Indiana Dept. of Agriculture launches conservation ‘one-stop’

Improving water quality and soil health continues to be a priority for farmers statewide, and while data has always been available to support this claim, it hasn’t been accessible in one, easily navigable location. To address this issue, the Indiana State Department of Agriculture, using information compiled by the Indiana Conservation Partnership (ICP), launched today an online story map, a one-stop shop for Indiana’s conservation efforts. "All across the state, farmers, organizations and agencies are stepping up their efforts to conserve our soil and water resources, and it’s important that we not only tell that story, but also highlight where it's working in Indiana,” said Melissa Rekeweg, ISDA interim director. "This new resource will allow us to do that more effectively.”Located on the ISDA website, the interactive conservation story map organizes information by Indiana’s 10 main river and lake basins, which are then broken down by watershed. Each basin includes sections on water quality and soil health that encompass everything from total acres of cover crops planted to sediments prevented from entering Indiana’s waterways.