Steve Hamilton, PhD Michigan State University January 14, 2016

1. Steve Hamilton
hamilton@msu.edu
January 14, 2016
National Council for Science and the Environment

2.  NSF-funded long-term ecological
research
• Funded for past 25 years; now at ~$1m/year
 Provides a platform for diverse research
generally funded by additional grants
• Long-term experiments, core measurements,
sample and data archiving, technical assistance
 Since 2010 the KBS LTER has generated:
• 88 separately funded projects (33 through MSU)
• $58m in IDC to MSU (including $23m as part of
GLBRC)

3. KBS LTER: Core Question
Main Cropping System Experiment
• Conventional
• No Till
• Reduced input
• Biologically Based
Perennial Crops
Annual Crops
(Corn-Soybean-Wheat)
Successional &
Reference Communities
• Forage (alfalfa)
• Bioenergy (Poplar)
• Coniferous tree
plantations
• Mown grassland
• Early successional
• Mid-successional
• Mature deciduous forest
Can we manage field crops with biology rather than
chemistry to conserve and enhance ecosystem services?
Food, fiber, and
fuel production
Climate
regulation
Soil and water
protection
Pollination &
pest regulation
Biodiversity

5.  Example of leveraging
 Recently funded by NSF for
2015-17 ($386k)
 Implications of expanding
irrigation
• Surface-groundwater interactions,
water quality, global warming
impact
• Incl. Dave Hyndman, Bruno Basso,
Anthony Kendall (GLG)
 Work both on and off site

6.  Sustainability of agricultural water use
• Irrigation impacts on groundwater, ecohydrology, local
climate, recreation and aesthetics, etc.
• Full-cost accounting of global warming impact
 Future scenarios of land use and cover
• Food vs. bioenergy
• Landscape design to protect water resources and enhance
ecosystem services
 Climate variability and change
• Projecting changes and planning adaptation
• Designing resilient production systems and encouraging their
adoption