Progress on the Voluntary Clean Water Guidance for Agriculture
The Voluntary Clean Water Guidance for Agriculture is a technical resource in development for agricultural producers that describes our recommended best management practices (BMPs) to protect water quality. Our goal is to support healthy farms and help farmers meet clean water quality standards. We understand that each farm is unique and each producer is managing a differing set of site, soil, and climate factors. The vision for each chapter in this guidance is to help producers identify the BMPs and implementation strategies that best fit their farm’s needs.
Once completed, the guidance will have chapters on 13 different topics. While we are working to draft a number of chapters, so far we have released one chapter for public review, Cropping Methods: Tillage and Residue Management.
We are now accepting comment on three additional chapters until Dec. 23, 2022:
Livestock Management-Pasture & Rangeland Grazing
Sediment Control: Soil Stabilization & Sediment Capture (Structural)
Riparian Areas & Surface Water Protection
The Cropping Methods chapter is still available for comment. If you have already submitted comments on this chapter, you do not need to submit the same comments again.
After this set is complete and submitted to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), we will work on the next set of chapters, providing opportunities for public feedback along the way.
We welcome your feedback
We are accepting comments on the draft chapters and the updated Nonpoint Plan until Dec. 23, 2022. We are also hosting an informational webinar on Dec. 14. You can access the materials and meeting information on our Voluntary Clean Water Guidance for Agriculture webpage.
To learn more about this important work, read the full blog online.