 acres. Nutrient and carbon sequestration fluxes and biomass production will be monitored throughout the 3-year term of the project.
Klamath Basin Rangeland Trust
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OR
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2007
The purpose of this award is for the grantee to take the next step with Wood River Valley landowners to permanently convert their land management from irrigated to dryland grazing.Water resources in the Klamath Basin are in great demand from a variety of competing interests. This has led to frequent conflicts over how water is distributed for conservation, tribal trust obligations, recreation, farming, and ranching. In addition, some land use practices contribute to poor water quality, increased stream temperatures, and reduced Habitat for endangered and sensitive aquatic and terrestrial species. KBRT’s mission is to restore and conserve the quality and quantity of water in Oregon’s Wood River Valley and the Upper Klamath Basin in order to enhance the natural ecosystem and supply needed water for downstream native fish and wildlife populations, as well as agriculture and ranching. KBRT works with ranchers in the Wood River Valley (the headwaters of Upper Klamath Lake) encouraging the adoption of sustainable land and water management practices. KBRT’s efforts up to now have resulted in 12,000 ac of private grazing land in transition from flood irrigation to dry land grazing, over 67,000 acft of water left in stream each year, increased stream flows, improved water quality, protected riparian areas, improved pasture conditions, and the list goes on. This proposal requests support to allow KBRT to redouble its efforts to increase acreage enrolled in NRCS programs and take the landowners to the next step to assure they can fully transition from flood irrigation into permanent dry land scenarios. KBRT also aims to develop a water market or leasing program so that once the producers graduate from Federal “transition” programs they are able to lease their water in stream and assure it stays where it is needed. KBRT will continue to carry out the ecological monitoring established in 2002 to assess impacts of the management changes. Additionally, KBRT would like to share this proven approach with other NRCS offices and private groups working in high-priority areas.
Oahu RC&D
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HI
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2007
The purpose of this award is for the grantee to advance and increase the adoption of cover crop technology.Commercial scale cover crop demonstration plantings of 2 to 10 acres will be established at 14 sites over the first two years of the project. The size of plots varies due to different crops and crop rotations for different scale farms. Collaborators will counsel cooperators, monitor plantings and demonstrate the benefits of the cover crop to soil fertility, beneficial insects, pest reduction, the follow-on cash crops and business economics. Field Days will be held on all sites, advertised and supported with posters, informational handouts, and discussions. Site and crop specific field data (pest, agronomic and economic) from the project will be analyzed, summarized, and translated to optimize transferability to interested and targeted immigrant farmers. Finally, follow-up efforts will be used to maintain and increase current use by cooperators. The intent of maintaining and increasing the use of Cover Crops becoming a more visible cultural practice and advancing adoption and implementation across the State. This will allow NRCS field personnel to have field references to the practices.
University of Maryland
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MD
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2007
The purpose of this award is for the grantee to develop ditch water filter technology and implementation guidance for ditch drained agro-ecosystems.Agricultural drainage ditches, which are commonplace on Maryland’s eastern shore and lower Delaware, represent a major transport pathway for nutrients, sediments, and other potential contaminants to surface-water bodies. These ditches also represent a possible intervention point in the system at which P derived from runoff and sub-surface flow generated across large acreages of agricultural soils can be prevented from entering the Chesapeake Bay at a single point. We propose the use of a phosphorus sorbing material (PSM) filled structure placed within drainage ditches to act as a P “filter”. Such a P removal structure would allow the removal of P from the aquatic system when P saturated PSMs are removed from the structure. Field prototypes of the proposed system have shown a high likelihood of success, removing approximately 99% of the P from treated water. In addition to removing P from ditch water these treatment systems have the potential to remove nitrogen, sediment, and other contaminants.