Current Projects

To accurately capture aquatic biotic response to changes in land management via water quality, it is necessary to represent field scale heterogeneity in land management yet also consider a sufficiently large area that policy can be developed to best promote aquatic health for the region. Many models of large watersheds do not contain sufficient resolution to accurately reflect effect of conservation actions, which tend to be highly localized, on biotic response, which integrates across a larger region and longer period of time. This is an ongoing challenge in watershed modeling (Wellen et al. 2015).

By integrating the research and assessment efforts across cropland and rangeland CEAP, the ultimate goal of this research is to develop an operational framework for assessing, reporting, and forecasting benefits to the full suite of ecosystem services affected by USDA conservation programs in the Upper Mississippi River Basin (UMRB). To meet this goal, we will: 1) construct, calibrate, and validate hydrologic models which predict the effect of various conservation strategies on nutrient and sediments loads; 2) link these effects to resulting changes in aquatic species habitat and abundance; and 3) create a create a web-based decision support tool (DST) that will use these modeling estimates and statistical relationships to aquatic habitat to support the prioritization and planning of conservation delivery across watersheds in the UMRB.

Watershed approaches to management are critical to the conservation and management of Missouri’s forests, fish, and wildlife. Therefore, MDC developed watershed-based designations through the delineation of Priority Watersheds (PW) and Comprehensive Conservation Strategy Priority Geographies (CCS), hereon collectively referred to as Target Watersheds (TW). These watersheds capture important attributes such as recreational opportunities, unique ecosystems, and important habitat for particular species or aquatic communities. Managers for these and other areas are often challenged to identify not only the most appropriate type, number, and placement of best management practices (BMPs) to sustain or create a desired biological condition given the limited resources available, but also when to consider a level of BMP implementation as successful. The intent of this project is to help managers to make science-based decisions on the number, type, and location of BMPs that would provide the greatest opportunity for success with the least amount of effort and help to determine success at a watershed scale.

UNDER DEVELOPMENT! Please come back soon to learn about additional research being conducted.