For several years, CLWA has partnered with the Soil and Water Conservation Districts of Ontario and Yates Counties to co-sponsor an annual Soil Health Workshop, held each February or March. The workshops provide an opportunity to learn about new programs and technologies available to farmers as well as complete certificates across several topics from pest control to manure management. CLWA’s participation has infused an emphasis on considering impacts on water quality and, this year, we secured a nationally-known speaker, Eric Fuchs from Understanding Ag (https://understandingag.com)!
Why does CLWA care about Ag? Our Lake Friendly Lawn Care / Living program has focused on reducing nutrient and pollution inputs from residential and municipal properties. With over 30,000 acres of farmland in the Canandaigua Lake watershed representing 28% of the land use, there is tremendous value in partnering with the agricultural community as well. The bottom line is that there is a direct correlation between healthy soil and clean water.
We learned about Understanding Ag after reading Gabe Brown’s book, Dirt To Soil: One Family’s Journey into Regenerative Agriculture. The consulting company provides “support and confidence to help clients reduce input costs, generate actual profits, and ensure family farming futures… accomplished by educating and mentoring farmers, ranchers, landowners, businesses, and communities in the principles and practices needed to restore, repair, rebuild, regenerate their farming and ranching ecosystems.”
For Eric’s visit to the watershed for the Soil Health workshop, we planned a comprehensive 3-day itinerary. On day 1, we toured the Martens’ family organic grain farm and state-of-the-art seed-sorting facility in Penn Yan, discussing soil health and the benefits of cover cropping. Day 2 featured a successful Soil Health workshop with 109 attendees, where Eric gave two talks on “Agricultur
e’s Role in Nonpoint Source Pollution” and “The 6 Principles of Soil Health.” Afterward, we visited the Horst family farm and enjoyed dinner with Mennonite friends at Finger Lakes Plates. On the final day, we had a productive breakfast session with resource providers from various organizations (Ontario & Yates Co Soil and Water Conservation Districts, Cornell Cooperative Extension, Seneca Lake Pure Waters, CLWA, CLWA supposed to be CLWC?), and concluded with a driving tour of water quality improvement project sites with Kevin Olvany, Watershed Manager.
Key Takeaways from Eric’s Visit:
- Soil Health: Healthy soil has excellent structure, is rich in microorganisms, and retains moisture effectively.
- Cover Cropping: Is essential to prevent erosion and degradation of soil quality. Bare fields erode easily and require costly amendments that may harm water quality.
- Human Health: Is directly linked to how our food is grown and the soil quality.
- Runoff Management: Runoff from buildings, fields, and livestock should be managed on-site to prevent contamination.
- Tile Drains: Are likely overused in our watershed, necessitating reevaluation.
Eric was a wonderful guest and consultant, providing information of value to CLWA and our partner organizations. To learn more about Regenerative farming practices, see www.understandingag.com