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THE DROP
A monthly e-newsletter from the North Central Region Water Network
March 2024
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Network News
Welcome to spring! While many are champing at the bit to get out to plant, mother nature has had other plans these last couple weeks. We are thinking of our partners in the western part of the region and hoping they are able to dig out quickly.
With planting around the corner we are busy planning summer field days, conferences and workshops. We are also excited to be piloting a new farmer leadership training in Arkansas, Indiana, and Wisconsin this spring aimed at empowering more farmers to be leaders to advance conservation practice adoption and avoid leadership fatigue. Stay tuned for more details and results!
-The North Central Region Water Network team
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Managing phosphorus to both meet crop needs and reduce P loss from agricultural fields is critical to managing water resources. This edition of The Current will focus on P management and water quality - the latest research on P transport modeling, and a review of ag BMPs and their efficacy for reducing P loss.
Featured Speakers:
- Gurbir Singh, Assistant Professor and State Extension Specialist, Soil Science, Agroecology and Landscape Management, University of Missouri-Novelty
- Peter Tomlinson, Associate Professor and Extension Specialist for Environmental Quality, Kansas State University
- Rebecca Logsdon Muenich, Associate Professor, Biological and Agricultural Engineering, University of Arkansas
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The Climate Ready Midwest team has been busy connecting with Extension colleagues at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the Midwest. Team members traveled to Ohio and Missouri to host workshops with our agricultural educator and specialist counterparts, and their close partners, at both Central State University (CSU) and Lincoln University (LU), the two HBCUs and 1890 land-grant institutions in the Midwest (the institutions established through the Morrill Act of 1890, as defined by the Association for Public & Land Grant Universities). Read on
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Michigan's agricultural landscape, while fertile and diverse, grapples with unique challenges including climate variability and evolving concerns around irrigation water use. Irrigation plays an important role in Michigan agriculture. Given the impacts of climate change such as temperature variability and erratic precipitation, it is more important than ever that farmers have the tools to make informed decisions about irrigation water use. Read on
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In The News
Upcoming Events
From FAIR Data Principles to Indigenous Sustainable Water Resources Management Webinar
April 24, 2024
For its spring Great Lakes Freshwater Symposium, the Freshwater Collaborative is partnering with the UW-Milwaukee Center for Water Policy to feature the research of Dr. Grace Bulltail and Research Associate Dr. Parisa Sarzaeim. This is an online event open to all. Register hereFreshwater Science: Project CYBORG (CYano BlOom dRivers and Genes)
April 24, 2024
The Great Lakes provide a host of ecosystem services to many millions of people but are under threat from multiple stressors, including cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (CHABs). To date CHABs in the Great Lakes have been investigated lake-by-lake or even river-by-river, with studies in each location tuned to local perspectives and framed with different research questions, making it difficult to generalize findings and determine how results from one location can be applied elsewhere. Join Ohio Sea Grant's Freshwater Science webinar, featuring Drs. George Bullerjahn, Bob Sterner, and Todd Miller to find out more. Register here
Adaptation in Action: Changing rainfall patterns and floodrisk
May 21, 2024
We’re excited to announce our spring webinar speakers: Chanel Mueller, with the U.S Army Corps of Engineers, and Ketzel Levens, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Duluth. Chanel and Ketzel will discuss changing rainfall patterns in our region and flood mitigation efforts. Register here
Funding and Opportunities
Biophysical Modeling Analyst
Seeking an individual to join the ecological and physical modeling teams at the University of Michigan's Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research (CIGLR) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Great Lakes Environmental Research Lab (NOAA GLERL). Under the direction of project principal investigators, the Biophysical Modeling Analyst will work collaboratively with CIGLR and NOAA GLERL scientists to develop experimental ecological forecasts linked to the hydrodynamic models of the Great Lakes Operational Forecast System and evaluate model performance. Learn more
National Wildlife Federation Mini-Grants
National Wildlife Federation is offering mini grants of up to $3,000 to host agricultural conservation events that lead to on-the-ground action! NWF is seeking teams that can develop messages and events that use behavioral frames to appeal to farmers not currently implementing conservation practices. Teams must be willing to work with NWF on the evaluation of the event and message. Learn more
Lake Superior Collaborative Program Coordinator (University of Wisconsin Extension)
The Lake Superior Collaborative (LSC) is a network of organizations working in partnership to coordinate protection, restoration, & climate resilience efforts in the Wisconsin portion of the Lake Superior watershed. The Program Coordinator will provide important support and leadership for the Collaborative through work with partners to organize and facilitate the LSC leadership team and several workgroups. The coordinator will manage communications via newsletter, website updates, and managing the list serve. The LSC hosts a symposium each year that the coordinator will take the lead on planning. This role serves as a liaison for the Collaborative to build coalitions and engage with potential new partners throughout Wisconsin's Lake Superior watershed. Learn More
News
2nd National Flash Drought Workshop Report: Building on Progress and Looking Forward
Flash droughts have been recognized within the last few decades as a unique phenomenon with significant impacts that require a different approach to monitoring, prediction, and planning. In response, NOAA's National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) and partners began the Flash Drought Initiative. This report captures the key takeaways from the 2nd workshop; the gaps, needs, and opportunities identified; and a list of priorities moving forward for flash drought research and decision making. Read more
Cover crops under the microscope
Cover crops were a long way from being “cool” when University of Nebraska Extension educator Gary Lesoing and others at the university began studying the impact of cover crops on soil health, namely soil erosion and plant-available nitrogen. That was more than 40 years ago, and the research has broadened over time. Lesoing, who recently retired, has learned much about what cover crop species work best for specific soil health goals. Read more
Toward a Strong and Equitable Water Workforce
The water utility sector has a transformational, equity-building opportunity: the composition and capability of its future workforce. This US Water Alliance report identifies three strategies and nine initiatives to address both the quantity and equity challenges in the nation’s water utility workforce. Read more
Building a Better Response to PFAS Contamination
A career in water or the environment never occurred to AJ Jeninga until she took a winter break course to Yellowstone as an undergraduate. Now a double alumna of the Universities of Wisconsin, Jeninga was hired as the first-ever emerging contaminant outreach specialist at the University of Wisconsin – Extension’s Natural Resources Institute. Read more
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