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ACPF Use Example: Polk County Saturated Buffer Project
Have you heard about the Batch and Build project in Polk County, Iowa? This innovative project used the ACPF and was able to get an impressive number of saturated buffers installed on the landscape in just a few short years.
Making Better Maps for Color Blind Producers
Roughly 1 in 20 people have some sort of color vision deficiency. Color blindness is a genetic condition that occurs more frequently in men (1 in 10) than women. It can occur when there is a problem with the color-sensing cones in the eye’s nerve cells. This factsheet has tips and examples for developing accessible maps for color blind producers.
Evaluating watershed-based optimized decision support framework for conservation practice placement in the Plum Creek Minnesota
This study develops an integrated decision support framework to site conservation placement opportunities at the field-scale using LiDAR-hydro-conditioned DEM and other secondary data. Using python coding, this framework integrates three robust models namely Prioritize, Target and Measure Application (PTMApp), Agricultural Conservation Planning Framework (ACPF) and Hydrological Simulation Program FORTRAN-Scenario Application Manager (HSPF-SAM).
Agricultural conservation practices in Iowa watersheds: comparing actual implementation with practice potential
To identify potential locations for conservation practices in Iowa watersheds, the ACPF is being used. In addition, the location of existing implemented practices are being identified by the Iowa Best Management Practices Mapping Project (IBMP). From these two products, a methodology was developed to compare the differences between actual implementation and practice placement potential.
Farmer engagement using a precision approach to watershed-scale conservation planning: What do we know?
The results from semi-structured in-depth interviews conducted with farmers in four watersheds in the US Midwest aimed at better understanding farmers' perceptions of targeting when they receive targeted conservation options for fields they farm.
Lessons learned from using a decision-support tool for precision placement of conservation practices in six agricultural watersheds in the US midwest
The findings from semi-structured in-depth interviews conducted with 21 conservation professionals in six watersheds in the US Midwest who have used the ACPF in their watershed planning and engagement work. Results suggest that the ACPF encourages conservation professionals to think at a watershed scale, supports their approach to conservation planning, and helps them in watershed planning and stakeholder engagement.
Riparian catchments: A landscape approach to link uplands with riparian zones for agricultural and ecosystem conservation
Effective coupling of upland and riparian conservation as a system of practices, is necessary to ensure water quality, water supply, agricultural sustainability, and ecosystem biodiversity and integrity. This is not an easy task, nor an intuitive one. Therefore, riparian catchments is needed that helps planners and stakeholders visualize strategies to place conservation practices in sequences that are adapted to landscape-specific attributes.
Measurements of landscape capacity for water detention and wetland restoration practices can inform watershed planning goals and implementation strategies
This editorial examines how precision siting of practices can provide data for evaluating watershed goals and assessing how implementation strategies may influence chances of success in reaching habitat and water quality goals.
Integrating farmer input and Agricultural Conservation Planning Framework results to develop watershed plans in Iowa
A case study of the Iowa Soybean Association engaging farmers and landowners in watershed programming and conservation initiatives using the ACPF.
The Beargrass Story: Utilizing Social Science to Evaluate and Learn from the “Watershed Approach”
This paper presents the case of a voluntary watershed project that addressed the need for improving water quality by reducing agricultural nutrient loss. The project focused on implementing the “right practices” in the “right places” through the ACPF.