Atrazine movement through the silty clay loam soil at the SD site was reduced by physically separating placement of fertilizer and herbicide. Identify and increase understanding of factors and processes that control fate and transport of agricultural chemicals. In the Big Sioux Aquifer, denitrification is occurring during the spring. Atrazine is ten times more tightly adsorbed onto soil particles under field conditions than is being currently modeled. Assess the projected benefits to water quality of implementing modified farming systems.
Improved soil sampling strategies increase the accuracy of the fertilizer recommendation.
Better timing and placement of herbicides in relation to fertilizer placement reduces the potential for herbicides to move into the lower root zone. The ridge tillage farming system reduces atrazine use without great capital investment on the farmer's part. Atrazine concentrations never exceeded 3 ppb, and were usually less than 1 ppb. Improved techniques to determine plant-nitrogen requirements will reduce nitrogen inputs to ground water. Assess the impact of agricultural chemicals and practices on ecosystems associated with agriculture.