Wednesday, June 12
Excess nutrient runoff from agricultural fields can enter nearby streams and rivers, harming sensitive species, contaminating water supplies, and fueling downstream algal blooms. Our research examines the benefit of two conservation strategies that potentially prevent loss of excess nutrients from agricultural lands: one practice implemented in waterways combined with one applied to the surrounding landscape. We have paired the restoration of floodplains in formerly channelized ditches with the planting of winter cover crops in agricultural fields and are quantifying their potential to reduce watershed nutrient export, especially during vulnerable periods in winter and spring. Together, we show the potential for watershed-scale conservation to reduce phosphorus and nitrogen export that would otherwise be delivered to sensitive coastal systems. Additionally, successful outcomes highlighted through demonstration projects can facilitate widespread adoption, making them powerful agents of change for advancing regional conservation success, especially in the Great Lakes and the larger agricultural Midwest.
JENNIFER TANK is the Galla Professor of Biological Sciences in the Department of Biological Sciences at Notre Dame University. She is currently the director of Notre Dame Environmental Change Initiative, is the former director of the Notre Dame Linked Experimental Ecosystem Facility, and was honored with a Leopold Leadership Fellowship at the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment in 2013. Jennifer is the author of over 150 peer-reviewed publications, and is a frequent commentator on environmental issues for radio, television, and the print media. She serves as an associate editor for two journals, Limnology and Oceanography Letters and Biogeochemistry, and is the 2018-19 president of the Society for Freshwater Science. Her federally funded research program includes grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Science Foundation, and the Environmental Protection Agency.
Jennifer's research focuses on the cycling of nutrients in stream and river systems with a focus on the restoration of ecosystem function in impacted systems. She also leads a multidisciplinary group of researchers examining the effect of agricultural land use on freshwater as part of the Indiana Watershed Initiative. Her research is helping to quantify the benefits of innovative conservation and to improve the health and nutrient removal efficiency of streams and rivers draining croplands through watershed-scale implementation of effective practices. Jennifer earned her B.S. from Michigan State University and her M.S. and Ph.D. from Virginia Tech.
