Decades of scientific research tells us that improving nutrient management and rebuilding soil health in farm fields can increase productivity for farmers and deliver a range of conservation benefits. But research also tells us that we need to focus on improving conditions at the edge of the farm fields, too.
Edge of field practices are designed to slow, filter, and process water running off farm fields, both above and below the surface. In addition to providing water quality benefits, they also store more carbon; reduce greenhouse gas emissions; enhance water storage, pollinator and wildlife habitat; and increase streambank stabilization. Edge of field practices include:
- Vegetated buffers provide a transition zone between the crop field and a water feature. Farmer benefits: The vegetation slows surface runoff, filters pollutants, and reduces erosion. Learn more.
- Grassed waterways are an erosion control practice. Farmer benefits: This provides a stabilized flow path for water through a farm field. Learn more.
- Prairie strips are integrated with or planted at the edge of crop fields. Farmer benefits: These reduce nutrient and sediment loss while benefitting birds, pollinators and other wildlife. Learn more.
- Constructed wetlands are an engineered ecosystem designed to optimize specific wetland characteristics and functions to improve water quality. Farmer benefits: Constructed wetlands can be designed to treat surface and/or subsurface flows. Learn more.
- Saturated buffers resemble a traditional buffer, but it is designed to capture and treat water from underground tile drains. Farmer benefits: As water seeps slowly through the buffer, high organic matter in the soil promotes denitrification. This improves water quality on-farm and in communities downstream. Learn more.
- Two-stage ditches are trapezoidal drainage ditches with added floodplain benches that slow water flow. Farmer benefits: The ditches promote sediment and nutrient retention and bank stability. Learn more.
“We need to harness the larger landscape by creating conservation opportunities at the field edge,” says Kris Johnson, Ph.D., director of agriculture with The Nature Conservancy in North America. “Through the implementation of conservation and stewardship practices at the edges of farm fields, we can realize water quality and climate goals—a crucial but under-utilized conservation opportunity.”
Outsized Opportunities For Nutrient And Water Management
Farmers across the United States are successfully implementing edge of field practices to better manage water and reduce nutrient and sediment loss from their fields. They have seen the benefits first-hand, and their experiences demonstrate the crucial role well-managed farms can play in solving environmental challenges.
“Water management is a critical component when thinking about optimizing production and minimizing risks, Keegan Kult, executive director of the Agricultural Drainage Management Coalition. “Edge of field practices are designed in a way to work with a farmers drainage system to maintain or enhance in-field productivity, while minimizing the nutrients escaping the field. Drainage water management and now automated drainage water management can even show a farmer a return on their investment when properly sited.”
Edge of field practices can be paired with in-field conservation practices to support farm productivity and profitability while maximizing the conservation benefits. In fact, scientists with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) estimate that approximately 550,000 acres of restored and constructed wetlands could help treat nutrient loss from 50 million acres of cropland, improving the health of lakes and rivers across the country.
In addition to the staggering water quality benefits offered by this suite of practices, TNC scientists also estimate that wide-spread implementation of restored and constructed wetlands could sequester 7.4 million tons of soil organic carbon adjacent to working lands over a 10-year period. Such practices could be a revenue stream for farmers who enroll in ecosystem services markets, as well as a boon to climate change mitigation efforts gaining momentum across the food and agriculture industry.
Yet, to achieve environmental benefits at these large scales, more farmers must adopt edge of field practices. This isn’t always easy. There are barriers to adoption: up-front costs, technical issues, and misconceptions about the role that these practices can play on productive, profitable farms.
Farmers Using Edge Of Field Propose Paths To Scale
How do we overcome barriers and help farmers adopt edge of field practices on a larger scale and at a faster pace? In 2020, TNC, the Soil and Water Conservation Society (SWCS) and Meridian Institute came together to find answers.
The three organizations convened 26 leaders, including farmers who are early adopters of edge of field practices; representatives from environmental and conservation nonprofits, commodity groups, professional associations and agriculture and food companies; and current and former public agency staff.
Building upon a shared base of knowledge, the group developed Leading at the Edge: A Roadmap to Advance Edge of Field Practices in Agriculture. Featuring successful and innovative case studies from across the nation and recognizing the accomplishments of individuals and organizations, the edge of field Roadmap is a blueprint for collaborative action implement these practices on a larger scale and at a faster rate.
“The Agricultural Drainage Management Coalition was excited to participate in the Roadmap to raise awareness of these underutilized practices,” said Kult one of the partners that met virtually over the course of six months in 2020 to develop the Roadmap.
The edge of field Roadmap is a call to action for partnerships, conservation groups, policy makers, farmers, farm organizations, supply chain companies and other agricultural stakeholders. Working collaboratively, stakeholders can elevate public awareness of edge of field practices and the role they play in helping to improve the sustainability of the U.S. food system and help the business and government sectors meet environmental goals.
Together, we can transform our agricultural landscape for the benefit of our producers, our communities and the environment we all share. Learn more at nature.org/EdgeofField.
