Water Quality Listening
Session
The USDA-Research, Education, and Economic
(REE) Agencies – NIFA, Economic Research
Service, Agricultural Research Service, and
National Agricultural Statistics Service
-- conducted an Agricultural
Water Security Listening Session September
9-10, 2004, in Park City, Utah. The session’s
purpose was to determine the relevance of
current USDA-REE efforts in agricultural
water security, and to develop the basis
for an expanded research, education/extension,
and economics program within USDA that takes
full advantage of partnerships with other
Federal and State Agencies. Approximately
90 representatives from federal and state
agencies, universities and colleges, non-profit
and private sector firms and local municipalities
participated. Dr. Rodney J. Brown, USDA Deputy
Undersecretary for Research, Education, and
Economics, provided the event’s keynote
address.
The session identified six key topic areas
for REE involvement: drought preparedness
and mitigation, irrigation efficiency, general
water conservation, urban and rural water
reuse, biotechnology, and economics and water
marketing. Participants also identified 19
steps that REE agencies could take to move
closer to solutions for agricultural water
security.
By the end of the listening session, participants
had:
- Assessed the current capabilities of
the USDA-REE agencies to address research,
education/extension, and economic needs;
- Determined the program needs that might
be fulfilled by a coordinated USDA effort
of research, education/extension, and economics
for agricultural water security;
- Determined the gaps in existing knowledge;
- Identified strategies and opportunities
that will advance research, education/extension,
and economic efforts and provide products
and solutions to customers, stakeholders,
and partners; and
- Identified commonalities among the topical
themes and described some of the necessary
steps to move towards national programming
in agricultural water security.
Information gathered at the listening session
will be utilized by REE agencies in the following
ways:
- NIFA will use outcomes from the listening
session to identify opportunities to link
water quantity and water quality issues
in competitive grants programs to expand
the knowledge base available on water resources.
- ARS will use outcomes from the listening
session as input to the National Program
Workshop (May 2005) for priority setting
in the Water Quality and Management Program.
- NASS will collaborate with the newly
formulated USDA Working Group for Water
Resources and the INDC to identify necessary
data needs on water issues and the associated
budget proposals to provide the resources
to fill data gaps.
- ERS will continue to partner with NASS
in developing survey data to monitor the
use of water as an input to agricultural
production and to assess the adoption of
irrigation technologies.
If you have questions regarding the listening
session or if you require additional information
contact Mike
O’Neill or Dale
Bucks.
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