BMP Development, Implementation, and Performance

Dear Colleagues,

Water shortages and water-quality problems have been associated world-wide with highly urbanized areas and with intense agricultural, horticultural, and industrial land uses. Most urban consumers are more concerned with water quality than quantity, rating having clean drinking water most important. The application of science based practices to agricultural production is central to environmentally sensitive nutrient and water stewardship. Development, implementation, and performance of best management practices (BMPs) to maintain or improve water quality are critical to the sustainability of current agricultural production systems. Elements of these BMPs include improved soil testing methods, optimizing fertilizer applications (e.g., source, rate, placement, timing, and rate), site-specific irrigation scheduling, and innovative on-site drainage and sediment treatment. Researchers are actively experimenting to determine optimum nutrient and water management practices for specific soil and environmental situations related to production systems. Modelers are utilizing these inputs to simulate biological processes to reduce the potential impact of agriculture on water quality. Extension agents have taught many of these practices in their programs for years but not as a production system. Extension programs utilizing industry support groups to organize commodity specific production education with grower feedback and public information surveys are being developed to bring individual production practices into a coordinated agricultural production system. The goal of this Special Issue is to provide examples of the current best knowledge, to address stakeholder needs, using the right communications tools and strategies, to improve agricultural production system and lower their impact on the environment.

Dr. Kelly T. Morgan
Dr. Monica Ozores-Hampton
Guest Editors

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