4R Nutrient Stewardship Certification Program - Mark Fritz, CCA, Ohio Agribusiness Association, from the 2018 Conservation Tillage and Technology Conference, March 6 - 7, Ada, OH, USA. More presentations at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZBwPfKdlk4SB63zZy16kyA

1. 4Rcertified.org
OHIO’S VOLUNTARY
APPROACH
THE 4R CERTIFICATION
PROGRAM FOR
AG RETAILERS
and
CROP CONSULTANTS

3. © Scott Warren
Pre-Audit
Consultation &
Program
Requirements
Mark Fritz
4R Certification
Outreach Coordinator

4. 4R Nutrient Stewardship

5. March 2014…..
The agriculture community comes together and
acts to establish the 4R NUTRIENT
STEWARDSHIP CERTIFICATION PROGRAM
FOR THE WLEB
 Voluntary, 3rd-party auditor verified program
 Consistent, science-based, recognized standard
for agricultural retailers, consultants and other
certified professionals
 GOAL – IMPLEMENTATION AND
DOCUMENTATION OF THE 4R’s

6. Program Structure and
Governance
Nutrient Stewardship Council (NSC):
Agricultural Business, including 1 active grower
Government
Environmental Non-governmental Organizations
Universities / Researchers

7. 4R Nutrient Stewardship
Certification Program Advisory
Committee

8. AS OF JAN. 1, 2017 – 4R
CERTIFICATION GOES STATEWIDE!
• Structure, Governance and Process all remains
the same
• 4 additional Nitrogen related requirements
added to reflect nitrate concerns in Gulf of
Mexico

9. 45 Certified Facilities Statewide
2.77 M total acres

10. Why would Nutrient Service Providers
want to participate in the Program?
 Document and demonstrate to your customers and
community that Nutrient Services Providers are
committed to 4R stewardship principles
 Maximize crop uptake of nutrients and minimize nutrient
loss providing both economic and environmental benefits
 Create long-term positive impacts on water bodies
associated with agricultural production areas
 Document compliance with existing regulations
 Positions your facility as a leader in water quality efforts
 It’s the right thing to do!

11. Pre-Audit Visits
• PURPOSE: assist Nutrient Services Providers who
have committed to an audit gain a more in depth
understanding of the certification process and audit
expectations.
• PROCEDURE: conducted at the applicants facility
and involve the key staff involved in making
fertilizer recommendations and managing grower
customer records. Visit time – approx. 2 hours.

12. Program Audit Cycle
Year 1
Onsite audit always
required
Year 2
Onsite Audit in the
first certification
cycle, possible
remote Audit in later
certification cycles
Year 3
Remote audit
possible for NSPs
that have performed
well in previous
years.
Audit Year # Requirements # Requirements (Cumulative)
1 28 28
2 11 39
3 6 45

13. Audit Requirement Areas
1. Training and Education
2. Nutrient Recommendation and Application
3. Monitoring of 4R Implementation

14. Guidance Documentation – 4R
Certification Standard

15. Training and Education
1. Certified Professionals must have
5 CEUs of Nutrient Mgt. every 2 yrs
2. Sales and application staff – 2 hours
training every 2 years
3. Provide 4R materials for all customers
4. Sponsor training for growers/customers

16. TRAINING AND EDUCATION (cont.)
5. Discuss with growers, on an on-going basis:
- Phosphorus runoff and leaching mgt.
- Nitrogen mgt. options to reduce loss
- Location and mgt. of “sensitive areas” (tile
inlets, wellheads, gullies, waterways, etc)
6. Facilities are encouraged – but not required –
to discuss the benefits of cover crops, drainage
water control structures, filter strips, grass
waterways, and other conservation measures.

17. Nutrient Recommendations
1. Soil Test – 4 year minimum interval
2. Nutrient Recommendations:
-provided by certified
professional
-comply w/tri-state fertilizer guide
3. Utilize crop history and yield goals
4. New N requirements, as of 1/1/2017
• 50 lb/ac limit on fall app’s for spring planted crop
5. Identify environmentally sensitive areas and place on
field maps
• Tile inlets, catch basins, eroded swales, wellheads, etc

18. Nutrient Application
1. Annual calibration of equipment
2. Application consistent with
recommendations

19. Nutrient Application
3. No application to frozen or snow-covered
soil
4. By year 3 no surface application without
immediate incorporation if NOAA forecast
exceeds a 50% chance of one inch or
more of rain
5. By year 3 utilize GIS and VRT on 35% of
custom application acres

20. Monitoring and
Implementation
1. Number of customers and acres participating
2. Records documenting recommended rates
and application
3. Records that growers support 4R nutrient
stewardship

21. Audit Procedures
• Nutrient Service Providers will provide the auditor a
list of grower customers and number of acres in the
following categories: full service, recommendation
only, application only, and an estimate of all other
acres.
• The auditor will randomly select from the provided
grower customer list.
• These randomly selected grower files will be used
for conducting the audit procedures based on the
Program Standard Requirements for the given year.

22. Audit Results
o If any non-conformities were identified during the
audit, the client will receive a Corrective Action
Request (CAR) along with the audit report.
o The client will need to satisfactorily address the non-
conformities by submitting a Corrective Action Plan
(CAP) and supporting evidence in order to be
considered for certification.
o Upon review, the auditor will determine whether the
non-conformities were satisfactorily addressed, and
therefore can be “closed” based on the information
provided.

23. LESSONS LEARNED
 Credibility of agriculture vital - AUTHENTICITY
 Value and credibility of science-based approach
 Must have ability to empathize and work in non-
agricultural circles
 Don’t wait for a crisis
 AGGRESSIVE voluntary approach will not
necessarily stave off regulation, but it gives
agriculture a respected place at the table to
make the best of a potentially bad situation.

24. LESSONS LEARNED (CONT.)
• Direct funding by NSP’s has been accepted!!
• Removal from government funding / oversight
popular among NSP’s
• There is no substitute for an “outreach
coordinator” (boots on the ground)

25. LOOKING TO THE FUTURE…..
• Other states / provinces implementing 4R
Certification Programs
• Ohio Department of Agriculture’s pilot on-farm
4R Certification Program
• “Dealer-to-Dealer” consultations focusing on
innovative practices and technologies to improve
WQ and enhance profitability
1. GIS soil sampling of sensitive areas
2. Development of high capacity equipment
to inject dry fertilizer

26. LOOKING TO THE FUTURE (cont.)
3. Soil amendments that capture soluble
P (gypsum, iron oxide, etc)
4. Fertilizer / retailer industry cost-share of
edge-of-field treatment technologies
(drainage water control structures,
nitrate and/or soluble P treatment
structures, blind inlets, etc)
5. Improvement of N prediction models
6. “Slower-release” P fertilizers

27. WHAT CAN I DO ON MY FARM TO
IMPROVE WATER QUALITY?
Most Effective, Practical Practices:
• Drainage Water Control Structures
- 25-50% reduction in nitrate / soluble P loss
- one-time installation and cost
- simple to manage: raise water table after fall
field operations and lower it 2-3 weeks before
planting.
- no change in farming practices
- 25 years of research and experience

28. MOST EFFECTIVE PRACTICES (cont.)
Cover Crops:
• Extremely effective in reducing nitrate loss
• Reduction of soluble P???
• Reduction of runoff /erosion and sediment-
bound P
• Increase infiltration rates
• Increase water holding capacity
• If used continuously, increase OM
• Jump-starts biological activity, esp. with manure

29. MOST EFFECTIVE PRACTICES (cont.)
Further Tillage Reductions:
• ELIMINATE FALL SECONDARY TILLAGE
AFTER PRIMARY TILLAGE!!!!
• Experiment with modern advances in no-till corn
production, including easier-to-manage cover
crops
• Eliminate primary tillage of corn stalks going to
beans
• Be careful with vertical tillage – new, shallow
compacted layer…..

30. MOST EFFECTIVE PRACTICES (cont.)
Field by Field Analysis of Nutrient Loss
“Pathways”:
• Areas of concentrated surface flow which lead to
ditches, streams, catch basins, etc
- grass waterways
- modified filter strips or buffers
• Tile inlets
- soil sample these areas separately
- replace with blind inlets

31. MOST EFFECTIVE PRACTICES (cont.)
Get P fertilizer/manure in the ground:
• Back to starter fertilizers
• Injection, if feasible…..
• If doing tillage anyhow, incorporate before next
rain (transition to no-till and cover crops!!!)
• In-crop applications
• Be mindful of weather forecast – first heavy rain
after a surface application can move a lot of
soluble P as well as sediment bound P

32. © Scott Warren
4R Nutrient
Stewardship
Certification
Program
oaba4R@gmail.comwww.4Rcertified.org
Mark Fritz
4R Certification
Outreach Coordinator