Presenters: Laura DeBeer & Brent Hoffmann

Transcription

1 Presenters: Laura DeBeer & Brent Hoffmann

2 A little background. Minnesota has 970 Community Water Supply Systems 726 are Municipal Water Supply Systems In 2015 there was 17 systems that had nitrates samples above 5 ppm

3 More background The majority of quarterly monitored wells are in Minnesota s ag producing region. A concentration is located in far SW Minnesota.

4 What is Nitrate? Nitrate is a chemical compound made up of Nitrogen and Oxygen atoms. NO3 is the chemical symbol. It is commonly found in leafy green s and root crops. Naturally found in groundwater, typically at low levels <2 ppm. Through the Nitrogen cycle it can breakdown to form even more toxic forms. Can be very dangerous to ingest for infants and pregnant women.

5 Nitrogen Cycle

6 Why are we talking about the science of Nitrate-Nitrogen? Without knowing the why, we have no reason to get to the how. Why is Nitrate in groundwater a bad thing? How do we go about preventing or fixing the issue?

7 Why is excessive Nitrate in water bad? In high enough concentrations it can be a significant health risk. $$$ - It is expensive to remove to get drinking water in compliance and that cost gets passed on to the consumer. Is very dangerous to infants and pregnant women. In surface waters it can cause excess algae blooms, especially blue-green algae which is toxic to animals. These algae blooms cause eutrophication which lowers oxygen levels and can create hypoxia where organisms that need oxygen to survive will perish.

8 How does Nitrate get into our groundwater? Nitrate enters our groundwater in a number of ways. Leaching of soils covered with commercial fertilizer or manure Seepage from failing septic systems Municipal or industrial wastewater discharge Landfills Urban drainage Decaying plant material We are here to discuss the leaching of Nitrate into groundwater from agricultural practices.

9 How do you prevent or limit Nitrate leaching into aquifers? There are a number of ways to limit Nitrate leaching past the root zone into the states aquifers. Timing of fertilizer applications Plant crops that fix their own nitrogen or are highly efficient at using available nitrogen i.e. alfalfa or soybeans Utilize cover crops to hold Nitrogen in the top 6 of the soil profile Use of Nitrogen stabilizers Utilization of alternative management tools for fertilizer application EnCirca, FieldView, Greenseeker or similar Variable rate based on plant and soil type (prescriptive) Lower the amount of Nitrogen placed on the soil

10 Rock County Rural Water District s issues with increasing Nitrate readings R.C.R.W.D. has been testing their wells for years and have noticed a significant uptick in Nitrate-N in several of them since Prior to 2014 Nitrates were still a real concern, especially in wells located nearest to row crop production but they were only testing above the 10 ppm limit part of the year. By utilizing MDH 10 yr time of travel models, R.C.R.W.D. has made the hypothesis that a large portion of the Nitrate is most likely entering the aquifer under the cropped soils within the WHPA. The wells on the west side of the Rock river specifically test highest.

11 R.C.R.W.D. Wellhead Protection Area

12 A few pictures as to why R.C.R.W.D. may have issues

13 R.C.R.W.D s West side wells test highest in NO3 Using MDH s 10yr time of travel maps, a person can make an educated guess as to why that might be

14 MDH s 10 year time of travel map

15 RCRWD wells that test highest in Nitrate-N

16 RCRWD wells that test highest in Nitrate-N

17 Rural Water only owns a 1 acre parcel around each well

18 Another photo from a well

19 More pics from the wells

20 Another on the well

21 Last one from my wells I promise

22 2014-present Mid June into early July of 2014 found the entire area inundated with rain and a large portion of the WHPA under water. This flood killed all the row crops and allowed a large portion of the fertilizer which had been fully applied at planting that year to leach into the highly vulnerable aquifer. Since August of 2014, RCRWD has had very high Nitrate >12ppm readings in the 3 highlighted wells.

23 What the river looks like today

24 June of 2014

25 Well field from plant looking SW

26 Looking straight south

27 Looking NW

28 2014-present With the elevated Nitrogen in our wells, it was becoming more difficult to keep daily Nitrogen levels below 5ppm. The Board of Directors began discussing possible alternatives throughout One option that was supported was applying funds to a Water Resources Specialist position(laura DeBeer) to help make contact with local producers about WHP issues. Another was to have a meeting during the winter months to discuss our issues with the local producers. Inviting both the producers and land owners to the meeting.

29 2016-present January 1 st, 2016: Laura DeBeer was hired as the Water Resource Specialist in Pipestone County. January 19 th, 2016: RCRW Directors and staff, Land Management Officials, Aaron Meyer(MRWA) meet with local producers and land owners to have an open discussion regarding Nitrates in the aquifer. February 8 th, 2016: RCRW Board of Directors ok s plans for a tiered $30/20/10 approach to Nitrogen Management on the West side of the WHPA.

30 30/20/10 approach

31 Remember the MDH 10 yr map

32 2016-present April 2016: RCRW applies for a Source Water Protection competitive grant (50/50 cost share) from MDH. May 2016: RCRW is informed of competitive grant approval. August 2016: Several producers apply cover crop to their land. February 2017: First producer in WHPA was Water Quality Certified by the MDA, and RCRWD receives notice of SWP award winner for 2017 from MDH. Looking forward: Continue to work with producers to utilize Nitrogen BMP s or alternative cropping practices in an effort to reduce Nitrogen loading in the aquifer.

33 Why am I involved Several public drinking water suppliers in Southwest Minnesota have elevated nitrogen levels The aquifers used for the public drinking water supply in Southwest Minnesota are generally shallow (30-60 ) Some wells have been increasing in nitrate levels Working with Water Suppliers on Wellhead Protection Plans Access to grant funding requiring time, paperwork and promotion Minnesota Department of Health

34 Partnerships: my position Funding sources and agreements Minnesota Department of Health funds Soil and Water Conservation Districts Capacity $$ through Pipestone Soil and Water Conservation District Additional Soil and Water Conservation District agreements in the area Water Suppliers

35 Where am I involved? Drinking Water Supply Management Areas Primarily Agricultural Areas within DWSMA Initially working in priority DWSMAs

36 This image cannot currently be displayed. Where am I involved? Drinking Water Supply Management Areas This Example: City of Edgerton 655 acres or just over 1 square mile

37 Where am I involved? Drinking Water Supply Management Areas This Example: Lincoln-Pipestone Rural Water Holland 23,473 acres or over 36 square miles

38 What am I doing? Conducting interviews/starting conversations with producers in Drinking Water Supply Management Areas (DWSMA) Completely voluntary Meeting with each producer, discussing what they are doing, what they would like to do (seek funding) Providing them with packet of information including nitrate fact sheets, available programs, contact information

39 What am I doing? Highlighted areas are agricultural producer contacts

40 What am I doing? Highlighted areas are agricultural producer contacts

41 What am I doing? Promoting programs

42 What am I doing? Promoting Best Management Practices for Nitrogen 4R s, Right Source, Right Rate, Right Time and Right Place Examples are, spring application, proper crediting of previous crop, realistic yield goals, incorporation of N source, split application Alternative Management Tools When BMP s are not enough Cover Crops, Precision Agriculture, Diversifying Crop Rotations, Perennial Crops, Retiring Cropland

43 Programs currently available Helping producers manage Nitrogen applications in highly vulnerable wellhead areas Minnesota Department of Agriculture grant funded for 2017 crop year Incentives $20.00 per acre incentive to improve nitrogen application practice one level Side-dressing nitrogen on corn before V7 Planting cover crops Prioritize acres closer to the wells as money allows Soil and stalk nitrate sample to demonstrate N rates for corn production downward movement in soil profile Must have a test strip for comparison and verify changes

44 What am I doing? Seeking grant or other funding Federal, state, and local funds Getting creative with partnerships Informational meetings, workshops, field days Agronomist discussion working with agronomists to create awareness and understanding Writing Newsletters utilized by Water Suppliers

45 Presenters Information Laura DeBeer-Regional Water Resource Specialist (Pipestone Conservation and Zoning) Brent Hoffmann- Director, Rock County Rural Water District Ph: (507) Fax: (507) Ph: (507) Fax: (507)