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ARS Home » Northeast Area » University Park, Pennsylvania » Pasture Systems & Watershed Management Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #384764
Research Project: Sustaining Agroecosystems and Water Resources in the Northeastern U.S.

Location: Pasture Systems & Watershed Management Research

Title: The agricultural conservation planning framework: opportunities and challenges in the eastern United States

Author
item DUNCAN, JONATHAN - Pennsylvania State University
item RESPESS, ZACHARY - North Carolina State University
item RYAN, WILLIAM - Pennsylvania State University
item AUSTIN, ROB - North Carolina State University
item Kleinman, Peter
item ROYER, MATTHEW - Pennsylvania State University
item OSMOND, DEANNA - North Carolina State University

Submitted to: Agricultural & Environmental Letters
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/3/2021
Publication Date: 9/14/2021
Citation: Duncan, J.M., Respess, Z., Ryan, W., Austin, R., Kleinman, P.J., Royer, M., Osmond, D. 2021. The agricultural conservation planning framework: opportunities and challenges in the eastern United States. Agricultural & Environmental Letters. 6(3). Article e20054. https://doi.org/10.1002/ael2.20054.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ael2.20054

Interpretive Summary: Conservation planning is a complex activity that edifies farmers and land managers on conservation opportunities and prioties. Developed in the Midwestern United States, USDA-ARS's Agriculture Conservation Planning Framework streamlines conservation planning and offers objective depictions of where to best place conservation practices. This study assesses opportunities and challenges to applying this important conservation planning tool in the Eastern United States.

Technical Abstract: The Agriculture Conservation Planning Framework (ACPF) applies high-spatial resolution soils and topographic data, now available for many areas of the United States, to precisely locate opportunities for the placement of conservation practices in agricultural watersheds. Developed in Midwestern landscapes, ACPF’s application to watersheds in the Eastern United States represents both opportunity and challenge to conservation planning. Based upon experience in applying ACPF to eight watersheds in the Eastern United States, from Vermont to North Carolina, we assess ACPF's application in the Eastern United States through the lens of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. We see a great future for ACPF but its roll out requires interaction with regional scientists and conservation planners to avoid misapplication and ensure appropriate calibration and interpretation.