Missouri 2009 CIG Natural Resource Concerns Category

Water Resources

The objective of this natural resource concern is to implement new technologies and/or approaches to maintain, restore, or enhance water quality and/or quantity in watersheds with predominantly agricultural land uses while sustaining productivity.  Subtopics include:

• Aquifer recharge/maintenance of groundwater supplies
• Water conservation, including innovative approaches and methods to conservation irrigation water use
• Technologies scalable to small farms and ranches to maintain, restore, or enhance water quality and/or quantity
• Innovative approaches to animal manure or poultry litter management systems to reduce nutrient loading to ground and/or surface water
• Innovative approaches contributing to implementation of pollution reduction strategies to improve water quality locally or on a regional or watershed scale

Soil Resources

The objective of this natural resource concern is to implement new technologies and/or approaches to maintain, restore, or enhance soil resources associated with agricultural and forest land uses while sustaining productivity.  Subtopics include:

• Application of cover crops in cold climates to enhance soil resources while maintaining crop productivity
• Application of continuous no-till crop production in cold climates to enhance soil resources while maintaining crop productivity
• New, innovative methods for erosion control under all land uses
• New, innovative methods to improve soil tilth and soil quality related to maintained or improved productivity.

Atmospheric Resources

The objective of this natural resource concern is to implement new technologies and/or approaches to restore or enhance air quality and atmospheric resources through agricultural, rangeland, and forestry practices while sustaining or improving productivity.  Subtopics include:

• Manage agricultural primary and precursor emissions of particulates, odors, reactive nitrogen, volatile organic compounds, and greenhouse gases to limit on-site and/or off-site effects from emissions
• Demonstrate innovative approaches to decrease atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases by increasing carbon sequestration (e.g.: increasing soil carbon) and/or by reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural operations
• Identify management practices for air quality and atmospheric change concerns at animal operations and quantify the effects of the practices on all applicable resource concerns

Grazing Land

The objective of this natural resource concern is to implement new technologies and/or approaches to maintain, restore, or enhance grazing land while sustaining productivity.  Subtopics include:

• Invasive species management on grazing land
• New and innovative approaches and methods to reduce the effects of pests and diseases on grazing land quality, health, and productivity
• New and innovative approaches and methods to reduce fragmentation on grazing land quality, health, and productivity
• Conservation practices and systems to minimize overgrazing, restore lands suffering effects of overgrazing, and improve forage productivity and utilization
• Low-input approaches to increasing forage production
• Alternative grasses for forages for livestock; production that improve or enhance resource conservation

Forest Health

The objective of this natural resource concern is to implement new technologies and/or approaches to maintain, restore, or enhance grazing land while sustaining productivity.  Subtopics include:

• Invasive species management on forest land
• Effects of pests, diseases, and fragmentation on forest health and productivity
• Fire management on forest land
• Improving water and air quality while maintaining forest health and productivity

Wildlife Habitat

The objective of this natural resource concern is to implement new technologies and/or approaches for environmentally sound wildlife habitat management while sustaining agricultural productivity.  Possible subtopics include:

• Riparian area management and restoration
• Invasive species management
• Pollinator protection
• Biodiversity
• Crop production, grazing management, or forestry practices that enhance wildlife habitat

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