FBO_18__Technical_Exhibit_13_CEAP_Background.pdf

http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/nri/ceap April 2012

Resource Assessment Division

An Overview of CEAP— Conservation Effects Assessment Project

Contact: Dan Mullarkey, NRCS/RAD, daniel.mullarkey@wdc.usda.gov.

The Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP) is a multi-agency effort led by USDA, in partnership with other agencies and institutions, to quantify environmental effects of conservation practices and develop the science base for managing the agricultural landscape for environmental quality. Project findings will guide USDA conservation policy and program development and help conservationists, farmers, and ranchers make more informed conservation decisions.

CEAP was established in 2003 to develop a scientific understanding and methodology for estimating the environmental benefits and effects of conservation practices on agricultural landscapes at national, regional, and watershed scales. Since its inception, CEAP has grown into a multi-agency, multi-resource effort. Duriancik et al. (2008) describe the approach and summarize the accomplishments of the first 5 years of CEAP.

The CEAP vision is enhanced natural resources and healthier ecosystems through improved conservation effectiveness and better management of agricultural landscapes (Maresch et al. 2008). The goal of CEAP for the future is to improve efficacy of conservation practices and programs by providing the science and education base needed to enrich conservation planning, implementation, management decisions, and policy. We will address this goal by creating and using knowledge gained through CEAP research and outreach to enhance conservation planning and decisionmaking tools and by continuing to assess environmental and ecosystem effects of conservation.

CEAP has three main components—national assessments, watershed assessments, and literature reviews and bibliographies.

National Assessments

• Cropland—Sampling and modeling approach using data from representative crop fields from the National Resources

Inventory and farmer surveys to estimate impacts of conservation practices on water quality, water quantity, and soil quality.

• Wetlands—Collaborative regional assessments to develop models for ecosystem services: carbon storage, sediment and nutrient reduction, flood water storage, wildlife habitat, and biological sustainability.

• Wildlife—Cooperative effort with wildlife conservation community involving regional work groups developing approaches to assessing fish and wildlife effects and coordination with ongoing wildlife studies.

• Grazing Lands—Regional approach using range and pasture modeling and results from watershed studies.

Watershed Assessments CEAP watershed assessments were established to enhance understanding of the measurable effects of conservation at watershed scales and to serve as verification points for the National Assessments.

• 14 Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Benchmark Research Watersheds: Long-term, coordinated research across a variety of hydrologic and cropland agronomic settings to quantify water quality and soil quality effects, improve models for the National Assessments, and develop a long-term database. Studies address nonirrigated cropland.

• 17 National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Watersheds: Quantification of resource impacts. Analysis of long-term databases and spatial and temporal effects of suites of practices. Evaluations of interactions among practices and hydrology in the landscape. Economic and social factors affecting farmer adoption and maintenance of practices.

Outreach to decision makers, landowners, and land managers. Model development and enhancement. National synthesis study of lessons learned for policy development and program implementation. Studies address cropland and pastureland, and three new studies address rangeland.

• 11 Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Special Emphasis Watersheds: Quantify and model water quality or quantity effects of conservation. Focus on livestock, poultry, irrigation, and drainage management. Some address grazing management and wildlife effects.

TECHNICAL EXHIBIT 13

121A2318Q0006 Solicitation - NRCS (SSRA_RAD)

RAD GIS LAB, Beltsville, Maryland http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/nri/ceap mailto:daniel.mullarkey@wdc.usda.gov http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/nri/ceap April 2012

Literature Reviews and Bibliographies Literature Reviews

• Summarize existing state of knowledge of effects of cropland conservation practices on soil and water quality, water quantity, and wildlife resources. Identify gaps in science.

• Wildlife – 2007; Cropland – 2007; Wetlands – 2008; Watersheds – 2011; Rangeland – 2011; Pastureland –2012

Bibliographies (Print and online, dynamic versions. Led by the National Agricultural Library)

• Environmental Effects of USDA Conservation Programs

• Implementing Agricultural Conservation Practices: Barriers and Incentives

• Data and Modeling for Environmental Credit Trading

• Agricultural Conservation Practices and Related Issues: Reviews of the State of the Art and Research Needs

• Environmental Effects of Conservation Practices on Grazing Lands

• Wetlands in Agricultural Landscapes

• Effects of Agricultural Conservation Practices on Fish and Wildlife (2 volumes)

Selected Accomplishments

• Publication of twelve CEAP-Cropland regional studies on the effects of conservation practices on cultivated cropland.

Using a baseline of conservation and farm management practices in use during the period 2003 to 2006, the CEAP- Cropland modeling team estimated reductions in sediment and nutrient losses from cropped acres and loadings to rivers, streams, and larger water bodies resulting from conservation practice application. The team also assessed conservation treatment needs and estimated further gains that could be achieved through further conservation application.

• Completion of studies on the environmental effects of conservation practices on wildlife, including selected species such as the lesser prairie-chicken and the sage grouse that are in danger of becoming listed as threatened or endangered. These studies are demonstrating how such practices as buffers and land retirement can improve habitat not only for these grassland species but also migratory waterfowl and fish.

• Completion of studies on the effects of natural and restored wetlands on a variety of ecosystem services, from groundwater recharge to aquatic habitat to carbon sequestration. The wetlands literature synthesis was published as the April 2011 special supplement of the Journal Ecological Applications

• Publication of the rangeland literature synthesis, “Conservation Benefits of Rangeland Practices: Assessment, Recommendations, and Knowledge Gaps.” This 429-page report represents an unprecedented assessment of the existing research information addressing rangeland conservation in the United States. It is already regarded as a milestone document within the range profession. The findings and recommendations provide a foundation on which the next generation of rangeland conservation practice standards can be constructed. A companion synthesis of the literature on pastureland conservation management is now in preparation and is expected to be released during summer 2012.

• Ongoing studies at the watershed scale showing the effects of cropland, pastureland, and rangeland conservation practices on water quality and other environmental metrics.

• Development of aids for conservation planning, including field-level tools to help conservationists and landowners decide on appropriate suites of conservation practices for use on cropland, the Integrated Landscape Model for use in planning the retention or restoration of wetlands, and models to predict erosion on rangeland.

References Duriancik, L.F., D. Bucks, J.P. Dobrowolski, T. Drewes, S.D. Eckles, L. Jolley, R.L. Kellogg, D. Lund, J.R. Makuch, M.P. O’Neill, C.A. Rewa, M.R. Walbridge, R. Parry, and M. Weltz. 2008. The first five years of the Conservation Effects Assessment Project. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, Nov.-Dec. 2008.

Maresch, W., M.R. Walbridge, and D. Kugler. 2008. Enhancing conservation on agricultural landscapes: A new direction for the Conservation Effects Assessment Project. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, Nov.-Dec. 2008.

TECHNICAL EXHIBIT 13

121A2318Q0006 Solicitation - NRCS (SSRA_RAD)

RAD GIS LAB, Beltsville, Maryland http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/nri/ceap

Maresch, W., M.R. Walbridge, and D. Kugler. 2008. Enhancing conservation on agricultural landscapes: A new direction for the Conservation Effects Assessment Project. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, Nov.-Dec. 2008.