Alternative practices for sediment and nutrient loss control on livestock farms in northeast Iowa

A number of structural and managerial practices were evaluated to determine their environmental and economic effectiveness on animal feeding operations in the upper Maquoketa river watershed in northeast Iowa. Economic and environmental model simulations were performed over a 30-year time horizon for each of these practices using extensive data collected from the study area. Results from model simulations indicate that while most of the practices (including terraces, no till farming, contouring, and in-field contour buffers) would reduce sediment and sediment-bound nutrient losses significantly, they have very little benefit on soluble nitrogen and phosphorus losses. This is primarily because the increased infiltration rates resulting [...]