OMAHA (DTN) -- USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service is raising the bar on nutrient management plans for farmers to participate in the agency's conservation programs.

NRCS Chief Dave White explained the revised nutrient management standard which will be used to help farmers apply proper levels of fertilizer on the land. Overall, the changes affect farmers who voluntarily enroll in programs such as the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, or Conservation Stewardship Program. Applicants would have to meet the new standards starting in 2013.

White emphasized NRCS is not a regulatory agency, but will use the new standards in helping farmers craft new nutrient management plans and as goals to achieve in EQIP or CSP. Still, as many as 25 states will also automatically change their own nutrient management standards to follow NRCS guidelines as well.

"We know there are regulatory agencies that adopt our standards or some version of them for their own purposes and we are very cognizant of that," White said.

The update of the nutrient standard is part of a routine process that occurs every five years. Nonetheless, White said no other practice standard developed by NRCS creates the controversy of changing nutrient management practices.

"I suppose other folks are going to make their own value judgments on this, but we believe we have achieved a scientifically credible approach that will result in real environmental protection while maintaining the flexibility a producer needs to stay in business," White said.

In crafting the new standard, USDA officials noted applications of nitrogen and phosphorus were of particular concern. White said the new nutrient management standards focus heavily on the fertilizer industry's guidelines of using the "4Rs" concept: Right fertilizer source, Right rate, Right place, Right time.

"If we can get those 4Rs right we will have gone a tremendous way towards really maximizing the efficiency of our fertilizer, helping protect the environment and saving producers money," White said.

Developing a nutrient management plan involves striking a balance between environmental impact and production needs, White said. The nutrient standard directs NRCS staff and industry experts to help farmers reduce water and wind erosion, apply nutrients when the crops are most likely to absorb them, avoid overapplication of fertilizer and avoid applications when there is a high risk of losing nutrients. The new guidelines also place more emphasis on recordkeeping.

The new guidelines also use a new assessment tool for erosion, a nitrogen leaching index, a phosphorus index and risk tool, as well as emphasis on technologies such as nitrogen inhibitors and precision agriculture.

While noting these are national standards, White said certain regions such as the Chesapeake Bay, upper Mississippi River watershed or the Great Lakes region may pay more attention to the changes initially because of increased regulatory pressure and emphasis on targeted conservation practices in those regions.

"But I would hope states everywhere will take this seriously and advance it," he said.

In the Chesapeake Bay, which has been a hotbed for battles with the EPA over its nutrient standard, White added that most bay-region farmers are already applying two or three of the 4R practices. "If we get to 4Rs, I just think it's a game changer for us," White said. "I'm just excited about the potential that we have to really improve the resource base."

White did not have an analysis of exactly how much these new standards could reduce nitrogen and phosphorus use nationally.

For more information about NRCS's nutrient management, go to http://dld.bz/…

Chris Clayton can be reached at chris.clayton@telventdtn.com

(AG/SK)

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