Recent News
ICCON Discusses NLRS Challenges and Feasibility of Achieving Interim Goals
During the January ICCON call, the network had the pleasure of hosting Adrienne Marino, Water Quality Program Manager at the Nature Conservancy in Illinois. Marino shared a comprehensive overview of the 2023 Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy (NLRS) Biennial Report, shedding light on the state's progress and challenges. The NLRS was initiated in response to the 2008 Gulf Hypoxia Action...
Four Decades of No-Till is Paying Off for Vermilion County Farmer Jean Stewart
The Illinois Sustainable Ag Partnership was a proud sponsor of the 2023 Illinois Leopold Conservation Award, an award program that recognizes and celebrates extraordinary achievement in voluntary conservation by agricultural landowners. The profile of 2023 Award Finalist, Jean Stewart, below was originally published by American Farmland Trust and can be viewed on their website. https://youtu.be/EWWAdGGK780?si=GI2ZVKvXqq6mdgtd “A good farmer is a...
ICCON Recaps The 2023 National Cover Crop Survey
On December 13, ICCON welcomed Dr. Rob Meyers, the Director for the Center for Regenerative Agriculture at the University of Missouri, for an insightful discussion on the outcomes of the 2023 National Cover Crop Survey. Conducted in March of 2023, the survey provides a comprehensive reflection of cover cropping data from the 2022 agricultural season. The online survey, comprising 110...
ISAP Releases NLRS Overview for Farmers and Farm Advisors
In 2015, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) and the Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) released the Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy (NLRS). The strategy quantified nutrient loads from multiple sources and set aggressive reduction targets for the amounts of nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N) and total phosphorus (TP) leaving the state. The strategy laid out best practices to achieve reductions, including interim reductions...
ISAP Publishes “Introduction to Soil Health Practices” for Illinois Farmers
Bloomington, Ill. –The Illinois Sustainable Ag Partnership has published a new resource for Illinois farmers and farm advisors which clearly communicates the role of soil health practices in addressing agronomic challenges and resource concerns. ISAP’s “Introduction to Soil Health Practices” identifies and explains the cause of several conditions that often lead to common resource or agronomic concerns for farmers, including...
Beneath the Surface: Phosphorus
Expert Opinions on Phosphorus Management Considerations A hot topic in soil health and nutrient loss over the last few years has been Dissolved reactive Phosphorus (DRP). DRP is a form of Phosphorus that is dissolved and readily available to plants and algae. This differs from the phosphorus loss we usually hear about, which is tied to soil particles. We sat...