Dr. Jay Martin is a Professor of Ecological Engineering in the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences at Ohio State and is the Project Director for the Pilot Watershed project in the Shallow Run Basin. He joined Kernels host Luke Crumley on this episode of Kernels to talk about this new project.

Spoiler alert: Growers in the project area can earn incentives, bring funds to their community, win a fishing trip, and much more by participating in this project. Not to mention increase yields and promote water-quality practices.

Learn more about the project at https://u.osu.edu/wilsonlab/current-projects-and-publications/pilot-watershed-project/. Get involved by contacting Dr. Jay Martin by email at [email protected].

The largest sponsors and contributors of this project include USDA-NRCS ($6.8M), and the State of Ohio ($6M) via the Ohio Department of Agriculture and H2Ohio and Ohio Department of Natural Resources. The Agricultural Retailers (Nutrient Ag Solutions, Heritage Cooperative, Haselman Ag, and Sunrise Cooperative) are supporting the project by contributing a total of $207,000 of personnel time. Other contributors include SWCD-Hardin County, The National Center for Water Quality Research at Heidelberg University, USDA Conservation Effects Assessment Program, USDA Agricultural Research Service-Soil Drainage Research Unit, Mosaic, Ohio Agribusiness Association-Nutrient Stewardship Council, Ohio Farm Bureau Federation, Ohio Dairy Producers, Ohio Soybean Council, Ohio Corn and Wheat, American Farmland Trust, United States Geological Survey, Ohio Sea Grant, National Wildlife Federation, Lake Erie Foundation, and The Nature Conservancy. Contributions of personnel time are also being made by academic partners supporting the project (OSU, BGSU, Kent State U,. and U. Toledo).

Luke Crumley is the Director of Public Policy & Sustainability at Ohio Corn & Wheat.

Kernels is a production of Ohio Corn & Wheat and hosts conversations about the corn and wheat industry in Ohio, their respective checkoff programs, and the work the Grower's Association is doing in on behalf of Ohio grain farmers.

About Ohio Corn & Wheat

Ohio Corn & Wheat works to create opportunities for long-term Ohio corn and small grain grower profitability. It is a strategic alliance of two checkoffs and one membership-based organization. The Ohio Corn Checkoff and Ohio Small Grains Checkoff work to develop and expand markets, fund research and provide education about corn and wheat, respectively. The Ohio Corn & Wheat Growers Association is a membership organization advocating for supportive public policy on behalf of its farmer members. 

For more information, visit ohiocornandwheat.org.