Myron Sylling approaches farming from a no-nonsense, cause-and-effect point of view. So, he asks, if a reliance on heavy dosages of fertilizer is costing producers money while polluting our water, what’s keeping us from building a less nitrate-tainted farming system? (last in a series on nitrates, farming, and water) More Information • LSP’s Rethink Nitrogen… Read More →
Lance Petersen feels strongly that as agriculture’s regulatory future related to nitrate pollution is being debated, one thing is certain: farmers like himself need to be in the room, at the table, and taking part in the discussion. (part of a series on nitrates, farming, and water) More Information • LSP’s Rethink Nitrogen Campaign •… Read More →
What do you do when your county has the highest cancer rate in the state and the local river experiences a catastrophic fish kill? Denise O’Brien, Larry Harris, and their neighbors responded by asking an important question: “What’s in the water?” (part of a series on nitrates, farming, and water) More Information • Nishnabotna Water… Read More →
Making sure 600,000 people are consistently consuming water that meets health standards for nitrates is Amy Kahler’s job. That’s a big challenge when the land upstream is some of the most productive crop ground in the country. (part of a series on nitrates, farming, and water) More Information • LSP’s Rethink Nitrogen Campaign • Other… Read More →
Nutrient management expert Matthew Helmers has researched how certain land use practices can have a “disproportionate impact” when it comes to nitrate pollution reduction. He says it all starts with focusing on a simple mantra: “always be growing.” (part of a series on nitrates, farming, and water) More Information • LSP’s Rethink Nitrogen Campaign •… Read More →
The MPCA’s Justin Watkins sees nitrates leaking out of farm fields as an “invisible” problem that’s all too easily ignored. The solution is to shine a spotlight on widespread systems changes in agriculture. (part of a series on nitrates, farming, and water) More Information • LSP’s Rethink Nitrogen Campaign • Other Episodes in LSP’s Rethink… Read More →
MORRIS, Minn. — By giving the green light to what will be the largest concentrated animal feeding operation in Minnesota history, Stevens County officials have cast a vote for a type of livestock production that threatens water quality, puts small and medium-sized farmers out of business and empties rural Main Streets, said the Land Stewardship… Read More →
BYRON, Minn. — How do you grapple with a hidden problem? That was a question at the center of a Land Stewardship Project (LSP) “Smarter Nitrogen Policy” discussion involving around two dozen farmers, water quality experts and state legislators at the Martin Larsen farm near Byron Aug. 20. “We fix what we can see —… Read More →
On a recent July afternoon, southeastern Minnesota farmer Martin Larsen stopped his Gleaner R-62 combine in the middle of oat harvest, climbed down the ladder, and walked a hundred yards or so to where the Chair of the Minnesota Senate Agriculture Committee was standing at the edge of the field. Larsen then described to Sen.… Read More →
On a muggy, overcast July day in northwestern Iowa, Matt Bormann and Zack Smith were standing in front of a sophisticated piece of conservation tillage equipment that farmers like themselves use to keep soil in place while planting corn and soybeans. A few yards away, another farmer, James Hepp, was standing in front of a… Read More →
