| Title: | Short-term forecasting tools for agricultural nutrient management |
| Authors: | Easton, Z.M., P.J.A. Kleinman, A.R. Buda, D. Goering, N. Emberston, S. Reed, P.J. Drohan, M.T. Walter, P.Guinan, J.A. Lory, A.R. Sommerlot and A. Sharpley |
| Year: | 2017 |
| Journal: | Journal of Environmental Quality |
| Volume (Issue): | 46(6) |
| Pages: | 1257-1269 |
| Article ID: | |
| DOI: | 10.2134/jeq2016.09.0377 |
| URL (non-DOI journals): | |
| Model: | SWAT-VSA |
| Broad Application Category: | review/history |
| Primary Application Category: | model comparison |
| Secondary Application Category: | hydrologic assessment |
| Watershed Description: | none |
| Calibration Summary: | |
| Validation Summary: | |
| General Comments: | |
| Abstract: | The advent of real-time, short-term farm management tools is
motivated by the need to protect water quality above and beyond
the general guidance offered by existing nutrient management
plans. Advances in high-performance computing and hydrologic
or climate modeling have enabled rapid dissemination of realtime
information that can assist landowners and conservation
personnel with short-term management planning. This paper
reviews short-term decision support tools for agriculture that
are under various stages of development and implementation
in the United States: (i) Wisconsin’s Runoff Risk Advisory Forecast
(RRAF) System, (ii) New York’s Hydrologically Sensitive Area
Prediction Tool, (iii) Virginia’s Saturated Area Forecast Model, (iv)
Pennsylvania’s Fertilizer Forecaster, (v) Washington’s Application
Risk Management (ARM) System, and (vi) Missouri’s Design Storm
Notification System. Although these decision support tools differ
in their underlying model structure, the resolution at which they
are applied, and the hydroclimates to which they are relevant, all
provide forecasts (range 24–120 h) of runoff risk or soil moisture
saturation derived from National Weather Service Forecast models.
Although this review highlights the need for further development
of robust and well-supported short-term nutrient management
tools, their potential for adoption and ultimate utility requires
an understanding of the appropriate context of application, the
strategic and operational needs of managers, access to weather
forecasts, scales of application (e.g., regional vs. field level), data
requirements, and outreach communication structure. |
| Language: | English |
| Keywords: | |