50 years after Cuyahoga fire, farmers focus on water
Fires in Cleveland helped spark the day of action that we all know as Earth Day back in 1970.
The Cuyahoga River fires were a symbol of our collective failure that could only be changed by collective action.
We have continued to come together every April to celebrate our natural heritage and to improve our communities.
Three years ago this month – after years of harmful algal blooms plaguing our critical watersheds–a smart and dedicated team in Ohio took steps that not many other states have done.
Environmental leaders, agricultural leaders, and academia – in concert with our partners at the Ohio Department of Agriculture – came together to work on water quality issues and formed the Ohio Agricultural Conservation Initiative.
The Ohio Agricultural Conservation Initiative was created with the recognition that water quality challenges are complex and require collective action. The goals of the organization are to:
● assess farm practices in Ohio and their relationship to the waters of the state,
● promote continuous improvement in water quality in Ohio by increasing agriculture’s adoption of best management practices,
● create a voluntary certification program for farmers implementing these practices.
Adoption of these best management practices will further help farmers to adapt to the ever-changing climate and weather conditions that threaten agriculture production.
Ohio State University – which has offices in all 88 Ohio counties and research stations and field labs across the state – has been involved with the Ohio Agricultural Conservation Initiative since its formation in 2019.
Through OSU Extension, the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences supports the Ohio Agricultural Conservation Initiative by conducting research focused on using natural systems to improve water quality and increase sustainability.
This interdisciplinary research links field studies, watershed models, and socio-economic analyses with stakeholder groups to investigate connections between downstream water quality and management practices in upstream watersheds.
For example, we are conducting on-farm research across Ohio focused on nutrient management plans and their positive impact on water quality.
We also hired six water quality associates to work in northwest Ohio.
Each of the new associates serves three to five counties and together, they are part of a new effort by the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences Water Quality Initiative to learn more about reducing nitrogen and phosphorus runoff while also boosting soil health, improving Lake Erie’s water quality, and keeping the region’s farms productive and profitable.
In short, more farmers are engaging in the state of Ohio’s water quality partnership program H2ohio, because of the combined effort. We now have over 2,000 farmers participating on over 2 million acres, on farms as small as 5 acres and as large as 10,000 acres.
Ohio has always been a leader in innovation and technology. When we identify problems, we find solutions. The potential for change with a united front is real, and we are witnessing reductions in nutrients entering our waterways.
We remain deeply committed to advancing science and to our shared purpose of sustaining life.
Cathann Kress is vice president for Agricultural Administration and dean of the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences at The Ohio State University.