Workshop featured agricultural field sampling at Isherwood Farms and presentations by Wisconsin’s leading researchers in groundwater

By Christina Anderson, Source Water Protection Program Manager

Wisconsin Land and Water Conservation Association (WI Land+Water), Extension, and UW–Stevens Point recently coordinated a Nitrate Workshop for conservationists at Isherwood Farm in Plover. The 40 local, state, and federal conservation staff learned about the ongoing research that’s being conducted at Isherwood Farm by UW–Madison, which included a robust discussion about the scientific knowledge and current policy challenges Wisconsin faces to improving drinking water from private wells.

Click here to see the photos from the event.

The workshop kicked off with an overview of the farm and brief review of nitrate transport from the land surface to the groundwater, led by UWSP Groundwater Education Specialist, Kevin Masarik. Attendees toured the farm and learned about the research equipment to better understanding nitrate leaching year-round. The presentation aimed to provide conservationist and farmers the tools to improve nitrogen efficiency and crediting approaches.

Additionally, Masarik provided attendees a few key resources, including a spreadsheet calculator for general nitrogen budgeting. We will continue to share resources with conservationists as they become available. We hope this workshop is one of many opportunities to bring conservationist together to discuss the complexity of nitrate and options for reducing the impact to drinking water.

This event was a coordinated effort among WI Land+Water, DATCP, Extension, UW-Stevens Point, and USDA-NRCS that was developed through the State Interagency Training Committee (SITCOM). SITCOM's collaborative process delivers trainings for conservation professionals that are critical to effectively addressing Wisconsin's most pressing resource challenges.