NSC and Stakeholders Address University of Michigan Study

A study released by the University of Michigan Water Center last week analyzed various management practices to achieve the 40 percent reduction target set by the governments of Ohio, Michigan and Ontario.

Various key stakeholders of the 4R Nutrient Stewardship Certification Program have responded to the study. The Michigan Agri-Business Association shared in a release last week that the study used data that was outdated and it neglected to take into consideration recent improvements in agricultural practices. The Ohio AgriBusiness Association released a letter to its members addressing the study’s impractical solutions and reinforced both nutrient run-off and water quality is a priority for Ohio’s farmers and agribusinesses.

The Nutrient Stewardship Council continues to stress that the agricultural community plays a vital role in improving Lake Erie’s water quality and encourages nutrient service providers to participate in the 4R Nutrient Stewardship Certification Program to reduce nutrient run-off into Lake Erie and its surrounding waterways.   Two years since the industry-led, voluntary program’s inception, 28 certified facilities along with their grower customers are using 4R principles to service more than 1.3 million farm acres in the Western Lake Erie Basin.