Water Quality to be Focus of Panel Presentation at Annual Farm Science Review

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Water quality will be the focus of a Sept. 22 panel presentation of economists and researchers with the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences at The Ohio State University, who will discuss programs and practices designed to lessen the potential of farm runoff into region’s waterways.

The “Water Quality, Water Quantity, Water Questions 2015,” session is from 10-11 a.m. in the Tobin Building during the annual Farm Science Review Sept. 22-24 at the Molly Caren Agricultural Center in London, Ohio.

The discussion will be moderated by Matthew Roberts, an Ohio State University Extension economist and faculty member in the college’s Department of Agricultural, Environmental, and Development Economics.

A goal of the discussion, Roberts said, is to “help farmers, policymakers and others understand that agriculture, urban and suburban communities can coexist when it comes to water and water policy.”

“Historically, when we’ve thought about water problems in agriculture, Ohio has been relatively immune,” he said. “We would look at the drought in California and breathe a sigh of relief.

“But the reality is that the Eastern Corn Belt’s abundance of water is also problematic.”

The presentation will include Brent Sohngen, an environmental economist in the department; Glen Arnold, state field specialist for manure nutrient management systems and associate professor for OSU Extension; and Sam Custer, OSU Extension agriculture and natural resources educator from Darke County.

In his work at Ohio State, Sohngen focuses on environmental and resource economics and is the director of Ohio State’s Environmental Policy Initiative. He has conducted extensive research on the role of policy solutions in protecting the region’s water resources.

Arnold will bring his knowledge of manure management to the discussion. His research focuses on applying livestock manure to wheat and corn to open a new window of manure application to farm fields.

Custer specializes in agronomy and farm management in his role as an OSU Extension educator and is the leader of the OSU Extension signature program Nutrient Stewardship for Cleaner Water.

Sponsored by CFAES, the Review features educational workshops, presentations and demonstrations delivered by experts from OSU Extension and the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center, which are the outreach and research arms, respectively, of the college.

The Review’s schedule of events can be found at go.osu.edu/FSR2015sched.

Farm Science Review is known nationally as Ohio’s premier agricultural event. It annually draws more than 140,000 farmers, growers, producers and agricultural enthusiasts. An estimated 600 exhibitors with some 4,000 product lines will set up shop at the three-day farm show.

Review pre-show tickets are $7 and are available for purchase at all OSU Extension county offices, many local agribusinesses and online at fsr.osu.edu/onlineticketform. Tickets are $10 at the gate. Children 5 and younger are admitted free.

Hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sept. 22-23 and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sept. 24.

More information can be found at fsr.osu.edu.