University of Wisconsin Environmental Resources Center's PESP Strategy

Describe your Organization’s Five-Year Goals Related to Pesticide Risk Reduction

The UWEX Environmental Resources Center will work to create a Regional Conservation Professional Training Partnership. Goals of the partnership include:

Evaluate effectiveness of IPM planning and implementation process on farms
Expand IPM training to include other crops and to integrate relevant environmental management issues (water quality and invasive species)
Support Midwest food producers in applying sustainability approaches
Encourage farmers to utilize Environmental Management Systems (EMS) to identify priority environmental aspects and mitigation strategies specifically related to pesticide reduction goals.

What do you envision doing (broadly) to try to resolve your major issues?

As part of the USEPA’s Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Program (PESP), the UWEX Environmental Resources Center will identify opportunities to network and develop potential collaborative projects related to Integrated Pest Management at the University of Wisconsin, Madison and in the EPA Great Lakes Region. We will investigate who among this group is doing similar planning and create opportunities to meet and discuss topics appropriate for collaboration in order to develop joint programs or learn where there may already be overlap. Although not all projects and missions have joint application we believe that by discussing amongst programs that work directly or indirectly with IPM what each of our long term IPM visions and strategies are we then have the ability to articulate a cohesive message that strengthens our individual or joint program planning and grant writing process.

Goal 1 and Tactics

Evaluate effectiveness of IPM planning and implementation process with farms

For 163 Wisconsin farms already implementing IPM plans: (related to TSP’s)
1. “Are NRCS cost share agreements and recommended pest management plans in reducing the risks of unintentional impacts of pesticides on water quality?” (As linked to NRCS and EQIP $s)
2. 595 programs are focused more on water quality protection rather then strictly production oriented. Effectiveness of training on behavior change.
Develop a strategy to investigate effectiveness of IPM implementation on farms and farmers.

Goal 2 and Tactics

Expand IPM training to include other crops and to integrate relevant environmental management issues

Crop focus
1. Vegetable and specialty crops
2. Alternative crops and beyond c. Integrate environmental management issues with pesticide management, ag drainage systems and preferential flow pathways into existing curricula
Water quality focus
1. Build and enhance successful IPM programs that incorporate water quality protection to Region 5 states
2. Integrate “production based” and “water quality protection” in programming
Control and manage invasive species
1. Create an introductory course taught jointly with WI/MN
2. Develop advanced courses on controls for specific species of plants or ecosystem types.

Goal 3 and Tactics

Support Midwest food producers in applying sustainability approaches

Assist in guidance development and in training
Test processes for engaging users in applying different methods or for new situations.

Goal 4 and Tactics

Encourage farmers to utilize Environmental Management Systems (EMS) to identify priority environmental aspects and mitigation strategies specifically related to pesticide reduction goals.

Develop an EMS module on pesticide reduction and water protection. These modules are voluntary, and farmer implemented with assistance from TSPs.
Develop and implement training programs for TSPs and Extension agents on developing EMS plans with farmers.
Identify farmers to test EMS module on pesticide reduction and water protection. With the anticipated continued increase in corn production due to biofuels demand, target corn growers.