A Tool for Estimating Best Management Practice Effectiveness in Arkansas

Abstract

Best management practices (BMPs) are being implemented across the United States to combat water pollution by nutrient and sediment often with little knowledge about the actual effectiveness of the BMPs. Previously, most BMP studies have focused on determining the effectiveness of a single BMP; often the knowledge acquired from these individual studies has been applicable only to the study site. However, these studies can be compiled over a wide range of site conditions and used collectively to obtain reliable estimates of BMP effectiveness. In this regard, a BMP tool was developed for use in Arkansas. The underlying database contains over 120 references and includes 163 agricultural BMPs grouped into 14 classes and 147 urban BMPs grouped into 8 classes. This tool will facilitate effectiveness-based BMP selection for agricultural and urban applications by providing BMP effectiveness estimates based on site characteristics. Because of the State's rapid urban development and heavy focus on agriculture, this tool will find use among watershed planners and local and state agencies alike. The tool can be used as a standalone application or can be linked with other applications. This tool can also be easily expanded to include data from other areas beyond Arkansas and the surrounding region or be used as a template for other BMP tools. This tool, along with a users' manual, will be available for no charge to any interested user.

Effectiveness of best management practices in improving water quality in a pasture-dominated watershed

“…Even though various BMPs have been shown to reduce losses of NPS pollutants and improve water quality at the scale of implementation, i.e., field/farm scales, their effectiveness in improving water quality at watershed scale is not clear. Some BMPs may be effective in controlling one pollutant while, at the same time, may adversely affect the losses of other pollutants (Gitau et al 2005;Merriman et al 2009). Very little information is currently available demonstrating if a suite of BMPs, when implemented simultaneously, work synergistically or whether some BMPs cancel the NPS pollution reduction benefits of others.…”

Application of the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) to predict the impact of best management practices in Jatigede Catchment Area

“…In recent years, the SWAT Hydrology Model has been widely used in watershed management as a hydrological model [5,6]. The SWAT model is currently regarded as a versatile model that can be used to integrate environmental processes that support more effective watershed management [7]; however, in tropical watersheds, especially in Indonesia, this model has not been widely used.…”

Targeting priority management areas for multiple pollutants from non-point sources

“…As the MP-PMAs have been addressed, the spotlight could be shifted back to the comprehensive effects of certain BMPs in the case of multiple pollutants. In this research, several typical BMPs were derived from previous studies [46][47][48][49][50][51] and their removal potentials are summarized in Table 3. The MP-PMAs, together with the removal potentials of BMPs (Table 3), would shift this emphasis to the comprehensive effects of BMPs by considering the BMP's removal potential for each specific pollutant.…”