Overview

Wind erosion has long been a problem in the low (less than 12 inch annual) precipitation region of the Inland Pacific Northwest. This problem can be severe on cropland under winter wheat-summer fallow where only one crop is produced in two years. Wind erosion is also a concern on irrigated cropland in the fall after harvest of crops such as potatoes and in the spring before new crops can provide ground cover.

Growers continually strive to control wind erosion and its impacts on cropland within the economic constraints of their farming operation. Today, growers face increased pressure to reduce wind erosion and protect air quality. To help growers meet this challenge, the Columbia Plateau PM10 project conducts research and delivers extension programs and educational materials to improve understanding of wind erosion-air quality problems and develop practical management solutions.

Abbreviated Objectives of the Northwest Columbia Plateau PM10 Project

1. Develop low and moderate resolution data in GIS and other formats necessary to describe soil properties, vegetation type and cover, topography, climate, and farming practices required for simulating wind erosion and transport of fugitive dust across the Columbia Plateau.
2. Quantify fluxes and develop or verify prediction capabilities of wind erosion and PM₁₀/PM_2.5 concentrations as well as the impact of changing land use and farming practices on these concentrations across the Columbia Plateau.
3. Create an emissions inventory for the Columbia Plateau that will illuminate areas most susceptible to fugitive dust emissions and which can then be targeted for implementing alternative control strategies and USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service conservation programs.
4. Develop a regional convection-dispersion-deposition model for predicting spatial and temporal variations in PM₁₀/PM_2.5  concentrations as well as the impact of changing land use and farming practices on these concentrations across the Columbia Plateau.
5. Develop and evaluate, through long-term cropping systems research and other field experiments, the agronomic feasibility of alternative tillage and cropping systems that reduce dust emissions from dryland and irrigated agriculture fields in the Columbia Plateau.
6. Determine whether changes in farming methods have occurred since the inception of the Columbia Plateau PM₁₀ Project that will result in reduced wind erosion and fugitive dust emissions.
7. Identify sustainable farming practices for the Columbia Plateau by considering the economic, social, and soil quality benefits of alternative tillage and cropping practices in reducing fugitive dust emissions.
8. Develop awareness and acceptance of best management practices via on-farm testing of improved technologies in farmers’ fields, extension outreach programs, and other educational methods.