AMES, Iowa — A website for the Iowa Nutrient Research Center at Iowa State University provides information on research projects underway to improve nutrient management practices on Iowa farms.
The website is part of the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy website.
A link on the website provides summaries of the center’s 10 funded projects, including research on bioreactors, cover crops, new technology to more accurately predict movement of nutrients and decision-support tools for farmers.
The first set of 10 projects, led by teams of scientists at Iowa State, the University of Iowa and University of Northern Iowa, address critical needs or gaps in nitrogen and phosphorus research identified in the science assessment that was part of the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy.
The Iowa Nutrient Reduction Center was established by the Iowa Board of Regents in response to legislation passed last spring by the Iowa Legislature and signed by Governor Terry Branstad. The center received $1.5 million for 2013-2014 from the legislature for research in areas that include evaluating the performance of current and emerging nutrient management practices, providing recommendations on implementing the practices and developing new practices.
The Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy is a science and technology-based approach to assess and reduce nutrients delivered to Iowa waterways and the Gulf of Mexico.
The center’s director is John Lawrence, the associate dean for extension and outreach in Iowa State’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and director of ISU Agriculture and Natural Resources Extension and Outreach.