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 1401 - 1410 of 1760 projects
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.
South Dakota State University
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SD
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2007
The project is designed to demonstrate and evaluate precision conservation practices that integrate and compliment biomass production for cellulosic ethanol production from multiple feedstocks’. Ethanol production in South Dakota is currently based on corn grain using a dry or wet milling process. However in the near future (3-5 years) a cellulosic process based on enzymatic processing of pretreated biomass will begin to enter the biofuel markets and co-exist with production of ethanol from corn grain. Initially corn stover will be the feedstock of choice but this will soon begin to include other feedstock such as perennial grasses. Guidelines for stover/straw removal, annual – perennial biomass rotations, fertilization, and other agronomic practices need to be developed that are site specific. Precision conservation applies conservation practices to optimize protection of natural resources, sustain soil productivity, and protect ecological goods and services within the landscape. This project will evaluate precision conservation practices applied to typical landscapes in Eastern South Dakota that are most likely to be involved in intensive biofuels production. The proposed project will be conducted on cooperating producer fields. Evaluation of management practices involving multiple cellulosic feedstocks will be conducted in MLRAs 102A, 102B/C, 55B, and 55C of South Dakota where much of the biomass production is expected to occur. Measurements will be made of biomass and grain production, biomass removed, biomass Energy potential, residue cover, soil quality, carbon balance, erosion and sediment loss potential, nutrient distribution within the landscape, and leaching potential. Comparisons will be made of contrasting management practices to include variation in biomass removal, and landscape specific location of biomass crops including prairie cordgrass, switch grass, and corn. The evaluations will be used to develop site specific technical guidelines, fact sheets, and technical specifications for use by NRCS and the SD Extension service.
Michigan State University
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MI
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2007
The purpose of this award is for the grantee to provide a tool that will aid NRCS staff in assisting producers with making decisions on where strategies to mitigate emissions for dust, odor, VOC, ammonia, and hydrogen sulfide will have the greatest impact within a livestock operation.Livestock producers are under increasing pressure to mitigate air emissions, whether it is for regulatory purposes or as part of a ‘good neighbor’ plan. Mitigation strategies are expensive to implement so care must be taken in identifying if and where strategies are most useful. Because of management and structural variability in operations, these are site specific decisions. This project consists of three components:
1) Development of an on-farm air quality assessment tool for beef feedlot, dairy, swine, laying hen, turkey and broiler chicken operations that is designed to evaluate where mitigation strategies will have the greatest impact;
2) Field testing of the tool with NRCS staff, following in-service training on the tool; and
3) Refinement of the national tool as well as regionalization of the national tool where needed. As part of this effort resource materials will be developed as needed and as identified by NRCS staff.
The resulting tool will be available through venues with national exposure and its use can be incorporated to other efforts to address air quality and livestock production. This submission illustrates the commitment of the land-grant system to developing solutions as well as the commitment of the industry in implementing strategies to protect air resources. The livestock and poultry industries have pledged their commitment through their partnership agreements with this project and their commitment of matching funds to ensure the success of the proposal.
1) Development of an on-farm air quality assessment tool for beef feedlot, dairy, swine, laying hen, turkey and broiler chicken operations that is designed to evaluate where mitigation strategies will have the greatest impact;
2) Field testing of the tool with NRCS staff, following in-service training on the tool; and
3) Refinement of the national tool as well as regionalization of the national tool where needed. As part of this effort resource materials will be developed as needed and as identified by NRCS staff.
The resulting tool will be available through venues with national exposure and its use can be incorporated to other efforts to address air quality and livestock production. This submission illustrates the commitment of the land-grant system to developing solutions as well as the commitment of the industry in implementing strategies to protect air resources. The livestock and poultry industries have pledged their commitment through their partnership agreements with this project and their commitment of matching funds to ensure the success of the proposal.