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Tom Buman

To mow or not to mow… that is the question

April 30, 2014 //  by Tom Buman

One of the people I often think about is Ernie Aust and his unwavering commitment to soil & water conservation.   Ernie was one of my favorite Area Conservationists during my 14-year NRCS career.  He loved to question conventional wisdom and was always willing to look at different perspectives; indeed a rare trait.  I remember a lot of lively conversations with Ernie, but the most memorable was a discussion about grassed waterways and their maintenance.We agreed the conventional wisdom is to mow grassed waterways.  In general, mowing …

Category: Soil ErosionTag: Soil Conservation

Celebrate Soil and Water Stewardship Week

April 23, 2014 //  by Tom Buman

When the land does well for its owner, and the owner does well by his land—when both end up better by reason of their partnership—then we have conservation. - Aldo LeopoldIn 1955, the National Association of Conservation Districts began a national program to encourage Americans to focus on stewardship. Stewardship Week is officially celebrated from the last Sunday in April to the first Sunday in May. It is one of the world's largest conservation-related observances.  The program relies on locally-led conservation districts sharing and promoting …

Category: Soil Erosion, Water QualityTag: National Association of Conservation Districts, Soil Conservation

Precision Conservation: Why we must engage the private sector

February 27, 2014 //  by Tom Buman

Fifty years! Yes, that’s right. At the current rate it will take 50 years to design and install all the grassed waterways needed in Iowa. And this timetable is being generous. The 50 years doesn’t even account for maintenance, repair, and replacement of these grassed waterways after their normal 10-15 year lifespan.This is not acceptable, especially when you consider all conservation practices like ponds, wetlands, water & sediment control basins, terraces, no-till, and cover crops are on this same timetable. Please note, this is not a …

Category: Private Sector Conservation PlanningTag: Conservation Planning

Trimble provides farmers with a guidance line. The smoothed contour line is transferred to the in-field display and can be used with an automated steering solution, enabling farmers to more efficiently install rice levees. (Images courtesy of Delta Positions Inc.)

As simple as one, two, three

February 13, 2014 //  by Tom Buman

Sometimes it is the simple things that can make a big difference. Take contouring, for example. It’s easy; so easy in fact that we often overlook it when we consider it in the context of conservation technology. I staked a lot of contour lines for farmers when I was a NRCS Soil Conservationist in the 1980’s.  It was easy; just me, my hand level, and a fist full of flags.  But it was also time consuming. It took hours to stake 160 acres of cropland, especially when I tried to minimize point rows. Today, my local conservation district no longer …

Category: Soil ErosionTag: LiDAR Data, Natural Resource Conservation Service, Precision Agriculture, Soil Conservation

Exciting possibilities ahead using 3D Machine Control – Part 2

January 24, 2014 //  by Tom Buman

I asked the question in my last post, “What good is Precision Conservation if it doesn’t help us apply conservation better and faster?” One of the major limiting factors in getting more structural practices on the land is the short construction season. What conservation field office staffer or contractor wouldn’t love to get twice as many structures built in the same amount of time? I do believe that fully automated 3D machine control will be one of the game changers that conservationists have been looking for; that is, if private businesses …

Category: Precision ConservationTag: Precision Agriculture, Soil Conservation

Exciting possibilities ahead using 3D Machine Control

January 8, 2014 //  by Tom Buman

What good is Precision Conservation if it doesn’t help us apply conservation better and faster? We should expect that a part of Precision Conservation should simplify and automate the routine and the mundane, so the professional conservationists can engage in meaningful conservation planning. My new favorite Precision Conservation topic is fully automated 3D machine control. This will be one of the game changers we have been looking for, if private businesses and government entities can work together. Recently, I worked with Ryan Murguia of …

Category: Precision ConservationTag: LiDAR Data, Natural Resource Conservation Service, Precision Agriculture, Soil Conservation

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