Farmers, Scientists In 15 Organizations Partner In New PA Soil Health Coalition To Achieve Water Quality, Farm Production Goals

Pennsylvania-- already a national leader in the soil health movement-- recently took a giant leap forward when 15 organizations joined together to form the Pennsylvania Soil Health Coalition.

The coalition strives to increase the adoption of soil health practices to meet both water quality and farm production goals.

The coalition is made up of 15 founding organizations, including Penn State Extension, Pasa Sustainable Agriculture, PA Grazing Lands Coalition, the Department of Agriculture, PA No-Till Alliance, Pennsylvania NRCS, Rodale Institute, Soil & Water Conservation Society, State Conservation Commission, 4R Alliance, Chesapeake Bay Foundation, The Nature Conservancy, PA Association of Conservation Districts, Stroud Water Resource Center and Steve Gross Cover Crop Coaching.

“The Soil Health Coalition is a great initiative to put our minds, passions, expertise, and resources together so we can make a major impact on soil health in our state. When we work together, major change is possible. I look forward to seeing what will be accomplished and what we will learn about the widespread benefits of improved soil health,” says Sjoerd Duiker, Professor of Soil Management and Applied Soil Physics at Penn State University.

“Pennsylvania NRCS has long recognized that working with partners is the key to delivering successful soil and water conservation to our farmers. The Pennsylvania Soil Health Coalition will help to strengthen our existing partnerships, build new ones, and facilitate communication and coordination, with the goal of building soil health across the state,” according to Denise Coleman, state conservationist with the Natural Resources Conservation Service in Pennsylvania.

 “We have so many people and organizations in our state doing wonderful work to advance soil health. This coalition provides an opportunity for better collaboration of our efforts,” said Lisa Blazure, soil health coordinator and project lead for Stroud Water Research Center. “Healthy soils are a win for the farmers, a win for the environment, and a win for society, with the ability to grow healthy foods in a more sustainable way,” said Blazure.

The coalition will focus on farmer support, educational events, and research projects. It will advance the understanding of the critical role that improving soil health has for a sustainable farm operation and also in meeting environmental goals, including the sequestration of atmospheric carbon, which is crucial to climate change mitigation.

The efforts of these partner organizations have already propelled Pennsylvania as a national leader in the adoption of no-till planting and cover crops-- two key practices for building soil health.  

According to the 2017 Census of Agriculture, the state is sixth in the nation for no-till planting (at 67 percent) and third in the nation for the percentage of commodity acres planted with covers (37.2 percent). But there is still opportunity for additional growth.

The coalition is supported by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Fund which receives funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, NRCS, and Altria. 

The fund promotes community-based efforts to develop conservation strategies to protect and restore the diverse natural resources of the Chesapeake Bay.

For more information including contacts for our member organizations, please visit the Pennsylvania Soil Health Coalition website.

Questions should be directed to Lisa Blazure, Coalition Coordinator, Soil Health Coordinator, Stroud Water Research Center, 570-660-7544 or send email to: lblazure@stroudcenter.org. 

NewsClips:

Sean Sauro: Better Crops, Cleaner Water Among Many Goals For New Soil Health Group That Includes Lancaster Farmers

Soil Health Coalition Formed In Pennsylvania

Penn State: Understanding Agriculture’s Impacts On ‘The Zone Where Rock Meets Life’

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[Posted: December 12, 2020]  PA Environment Digest