It has been the topic of conversation off and on for the last year or more — Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy, NRLS.

I suspect it will continue to be a hot topic among everyone — legislators, private landowners, producers, conservation groups and people you may not even think about being interested in it.

I have been watching the topic of nutrient management unfold over the last 10 years or so, here in the Midwest and also out East. Watching things develop on the East Coast with Chesapeake Bay, I soon realized it was only a matter of time before similar policies were being looked at for the Mississippi River Basin. We have reached a point where the question is no longer “I wonder IF that will happen here?” to “I wonder WHEN that will happen here?”

I still believe being proactive will benefit the farming community. So, what does that look like? It does not have to be big changes all at once. Actually, I would encourage small steps over time. Small changes may seem not to add up to much at that particular instance but, a lot of a little adds up to a lot. Adding another small change to the ones already made tends to compound the effects in YOUR favor.

Soil health is going to be important in all of this. Healthy soil is high in organic matter, full of life, well structured and covered all the time. These four characteristics enable soil to withstand a rain storm and not erode, enables your soil to hold water (in a good way) instead of it running off, enables your soil to break down residue without needing tillage.

It contains nutrients necessary for supporting plants and animals. And just as plants and animals depend on soil, the soil microbes depend on them, too. Soil is where the integration of living and non-living things takes place. It is composed of air, water, organic matter and minerals.

A community of organisms – functioning as a soil food web – lives in all or parts of their lives in soil. More individual organisms are in a teaspoon of soil than there are people on earth. So, where to start? Depends on your operation.

You could start by taking a look at your nutrient management and soil testing program. Is there something else you can, are able, and are willing to fine tune? To make more precise? Are you soil testing on a 2.5 acre grid or smaller? Are your nutrients blanket applied or applied based on a grid sampling system? Precision technology can play an important role for you.

Already apply your nutrients using VRT? Think about your residue management. Have you considered strip-till or no-till? Or can you increase the amount of residue left on your fields over winter? Increased residue means better protected soils. This leads to less soil erosion, which means less nutrients and pesticides getting into surface waters due to erosion, which means, staying in your field for your crops to use.

Cover crops would be another area to consider learning to use, even if you currently strip-till/no-till and use VRT.

As we learn more about healthy soils, cover crops play more and more of a role. They help increase organic matter; provide a living root longer during the year to create an environment for beneficial microbes to live; improve the structure of your soil through increased organic matter; provide cover for your soil when your cash crop is not growing.

There are many other practices that can be looked at, more than I can write about for now. For more information on the things mentioned above or to learn about other options, stop by and see us.

Erika Turner is a district conservationist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service.