From the 2022 NACD Annual Meeting. Partnerships are incredibly important in putting conservation on the ground. In this session, you’ll learn about the Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative (OACI), a partnership between agriculture, conservation, environmental and research communities that provides the resources and education that farmers need to proactively employ modern, science-based practices on their farms and better demonstrate how those efforts are improving water quality over time. You’ll also hear from the Sublette County Conservation District on how they’ve built a bridge between various stakeholders to restore a degraded watershed.

1. Partnering to
Implement Conservation

2. Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
Toledo Water Crisis
On August 2nd, 2014, residents of
Toledo, Ohio awoke to urgent
warnings not to drink or use their
tap water. Half a million people
were unable to drink their water,
cook with it, or brush their teeth.
Advocates blame “factory farms”
for water pollution

3. Executive Order 2018-09K
“Taking Steps to Protect Lake Erie”
Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
Distressed Watershed
Executive Order 2018-09K
“Taking Steps to Protect Lake Erie”

4. OACI PARTNERS

5. Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
Who We Are
The Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative (OACI) is an innovative, collaborative
effort of the agricultural, conservation, environmental and research communities to
improve water quality by establishing a baseline understanding of current
conservation and nutrient management efforts and building farmer participation in
a new certification program.

6. Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
Mission
• Bring together diverse stakeholders to improve Ohio’s water quality through
measurement, education, and certification of Ohio’s farmers in the successful
implementation of on-farm conservation and nutrient management practices
• Achieve meaningful improvement of water quality in Ohio, assure the future viability
of Ohio agriculture, and build widespread participation of farmers

7. Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
• The creation of OACI brought together agriculture, conservation, environmental
and research communities – an initiative and partnership that has never been
done before
• To provide governance, the Ohio Agriculture Conservation Council was
established and represents 11 directors, including five farmer members, three
leaders from agricultural organizations, and three leaders from non-government
organizations
• A staff member was hired as OACI Project Leader to work with Ohio Federation of
Soil and Water Conservation Districts to enroll producers in the program, talk
with partner groups and work within districts to implement certification and
assessment
Establishment of the OACI Board

8. Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
OACI Priorities
Assessment
• Assess and confidentially take inventory of farm practices to establish a baseline
of current conservation and nutrient management practice adoption
Certification
• Establish a certification program that recognizes those farms that demonstrate a
commitment to continuous improvement in the implementation of conservation
and nutrient management practices
• Identify and provide resources that encourage increased adoption of science-
based practices that contribute toward healthier waterways

9. Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
Developed farmer-specific communications materials and messaging,
including:
• Inventoried communications channels such as newsletters, advertising
opportunities and digital platforms from member organizations to
maximize reach
• Updated messaging for certification and app programs
• Updated branded documents
• Created new OACI website: www.ohioaci.org
Encouraging Farmer Participation

10. Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
Partnership with H2Ohio
• OACI is working with the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s H2Ohio program to ensure funds
get to farmers who demonstrate a commitment to continuous improvement through
implementation of science-based practices
• For farmers completing the farmer profile and certification process, H2Ohio funds will be
available for continuous improvement in the implementation of conservation and nutrient
management practices
• Ohio’s Leadership continues to believe in the importance of voluntary participation in
conservation programs:
“For now, we will not mandate the use of these best practices because we believe our strategy will lead to
significant changes within our current laws.”
- Governor Mike DeWine
H2Ohio Launch Announcement, November 2019

11. Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
Certification
• Participants are evaluated in the following categories: Soil Testing, Nutrient
Application, Nutrient Placement, In-Field Management and Structural Practices
• Participant will record the number of acres involved in each scoring category on
rented and owned acres
• Participant will be given a score for each category and an aggregated overall score
that will determine whether or not they have achieved certification
• Their score will identify areas of excellence and improvement, providing a blueprint
for potential local, state and/or federal programs to help fill in the gaps

12. Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
• Mobile app to enroll farmers in the Farmer Certification Program
launched October 1, 2020, and can be downloaded from the
Google Play Store or Apple Store, or accessed at OhioACI.org
• Nearly 2,200 have created an account with OACI
• Enrollment is open to farmers statewide
OACI App

16. Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
Assessment
 Goal of assessment: implement a statistically valid survey of conservation practices on farm fields in a
watershed, first to establish a baseline, then periodically survey again to gauge progress
 Survey of fields, not farmers – identify fields to assess through statistically valid random sample
methodology
 OACI partnering with county SWCD offices to conduct the surveys – OACI provided iPads for this
purpose and SWCD staff utilize the mobile app for data collection
 Confidentiality very important – all OACI partners committed to collecting and reporting data in a way
that protects the identity of every farmer
 Data will be transferred from OACI mobile app to The Ohio State University for aggregation and
statistical analysis
 OACI will publicly report aggregated results when available

17. Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
Assessment
 Pilot survey was conducted in the Lower Maumee River Watershed (HUC8)
 OSU identified 500 fields within the watershed to be surveyed – need 375 completed surveys to be
statistically valid
 OSU consulted with The Center for Survey Statistics and Methodology (CSSM) at Iowa State
University to develop sampling protocol and selected fields
 Estimate that OACI budget can support two assessment surveys per year (cost $50,000 -$60,000 per
survey)
 Keep focus on Western Lake Erie Basin but also include some watersheds in other parts of the state
 Group of OACI stakeholders has developed a proposed assessment schedule through 2027
 This proposed schedule has been presented to OACI Board for review/approval

18. Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
Assessment
Practices & Considerations
• Land Tenure Arrangement
• Crop Rotation
• Soil Test Frequency
• Soil Test Intensity (Composite or Precision)
• Nutrient Recommendations
• Surface or Subsurface Placement (P and N)
• Fixed vs. Variable-rate Placement (P and N)
• Test Manure and Application Rate
• Tillage Practice
• Evidence of Erosion
• Cover Crop
Structural
• Blind Inlet
• Surface Inlet Buffers
• Grassed Waterways
• Alternative Ditch Design
(Natural Channel, 2-Stage, etc.)
• Controlled Drainage Structures
• P Filter/Bioreactor

19. Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
A Farmer’s Perspective
• Jeff Duling, Putnam County Farmer
• Row-crops and beef and pork producer
• An introduction to Jeff’s farm, produced by The Nature Conservancy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIPbAS9ludc

20. Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative
QUESTIONS?
Nikki Hawk
Ohio Federation of Soil & Water Conservation Districts
OACI Project Leader
nicole@ofswcd.org
419-852-2615
Kris Swartz
Wood Soil & Water Conservation District
OACI Chairman
ks85@amplex.net
419-467-1711
Abby Wensink
Henry Soil & Water Conservation District
H2Ohio Support Technician
abbywensink@henryswcd.com
419-592-2926