Innovate & Sustain
Soil Health and Water Quality Improvements
As part of ACWA’s three Core Pillars, Innovate & Sustain includes practices to improve soil health and water quality. Also part of this Core Pillar is the Conservation Agronomist Network, comprised of professionals who can help farmers adopt and install appropriate conservation practices on their farm. The CA works alongside field agronomists and serves as a liaison between farmers, agencies and contractors.
Bioreactors: In 2008, ACWA was one of the first entities to install a bioreactor in Iowa. Bioreactors intercept tile-drained water, directing it through an underground trough of wood chips, to denitrify the water before it enters a nearby waterbody.
Cover Crops: Cover crop adoption is on the rise in Iowa because of their soil health benefits and, in turn, water quality improvements. Cover crops reduce erosion by wind and water, increase soil organic matter and water infiltration, and more.
Saturated Buffers: An edge-of-field practice that directs tile-drained water through a streambank buffer, allowing the natural ecosystem to naturally denitrify the drained water before it enters the river or stream.
Targeted Wetlands: Installing a wetland that accepts tile-drained water is a way to have a positive impact on the environment. The wetland site is carefully considered and usually installed in areas that are less productive for agriculture. Water coming off nearby fields enters the wetland and is denitrified naturally. The installation of a wetland is supported by cost-share through the state and other environmental entities.
Other Conservation Practices: Controlled drainage, two-stage ditches and restored river oxbows are sustainable approaches to increase water-holding capacity and reduce excess nutrients in nearby waterbodies.