Using the conservation practice effectiveness (CoPE) database to assess adoption tradeoffs

Authors: Smith, Douglas; White, Michael; MCLELLAN, E - Environmental Defense; PAMPELL, R - Texas Agrilife Research; Harmel, Daren

Submitted to: Journal of Soil and Water Conservation
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/7/2019
Publication Date: 11/1/2019
Citation: Smith, D.R., White, M.J., Mclellan, E.L., Pampell, R., Harmel, R.D. 2019. Using the conservation practice effectiveness (CoPE) database to assess adoption tradeoffs. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation. 74(6). https://doi.org/10.2489/jswc.74.6.554.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2489/jswc.74.6.554

Interpretive Summary: The Conservation Practice Effectiveness Database compiles information on the effectiveness of conservation practices. This database presents a compilation information about the effectiveness of innovative practices developed to treat contaminants in surface runoff and tile drainage water from agricultural landscapes. Traditional conservation practices such as no-tillage and conservation crop rotation are included in the database, as well as novel practices such as drainage water management, blind inlets, and denitrification bioreactors. This will be particularly useful to conservation planners seeking new approaches to water quality problems associated with dissolved nutrients, and for researchers seeking to understand the circumstances in which such practices are most effective. Another novel feature of the database is the presentation of information on how individual conservation practices impact multiple water quality concerns. This information will be critical to enabling conservationists and policy makers to avoid (or at least be aware of) undesirable tradeoffs, whereby great efforts are made to improve water quality related to one resource concern (e.g., sediment) but exacerbate problems related to other concerns (e.g., nitrate or soluble phosphorus). Finally, we note that the Conservation Practice Effectiveness Database can serve as a source of the soft data needed to calibrate simulation models assessing the potential water quality tradeoffs of conservation practices, including those that are still being developed.

Technical Abstract: The Conservation Practice Effectiveness Database compiles information on the effectiveness of a suite of conservation practices. This database presents a compilation of data on the effectiveness of innovative practices developed to treat contaminants in surface runoff and tile drainage water from agricultural landscapes. Traditional conservation practices such as no-tillage and conservation crop rotation are included in the database, as well as novel practices such as drainage water management, blind inlets, and denitrification bioreactors. This will be particularly useful to conservation planners seeking new approaches to water quality problems associated with dissolved constituents, such as nitrate or soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP), and for researchers seeking to understand the circumstances in which such practices are most effective. Another novel feature of the database is the presentation of information on how individual conservation practices impact multiple water quality concerns. This information will be critical to enabling conservationists and policy makers to avoid (or at least be aware of) undesirable tradeoffs, whereby great efforts are made to improve water quality related to one resource concern (e.g., sediment) but exacerbate problems related to other concerns (e.g., nitrate or SRP). Finally, we note that the Conservation Practice Effectiveness Database can serve as a source of the soft data needed to calibrate simulation models assessing the potential water quality tradeoffs of conservation practices, including those that are still being developed.