Conservation Effects Assessment Project
In 2004, the Cheney Lake Watershed was chosen as a
Special Emphasis watershed for study by USDA under the Conservation
Effects Assessment Project (CEAP). Through this program the Department
of Agriculture will study the environmental benefits of conservation
practices implemented through 2002 Farm Bill programs: the Environmental
Quality Incentives Program, Wetlands Reserve Program, Wildlife Habitat
Incentives Program, Conservation Reserve Program, Conservation Security
Program, and Conservation Technical Assistance.
CEAP is composed of two basic parts: a nationwide
assessment of conservation benefits and more in-depth studies of these
benefits in 20 selected watersheds. NRCS selected the special-emphasis
watersheds to address specific concerns such as manure management on
animal feeding operations, water use on irrigated cropland, drainage
management, wildlife habitat, and riparian restoration.
According
to Harold L. Klaege, state conservationist for the NRCS, in Kansas,
Cheney Lake Watershed was selected as a special emphasis watershed to
study benefits to Conservation Reserve Program acres, wildlife habitat,
manure management, sediment, and nutrient loss through irrigation. “The
Cheney Lake Watershed was chosen for CEAP partly because of the
extensive data and computer modeling that already exist for the
watershed,” said Klaege.
These watershed studies also should help develop
performance measures for estimating soil quality, water quality, and
wildlife habitat benefits for specific conservation practices.
The additional information that will be generated
through this project will be valuable to the Cheney Lake Watershed and
to every watershed in Kansas,” said Lisa French, Project Coordinator for
the Cheney Lake Watershed, Hutchinson. We want to know how to focus our
information and educational efforts and our cost-share programs to
achieve the greatest impact for water quality.
“Although the primary purpose of the project is to
provide USDA with an assessment of the impact of conservation practices,
our Citizen’s Management Committee (CMC) will also look closely at the
outcome,” continued French. “The CMC is interested in understanding the
function of our watershed. They want to help their neighbors find
creative ways to protect water quality and maintain resilient farms.”
USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) has been
conducting research on most of the 12 benchmark watersheds for a
considerable period of time and anticipates that watershed-scale
research and assessments will be continued over many years.
In
2006, Kansas State University received a CEAP grant to study
conservation practices in Cheney Lake Watershed. A team of Kansas State
University engineers, agronomists, sociologists and economists will be
working in partnership with watershed producers and the Citizen’s
Management Committee over three years. “This research will help
determine the water quality benefits, economic impacts, and social
aspects of conservation implementation,” said Nathan Nelson, principal
investigator on the project. Water quality data from Goose Creek and Red
Rock Creek will be analyzed to determine the effects of current
conservation practices, said Nelson, who is a soil scientist with
K-State Research and Extension. The results will be compared with water
quality improvements predicted by computer models simulating strategic
conservation practice implementation.
The project will use field monitoring, computer
modeling, producer interviews, and historical data to answer three
questions: 1) how do the timing, location, and array of conservation
practices affect water quality at the watershed scale; 2) How do social
and economic factors affect conservation practice implementation; and 3)
What is the optimal placement and suite of conservation practices for
this watershed?
The KSU study will run from October 2006 through
September 2009and will complement the Natural Resources Conservation
Service (NRCS) study of the watershed funded by USDA/CEAP from
2004-2007.
Other K-State researchers on the project include
biological and agricultural engineers Kyle Mankin and Phil Barnes,
agricultural economist Michael Langemeier, agronomists Dan Devlin and
Bill Hargrove, and sociologist Theresa Selfa.
Additional information about CEAP can be obtained at
the NRCS CEAP page.
Cheney Lake Streambank Erosion Report
Ephemeral
Gully Erosion Report
