Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID IA_FY25_Shenk

Harnessing the Agricultural Conservation Planning Framework for multi-sector collaboration to enhance lake quality

Institute: Iowa
Year Established: 2025 Start Date: 2026-01-01 End Date: 2026-12-31
Total Federal Funds: $19,454 Total Non-Federal Funds: $19,653

Principal Investigators: Iowa State University

Project Summary: Lake Panorama's recreational opportunities are negatively impacted by water quality issues related to sediment and phosphorus entering the lake from its agriculturally dominant watershed. This project seeks to utilize Agricultural Conservation Planning Framework (ACPF) in developing targeted outreach to landowners in the watershed to increase best management practice (BMP) adoption. ACPF and Financial and Nutrient Reduction Tool (FiNRT) maps and data will be used by project partners to target areas where BMPs will have the most impact, and work with individuals and small groups to promote adoption of practices. To access local social circles, the project will rely on the experience of local conservation professionals, LPA staff, and influential conservation farmers and landowners. Lessons learned by the researchers and partners can then be utilized to develop resources that can be used by other watershed projects to utilize ACPF and FiNRT maps in their outreach strategies.