Congratulations to our very own John Grove! He is part of the team (including Erin Haramoto, Jason Unrine, and Brad Lee) that earned the Research Extension Impact Award.

Their research program, Blue Water Farms: Edge-of-Field Water Quality Monitoring, in partnership with Glynn Beck of the Kentucky Geological Survey, seamlessly integrates water quality, cropping system and soil fertility.

The Blue Water Farms applied research and engagement project focuses on quantifying the benefits of on-farm best management practices relative to current cropping systems in Western Kentucky. This integrated program was initiated in 2017 with support from the USDA National Resources Conservation Service, Kentucky Soybean Promotion Board and the Kentucky Agricultural Development Board and has secured $8 million external funding.

This interdisciplinary team works with nine cooperating farms, across 29 instrumented watersheds, to measure nutrient and sediment runoff during every runoff generating precipitation event—helping more Kentucky farmers make knowledgeable cropping system decisions, specifically in nutrient retention and erosion prevention.

This work is highly relevant to Kentucky’s changing climatic conditions, which include more frequent and intense precipitation events.

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