Competency Area 7: Non-point source pollution AEM
PO 75. Know some appropriate Best Management Practices for agricultural NPS and Point Source pollution control in a given farming system.
Examples of structural BMP's (terraces) for addressing NPS soil erosion were listed in Item 47. Some examples of nonstructural (cover crop) and management measures (crop rotations) to address NPS soil erosion are listed in Item 46. With regards to point sources, some structural BMP's would be diversions for diverting uncontaminated water away from barnyards or vegetated filter strips for treating the contaminated runoff from the barnyard. Nonstructural and management measures would include recycling flush water and feed management to reduce the volume of contaminated water released or the concentration of contaminants in barnyard runoff. See http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/Standards/ for a suite of BMP's commonly applied to farming systems.
Application of N fertilizer to no-till corn. Small amounts of fertilizer are applied multiple times throughout the year, coinciding better with the plants' needs and allowing less to runoff.
Photo courtesy of NRCS
Quick Links
- Competency Area 1: Basic soil properties
- Competency Area 2: Soil hydrology AEM
- Competency Area 3: Drainage and irrigation AEM
- Competency Area 4: Soil health and compaction
- Competency Area 5: Soil conservation AEM
- Competency Area 6: Watershed hydrology AEM
- Competency Area 7: Non-point source pollution AEM
- Competency Area 8: Concentrated source pollution AEM
- Competency Area 9: Conservation planning AEM