As most dairy farmers today consider climate solutions, they have limited research to draw from on the impact of soil health management systems on greenhouse gas emissions and water quality in dairy systems. “Dairy Soil & Water Regeneration: building soil health to reduce greenhouse gases, improve water quality and enable new economic benefits” (DSWR) is an eight-year project conducted across the U.S. that aims to close research gaps, empower farmers in their decision-making and set the stage for new market opportunities, incentives and investments in dairy sustainability.
Background
DSWR is a key undertaking within the U.S. Dairy Net Zero Initiative, an essential first phase in a collective effort to achieve the industry’s 2050 environmental stewardship goals, which were developed through the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy. DSWR is studying soil health and manure management and their effects on greenhouse gas reduction, water quality improvement and agronomic factors such as yield and forage quality on working dairies and research farms in major dairy regions. The project, which began in 2021, includes a baseline of soil health and carbon storage as well as extensive field trials involving differing management practices, and manure technologies and products.
