Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Medium-Term Impacts Of Grassland And Forestry Integration On The Environmental Performance Of A New Zealand Pastoral System, Michael B. Dodd, A. O. Hughes, Grant M. Rennie

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

At the IGC in 2008, we presented a paper outlining a project that aimed to improve the economic and environmental performance of a New Zealand hill country pastoral catchment farm system. This project was undertaken by engaging a wide group of sector stakeholders in visioning, modelling, planning and implementing significant land use change within a 296-hectare pastoral farm. In recognition of developing sectoral views of agricultural sustainability, the major changes involved pine afforestation, livestock production intensification, protection of waterways and indigenous bush restoration. The report in 2008 outlined the positive impacts on key farm systems and water quality performance indicators …

Implementation, Participation And Evaluation Of A Voluntary Water Quality Protection Program For Grazingland Owners And Managers, Mel R. George, J. M. Harper, S. R. Larson, R. E. Larsen, N. K. Mcdougald, D. J. Lewis

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

In 1990, California's range livestock industry began working with the state's water quality regulatory agency to develop a voluntary producer participation programme to protect water quality on privately owned grazinglands. In 1995 they implemented a voluntary programme of surface water protection supported by extension education and technical assistance conducted by University of California and USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. Past studies have shown that education programmes are crucial to voluntary pollution control programmes in agriculture (EPA 1990) and that ranchers will change grazing management practices in response to extension education programmes (Richards and George 1996). The objective of this project …

Effect Of Long-Term Nutrient Management Strategies For Pastures On Phosphorus In Surface Runoff And Soil Quality, G. L. Mullins, J. P. Fontenot, G. A. Alloush, G. Johnson, D. G. Boyer, V. G. Allen, G. Scaglia

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

Manure, whether mechanically applied or deposited by grazing animals, has been associated with increased risk of non-point source pollution, especially phosphorus. This is especially true in areas where the industry, especially poultry, has been concentrated in geographical areas that are grain deficient, resulting in a reliance on imported grain for poultry feed. Intensification has resulted in the production of large quantities of poultry manure, within relatively small geographical areas. Surplus litter is typically land applied as a nutrient source or used as an animal feed. The objective of this project was to evaluate the effects of long-term nutrient management strategies …

Hydrology Data For Fern Cave, Alabama (2020-2022), Benjamin Tobin, Benjamin V. Miller, Matthew Niemiller, Andrea Erhardt

Research Data--KGS

Dataset includes water level from four sites within Fern Cave in Jackson County Alabama. Additionally, it includes chemistry of water, sediments and cave-adapted isopods.

Riparian Management In Intensive Grazing Systems For Improved Biodiversity And Environmental Quality: Productive Grazing, Healthy Rivers, S. R. Aarons, M. Jones-Lennon, P. Papas, N. Ainsworth, F. Ede, J. Davies

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

Within high rainfall intensive grazing systems of southern Victoria, riparian zones are often degraded due to vegetation clearing, stock access and inappropriate farm management. Streams in these landscapes often have poor water quality and reduced biodiversity due to degraded terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Improved management of riparian zones depends on developing tools and practices for integration into productive grazing systems. This paper describes the approaches used and the tools developed in the 'Productive Grazing, Healthy Rivers: Improving riparian and in-stream biodiversity' project

Riparian Management In Intensive Grazing Systems For Improved Biodiversity And Environmental Quality: Productive Grazing, Healthy Rivers, S. R. Aarons, M. Jones-Lennon, P. Papas, N. Ainsworth, F. Ede, J. Davies

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

Within high rainfall intensive grazing systems of southern Victoria, riparian zones are often degraded due to vegetation clearing, stock access and inappropriate farm management. Streams in these landscapes often have poor water quality and reduced biodiversity due to degraded terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Improved management of riparian zones depends on developing tools and practices for integration into productive grazing systems. This paper describes the approaches used and the tools developed in the ‘Productive Grazing, Healthy Rivers: Improving riparian and in-stream biodiversity’ project.

Understanding Livestock Grazing Impacts: A Decision Support Tool To Develop Goal-Oriented Grazing Management Strategies, S. J. Barry, K. Guenther, G. Hayes, R. Larson, G. Nader, M. Doran

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

Managing grasslands in the western United States has become much more complex over the last few decades. A century ago the goal was to survive as a livestock producer, and grassland management involved using forage effectively and overcoming obstacles such as predators and shortages of water and feed. Today the successful grassland manager also needs to consider the diversity and health of the ecosystem as a whole. Livestock grazing can negatively and/or positively affect riparian areas, sensitive plants, and endangered wildlife. Since the impact on a specific factor will vary depending on the timing, intensity and class of livestock grazed, …

Water Quality In Terms Of Metals During Flooding In Two Ecosystems Of The Conchos Watershed, Mexico: Rangeland‐Forest And Urban Areas, H. Rubio, J. Jiménez, K. Wood, M. Gutierrez

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

No abstract provided.

Impacts Of Grazing Management On Cattle Distribution And Non‐Point Source Pollution From Pastures In The Central United States, M. Haan, J. Russell, D. Bear, D. Morrical

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

No abstract provided.

Grassland And Water Resources: Recent Trends And Future Challenges In Temperate Zones, Benoît Marc

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

No abstract provided.

Occupancy And Abundance Of Stream Salamanders Along A Specific Conductance Gradient, Jacob M. Hutton, Steven J. Price, Simon J. Bonner, Stephen C. Richter, Christopher D. Barton

Forestry and Natural Resources Faculty Publications

In the Central Appalachians (USA), mountaintop-removal mining accompanied by valley fills often leads to streams with elevated specific conductivity (SC). Thus, the ionic composition of freshwaters in this region is hypothesized to be a driver of the distribution and abundance of freshwater taxa, including stream salamanders. We examined the association between SC and stream salamander populations by conducting salamander counts in 30 southeastern Kentucky streams across a continuous gradient of SC that ranged from 30 to 1966 μS/cm. We counted 2319 salamanders across 5 species and, using a hierarchical Bayesian version of the N-mixture model, found a negative association between …

The North Wyke Farm Platform: A New Uk National Capability For Research Into Sustainability Of Agricultural Temperate Grassland Management, Phil J. Murray, Bruce A. Griffith, Robert J. Orr, Martin S. A. Blackwell, Jane M. B. Hawkins, S. Peukert

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

The North Wyke Farm Platform is a new UK National Capability that will enable studies that can be closely monitored and controlled under different land-use options at the farm-scale. As a Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council-funded National Capability, the Farm Platform provides centralised scientific facilities including core data (field and water chemistry, water flow rates, greenhouse gas emissions from soils, livestock and agronomic data, and farm management records). Access to the Farm Platform for experimental work or to data will be available to other research users and collaborators. This shared approach will enhance the depth and breadth of information …

Mediating Socio-Political Barriers To Water Quality Improvement In Surface Water On Grazed Wildlands, Tipton D. Hudson

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

Acute and growing social and legal conflict over regulation of non-point source pollution in Washington State has hampered proactive efforts to improve water quality in streams dominated by grazed watersheds. Livestock farmers caught in the conflict over water quality experience legal risk, reduced quality of life, and financial risk. Nonpoint source pollution is “pollution that is not released through pipes but rather originates from multiple sources over a relatively large area”. This diffuse pollution is notoriously difficult to regulate. Because causality is often not definable, coercing behavior is problematic, and most efforts to address nonpoint source (NPS) pollution rely on …

Rehabilitating Degraded Frontage Soils In Tropical North Queensland, Trevor J. Hall

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

The extensive tropical grasslands of north Queensland are grazed by beef cattle and provide a significant proportion of the water flowing into the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) lagoon. Soil sediments and nutrients eroding from the grazing lands of the Burdekin and Fitzroy catchments in north-east Queensland contributes to reduced water quality in the GBR lagoon. Degraded and eroded D-condition bare areas and eroding gullies in grazing lands provide a disproportionate amount of soil and nutrient losses from predominately native pasture grasslands used for cattle grazing. Rehabilitating these degraded areas will help improve water quality flowing onto the reef.

Rehabilitation methods …

Assessment Of Streamside Management Zones For Conserving Benthic Macroinvertebrate Communities Following Timber Harvest In Eastern Kentucky Headwater Catchments, Joshua K. Adkins, Christopher D. Barton, Scott Grubbs, Jeffrey W. Stringer, Randall K. Kolka

Forestry and Natural Resources Faculty Publications

Headwater streams generally comprise the majority of stream area in a watershed and can have a strong influence on downstream food webs. Our objective was to determine the effect of altering streamside management zone (SMZ) configurations on headwater aquatic insect communities. Timber harvests were implemented within six watersheds in eastern Kentucky. The SMZ configurations varied in width, canopy retention and best management practice (BMP) utilization at the watershed scale. Benthic macroinvertebrate samples collected one year before and four years after harvest indicated few differences among treatments, although post-treatment abundance was elevated in some of the treatment streams relative to the …

Wetlands And Coastal Systems: Protecting And Restoring Valuable Ecosystems, Carmen T. Agouridis, Kyle R. Douglas-Mankin, Anna C. Linhoss, Aaron R. Mittelstet

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

Wetlands and coastal systems are unique, highly productive, and often threatened landscapes that provide a host of services to both humans and the environment. This article introduces a five-article Wetlands and Coastal Systems Special Collection that evolved from a featured session at the 2015 ASABE Annual International Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Collection provides perspectives on tools and techniques for enhancing the protection and restoration of wetlands and coastal systems with emphasis on vegetation, hydrology, water quality, and planning. Topics span the Florida Everglades (two articles) and Virginia floodplain (one article) wetland systems and include remote sensing (one article) …

Quality Of Water From Tile Drains In Fields Treated With Poultry Litter In Mclean County, Kentucky, E. Glynn Beck, Lisa Y. Blue, David A. Atwood

Information Circular--KGS

Poultry litter (a mixture of feed, manure, and bedding material) is commonly used as a soil amendment to row-crop fields in western Kentucky. Because of feed additives, litter typically has elevated concentrations of contaminants, including metals and anions. These metals and anions can accumulate in the soil and therefore could be transported to surface water through drainage tiles. In order to assess water quality in tile drains, a pilot study was conducted in 2008 in McLean County, Kentucky, in which 10 tile drains and six drainage ditches were sampled for total metals and anions. Seven of the tile-drained fields were …

Assessment Of Row Crop, Alfalfa, And Pasture Field Practices On Groundwater Quality In An Upland Bedrock Setting, Henderson County, Kentucky: Report Of Soil- And Water-Quality Data, E. Glynn Beck, James S. Dinger, John H. Grove, Eugenia Pena-Yewtukhiw

Information Circular--KGS

An assessment of how present agricultural practices have influenced shallow groundwater and soil quality was conducted on a 540-acre farm in north-central Henderson County. Groundwater- and soil-quality data were collected from row crop (corn and soybean), alfalfa, and pasture fields. In addition to the field settings, groundwater and soil data were collected from the existing farmyard and an abandoned feedlot. Groundwater samples were analyzed for pH, specific conductance, temperature, oxidation-reduction potential, metals, anions, nutrients, herbicides, and various isotopes. Soil samples were analyzed for pH, bioavailable phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, zinc, organic matter, total nitrogen, and inorganic nitrogen (nitrate-N). Soil- and …

Assessment Of Water Quality Trends In The North Fork Of Kentucky River Basin: Focus On Pathogen Impairment, Kentucky Water Resources Research Institute

KWRRI Research Reports

This project consisted of analyzing existing water quality data for streams in the Upper Forks of Kentucky River Basin, with a particular focus on pathogen trends. According to the most recent 303(d) list of Kentucky waters, the majority of streams assessed in the Upper Forks of Kentucky River Basin are impaired for primary recreational contact as a result of pathogens. The state pathogen standard for primary contact recreation is expressed in a dual form which specifies that the 30-day geometric mean of fecal coliform counts not exceed 200 colonies per 100 mL (on a minimum of five samples) and not …

Water-Quality And -Quantity Data For Abandoned Underground Coal Mines In Eastern Kentucky, Steven E. Webb, Dennis H. Cumbie, James S. Dinger, Leslie K. Russo

Information Circular--KGS

Water-quality and -quantity analyses were performed between 1997 and 2003 by the Kentucky Geological Survey under contract from the Kentucky River Authority and the Kentucky Infrastructure Authority to study abandoned underground coal mines as possible water supplies for communities in the Eastern Kentucky Coal Field. The steep terrain of the coal field limits surface-water supplies, and groundwater systems are difficult to locate and often have too low a yield to provide community water supplies. KGS has been working with the Kentucky River Authority, the Kentucky Infrastructure Authority, and local government officials to search for water supplies in abandoned underground coal …

Diagnostic Watershed Model For Pathogen Speciation And Mitigation, Kentucky Water Research Institute

KWRRI Research Reports

This project was proposed to help satisfy the identified needs of the USEPA watershed initiative with specific application to pathogen problems in Kentucky and in particular the Eagle Creek Watershed which lies in the Kentucky River Basin. The overall goal of the project was the development of new tools for use in pathogen TMDL development.

The Development Of Relationships Between Constituent Concentrations And Generic Hydrological Variables, Carmen T. Agouridis, Dwayne R. Edwards

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

The collection and analysis of samples from storm events constitutes a large portion of the effort associated with water quality research. Estimating concentrations or loads from these events is often difficult. The equipment necessary to analyze the samples and the required laboratory resources are typically significant expenses incurred by the researcher. One potential method to reduce these costs is through the development of generic relationships between concentrations and easily measured variables such as dimensionless flow rate or time. The benefits recognized from such an effort include a reduction in the number of required samples, resulting in a reduction in cost. …

A Portable Rainfall Simulator For Plot–Scale Runoff Studies, J. Byron Humphry, Tommy C. Daniel, Dwayne R. Edwards, Andrew N. Sharpley

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

Rainfall simulators have a long history of successful use in both laboratory and field investigations. Many plot–scale simulators, however, have been difficult to operate and transport in the field, especially in remote locations where water or electricity is unavailable. This article describes a new rainfall simulator that is relatively easy to operate and transport to and from the field while maintaining critical intensity, distribution, and energy characteristics of natural rainfall. The simulator frame is constructed from lightweight aluminum pipe with a single 50 WSQ nozzle centered at a height of 3 m (9.8 ft). An operating nozzle pressure of 28 …

Pride Water Quality Assessment Report: Iv. Nutrient Assessment, Kentucky Water Resources Research Institute, University Of Kentucky

KWRRI Research Reports

The efficient utilization of federal funds in improving the water quality and aquatic habitat of the region requires a mechanism for assessing and evaluating the impacts of the proposed and ongoing projects as well as some mechanism for prioritizing the allocation of additional funds. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of these projects it is important to provide a formal monitoring and assessment program based on sound scientific principles. This report provides an initial 10 year baseline assessment of the existing water quality conditions in the 40 county PRIDE region for the purpose of evaluating the impacts of the PRIDE …

Simulation Of Daily And Monthly Stream Discharge From Small Watersheds Using The Swat Model, Crystal A. Spruill, Stephen R. Workman, Joseph L. Taraba

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) was evaluated and parameter sensitivities were determined while modeling daily streamflows in a small central Kentucky watershed over a two-year period. Streamflow data from 1996 were used to calibrate the model and streamflow data from 1995 were used for evaluation. The model adequately predicted the trends in daily streamflow during this period although Nash-Sutcliffe R² values were –0.04 and 0.19 for 1995 and 1996, respectively. The model poorly predicted the timing of some peak flow values and recession rates during the last half of 1995. Excluding daily peak flow values from August …

Pride Water Quality Assessment Report: Ii. Chemical, Biological And Habitat Assessments, Kentucky Water Resources Research Institute, University Of Kentucky

KWRRI Research Reports

The efficient utilization of federal funds in improving the water quality and aquatic habitat of the region requires a mechanism for assessing and evaluating the impacts of the proposed and ongoing projects as well as some mechanism for prioritizing the allocation of additional funds. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of these projects it is important to provide a formal monitoring and assessment program based on sound scientific principles. This report provides an initial 10 year baseline assessment of the existing water quality conditions in the 40 county PRIDE·region for the purpose of evaluating the impacts of the PRIDE programs …

Pride Water Quality Assessment Report: Iii. Existing And Proposed Monitoring Network, Kentucky Water Resources Research Institute, University Of Kentucky

KWRRI Research Reports

This document provides a recommendation for proposed sampling sites in support of the general water quality assessment of the 40 county PRIDE region. A general assessment of the associated environmental problems and programs in the region can be found in the companion report: PRIDE Water Quality Assessment Report I: Problems and Programs while the report PRIDE Water Quality Assessment Report II: Chemical, Biological and Habitat Assessments provides a 10 year baseline assessment of environmental conditions in the region as measured by indicators of pH, fecal coliforms, habitat assessment, and macro-invertebrate assessment.

Pride Water Quality Assessment Report: I. Problems And Programs, Kentucky Water Resources Research Institute. University Of Kentucky

KWRRI Research Reports

This report provides an overview of the water quality problems and associated state and federal programs in the 40 counties that make up the PRIDE region. The 2000 Kentucky 305(b) stream assessment has identified over 1000 miles of impaired stream within the region. The major cause of pollution in the region is related to problems with pathogens. Much of these problems are related to straight pipes and failing septic and wastewater systems. It has been estimated that there are over 35,000 straight pipes and failing septic systems in the PRIDE region. A second major environmental impact in the region is …

Ground-Water Quality In Kentucky: Nitrate-Nitrogen, Philip G. Conrad, Daniel I. Carey, James S. Webb, James S. Dinger, Matthew J. Mccourt

Information Circular--KGS

No abstract provided.

Vegetated Filter Strip Removal Of Cattle Manure Constituents In Runoff, Teng T. Lim, Dwayne R. Edwards, Stephen R. Workman, Brian T. Larson, Lloyd Dunn

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

Pasture runoff can contribute to elevated concentrations of nutrients, solids, and bacteria in downstream waters. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of vegetative filter strip (VFS) length on concentrations and transport of nitrogen, phosphorus, solids and fecal coliform in runoff from plots treated with cattle manure. Three plots with dimensions of 2.4 × 30.5 m were used. The upper 12.2 m of each plot was treated with cattle manure, while the lower 18.3 m acted as a VFS. Runoff produced by rainfall simulators was sampled at VFS lengths of 0, 6.1, 12.2, and 18.3 m and …