Integrating soil health and manure practices to advance sustainability for US dairy farms

Abstract

The US dairy industry has committed to advancing environmental sustainability by reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, enhancing water use efficiency, and improving water quality. Feed production accounts for approximately 12% of GHG emissions and 99% of consumptive water use from dairy operations, making it a focus area for potential resource use and overall efficiency improvements. However, few studies report changes to GHG emissions or water quantity and quality outcomes from adopting soil health management systems and use of novel manure products for dairy feed production. The Dairy Soil and Water Regeneration (DSWR) project is exploring whether soil health management systems and novel manure products can help advance environmental sustainability outcomes across major dairy-producing regions in the United States. Through a suite of coordinated studies, including regional soil benchmarking and large-plot- to field-scale experiments, DSWR is evaluating the performance and scalability of reduced tillage, cover crops, and novel manure products applied to row crop feed production systems. By integrating high-resolution data on soil, water, GHG emissions, and crop production, this project is generating actionable insights to support decision-making for farmers, farm managers, dairy cooperatives, retailers, and consumer packaged goods companies. We introduce the project by summarizing its purpose, the conceptual framework guiding its design and implementation, and its approaches to hypothesis testing about soil health, hydrology, and yield responses.