Participants at a RUSLE2 workshop

Participants will learn about ephemeral and gully erosion, manure management

An Advanced RUSLE 2 workshop has been scheduled for service providers and producers who are working with RUSLE2 and the Iowa Phosphorus Index to develop manure management plans. The workshop will be held on April 2 at the Iowa State University Digital Ag Innovation Lab, located at 3800 University Boulevard, from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

RUSLE2 stands for Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation 2, a calculation used to guide conservation planning and inventory erosion rates.

A simplified method for calculating ephemeral erosion and recently implemented changes to manure management planning will be the focus of this workshop, according to Kapil Arora, field agricultural engineer with ISU Extension and Outreach.

Participants will learn about ephemeral and gully erosion. The workshop will also focus on principles governing conservation practices, both in RUSLE2 and the Iowa Phosphorus Index. Participants will learn about common tillage and rotation-based errors, as well as how to divide fields for calculating the P-Index.

Additionally, the use of aerial imagery to identify conservation practices installed in Iowa farm fields will be discussed in depth.

This workshop is a collaborative effort between the United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and ISU Extension and Outreach. The workshop qualifies for six Certified Crop Advisor Credits (soil and water) and three professional development hours. Participation certificates will be provided upon completion of the workshop.

Workshop registration

Registration is open to all service providers, producers, Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plan, Nutrient Management Plan and Manure Management Planner software writers and agency staff who are interested in gaining in-depth knowledge about RUSLE2 operations and conservation practices. Participants are expected to have a basic operating knowledge of RUSLE2 software and the Iowa P-Index Calculator. Each registrant must bring a laptop computer pre-loaded with the latest version of RUSLE2. Class size is limited to 30 participants.

Registration is $225 through March 26 and increases to $250 thereafter. Fees include lunch, refreshments and workshop materials. Refunds will only be issued for written requests received before 5 p.m. on March 26. A $25 processing fee applies to all refunded amounts. Registration can be completed online.

In addition to Arora, other workshop presenters are Dan Andersen, associate professor and extension agriculture engineering specialist at Iowa State; Chandra Shaw, USDA-NRCS; and Jeremy Klatt, Iowa DNR.

For information regarding registration, please contact registration services at 515-294-6222 or registrations@iastate.edu. For information about the workshop, please contact Arora at 515-291-0174 or pbtiger@iastate.edu.