From: Obreza,Thomas Anthony Sent: Friday, March 09, 2007 5:08 PM To: Mckee,Kathleen A Cc: racevskis,laila anna Subject: RE: live oak meeting Meeting summary: Attendees at Live Oak on Thursday AM were Kirk Webster, Darrell Smith, Carolyn Saft, and myself. Laila was under the weather and could not attend. I started by providing an overview of how IFAS got to this point, e.g. how the faculty group was put together, the nature of the RFP we are responding to, and why we are contacting stakeholders at this point. I mentioned that the Ichetucknee springshed would be the subject of our proposal. Kirk proceeded to give the SRWMD perspective on the springshed and essentially agreed with what Jim Stevenson has identified as the major contributor of nitrate to the springshed: septic tanks, the Lake City sprayfield, and stormwater runoff (in no particular order). I pointed out that the RFP asks us to identify the source of water resource degradation, and asked if we really have a strong data set to say for sure what the nitrate sources are. Kirk admitted that the three cited sources have probably more speculation behind them than actual facts. He also indicated that Lake City will soon move to advanced wastewater treatment, meaning that the sprayfield as an N source will disappear at some point, leaving septic tanks and stormwater runoff as the big two. At this point we discussed the potential research portion of the proposal. I first pointed out that I won't know what we will have to "extend" until the researchers decide what they are going to research. I told the group of my impression that the research will probably have a modeling component that could point to sources in a more spatial sense, and may have an N isotope component that could help us truly identify the source of N that makes its way through the springshed. Kirk and Darrell were generally supportive of this approach if in fact we end up going in those directions. I also explained that there is a teaching component as well, and the teaching-research-extension components must be fully integrated if we are to be successful. We then discussed who the potential target audiences might be for the extension portion. There is no high-intensive agriculture there, so farmers are out. The major changes that will occur in the springshed during the next decade will be more planned urban developments particularly up and down SR 47, so builders and developers would be one key group to educate. This is where FYN comes in strong. Carolyn wants to stretch the influence of FYN into Columbia county, which fits in well. We would want to get to the developers as they are acquiring permits, not after they have planned how they are going to landscape their communities. A related audience for FYN would be the current homeowners in the springshed. Approaching the septic tank audience will be a bit more difficult. Retro-fitting a standard system costs thousands, which would be a tough sell to a homeowner. The On-Site Wastewater stakeholder group (the installers) are supposedly also a less-than-receptive group. However, we should probably think of ways to approach them. After all this discussion, it sounded like pushing the FYN approach towards new community development has the greatest chance for success and positive impact. I asked Kirk and Darrell about support letters. They both were enthusiastic about providing them, Kirk from the SRWMD and Darrell representing the Partnership. Darrell said it would be nice to get as many steering committee members as possible to sign the Partnership support letter. I have attached a Powerpoint that was produced by FDACS Marketing, via Darrell Smith. It was taken across the entire Suwannee Basin and focuses on agriculture, so it's applicability to our proposal is kind of small. However, the results are interesting. Tom Thomas A. Obreza Professor and Extension Specialist Soil & Water Science Dept. * Univ. of Florida 2169 McCarty Hall * P O Box 110290 Gainesville, FL 32611-0290 Office 352-392-1951 ext. 243 Fax 352-392-3902 Mobile 352-213-5458 -----Original Message----- From: Mckee,Kathleen A Sent: Friday, March 09, 2007 2:25 PM To: Obreza,Thomas Anthony Cc: racevskis,laila anna Subject: live oak meeting Dear Tom, When you get a chance can you send out some notes about your meeting in Live Oak yesterday? Maybe before our meeting next Tuesday at 3? Hope it went well! Kathleen UF Water Institute http://waterinstitute.ufl.edu 570 Weil Hall PO Box 116601 Gainesville, FL 32611-6601 ph 352-392-5893 fx 352-392-6855 katmckee@ufl.edu -----Original Message----- From: Obreza,Thomas Anthony Sent: Monday, March 05, 2007 9:40 AM To: Mckee,Kathleen A Subject: RE: Mon/Tues meets USDA/CSREES Ichet Go ahead and call Kirk. I may be going to the District later on this week and I could follow up. I will not make the meeting today because I have to go to a field day in Bradford county. TO Thomas A. Obreza Professor and Extension Specialist Soil & Water Science Dept. * Univ. of Florida 2169 McCarty Hall * P O Box 110290 Gainesville, FL 32611-0290 Office 352-392-1951 ext. 243 Fax 352-392-3902 Mobile 352-213-5458 -----Original Message----- From: Mckee,Kathleen A Sent: Monday, March 05, 2007 9:15 AM To: Obreza,Thomas Anthony Subject: RE: Mon/Tues meets USDA/CSREES Ichet Did you contact Kirk? I thought he might be on the list of people to get with out of the Partnership... I might give him a courtesy call this morning. Kathleen UF Water Institute http://waterinstitute.ufl.edu 570 Weil Hall PO Box 116601 Gainesville, FL 32611-6601 ph 352-392-5893 fx 352-392-6855 katmckee@ufl.edu -----Original Message----- From: Obreza,Thomas Anthony Sent: Friday, March 02, 2007 4:44 PM To: Mckee,Kathleen A Subject: RE: Mon/Tues meets USDA/CSREES Ichet I will try to make the Monday meeting. Kirk Webster would be a good invite but I don't know about the short notice. I was going to try to get with Darrell Smith later on in the week. Tom Thomas A. Obreza Professor and Extension Specialist Soil & Water Science Dept. * Univ. of Florida 2169 McCarty Hall * P O Box 110290 Gainesville, FL 32611-0290 Office 352-392-1951 ext. 243 Fax 352-392-3902 Mobile 352-213-5458 -----Original Message----- From: Mckee,Kathleen A Sent: Friday, March 02, 2007 12:23 PM To: Obreza,Thomas Anthony Subject: Mon/Tues meets USDA/CSREES Ichet Importance: High Dear Tom, Are you coming to the stakeholder meeting on Monday at the Springs? Can you come to the big group meeting Tuesday from 12 to 2? I asked Jim Stevenson about inviting a SRWMD person and he suggested Kirk Webster! What do you think? Did you invite anyone else? Thanks! Kathleen UF Water Institute http://waterinstitute.ufl.edu 570 Weil Hall PO Box 116601 Gainesville, FL 32611-6601 ph 352-392-5893 fx 352-392-6855 katmckee@ufl.edu -----Original Message----- From: Obreza,Thomas Anthony Sent: Wednesday, February 21, 2007 9:21 AM To: Mckee,Kathleen A Subject: RE: USDA/CSREES RFP Santa Fe Watershed Kathleen: I would like to participate in the Feb 27th meeting. I have interest from the extension (and possibly research) side. We will be working on a very tight timeline, considering that the group who shows up may not have worked together before. I'm not sure we can put a winning proposal together that quickly, but we can certainly try. I attended the USDA-CSREES National Water Conference earlier this month, and went to a grants-writing workshop conducted by Mike O'Neill (national program leader) and Lisa Duriancek. I brought home a paper copy of their Powerpoint slides, which may be helpful. Let me know if you would like to see them. Also, in case you were not aware, each state has a USDA-CSREES "water resource coordinator" assigned to it. That would be me for Florida; I inherited this post from Art Hornsby after he retired. Tom O. Thomas A. Obreza Professor and Extension Specialist Soil & Water Science Dept. * Univ. of Florida 2169 McCarty Hall * P O Box 110290 Gainesville, FL 32611-0290 Office 352-392-1951 ext. 243 Fax 352-392-3902 Mobile 352-231-5458 -----Original Message----- From: Water Institute Expertise Faculty [mailto:WATERINSTITUTE-EXP-L@LISTS.UFL.EDU] On Behalf Of Mckee,Kathleen A Sent: Tuesday, February 20, 2007 10:04 PM To: WATERINSTITUTE-EXP-L@LISTS.UFL.EDU Subject: USDA/CSREES RFP Santa Fe Watershed Dear Water Institute Affiliated Faculty Tuesday Feb 27 from 3:30 to 5 we will be meeting to coordinate a group that will develop research, extension, education ideas for the USDA RFP included below, leveraging data and work developed in the Ichetucknee springshed / Santa Fe basin. We hope to leverage work being done on the funded Santa Fe basin Hydrologic Observatory Testbed http://suwanneeho.ifas.ufl.edu/ as well expertise in the Ichetucknee Springs working group, SRWMD, FDACS, IFAS extension and FDEP. If you are interested and/or have research / extension / education interests in this basin, please let us know and if you are able to join this meeting. The proposal is due April 4th. Thank you, Kathleen McKee UF Water Institute http://waterinstitute.ufl.edu 570 Weil Hall PO Box 116601 Gainesville, FL 32611-6601 ph 352-392-5893 --------------------------------------------------------------------- USDA/CSREES National Integrated Water Quality Program Grant http://www.grants.gov/search/search.do?mode=VIEW&oppId=12127 3. Integrated Research, Education, and Extension Projects Program Area 110.D All proposed projects in Program Area 110.D MUST present a FULLY integrated research, education, and extension approach to solve water resource problems at the whole watershed scale that include linked research objectives, education objectives, and extension/outreach objectives. Projects submitted to Section 110.D will be evaluated, in part, based upon the degree to which they address the following items. Projects responding to this section of the RFA MUST: * Identify the cause of water resource degradation; * Solve water resource problems at the whole watershed scale. Applications that propose work at a spatial scale other than the whole watershed must demonstrate that the geospatial scale or entity (state, county, or community) is the most appropriate scale of investigation and will ultimately result in watershed level improvements in water resources. Projects at the plot- or field-scale will not be accepted; * Include hypothesis-driven research that fills the knowledge gaps that are critical to the development of practices and programs that will improve the quality of the Nation's water resources; * Create educational deliverables (e.g., interdisciplinary curriculums, experiential learning for undergraduates and graduate students) that will train the next generation of scientists and educators who will work to improve the Nation's water resources; * Deliver an effective extension/outreach program that will lead to measurable behavior change in an identified audience or stakeholder group; * Include a management plan (developed with input from stakeholder advisory groups, watershed councils, or other community led action teams) that leads to measurable improvements in the watershed condition; and * Develop and implement an evaluation plan that demonstrates the impact of the project through measured improvements in water quality and/or measurable behavior change. Projects MUST address one of the three following priority question areas presented below: * What leads to measurable behavior change of farmers, ranchers and landowners or land managers regarding the practices they implement to protect water quality or manage water use? What factors (physical, social, economic, or institutional) foster or impede adoption and/or maintenance of practices or technologies? What are the most effective tools (for the identified audience) to promote real change? * What are the hydrologic, geomorphic, and ecological conditions needed to restore the structure and function of aquatic or estuarine ecosystems impacted by agricultural water use (surface water or groundwater) or agricultural non-point source pollution? How do social, cultural, economic, and/or institutional factors hinder or promote implementation of existing hydrologic, geomorphic, and ecological knowledge? * A wide array of factors (physical, biological, cultural, and economic) lead to water quality impairments in watersheds. These factors are not evenly distributed across a watershed - indicating that some areas within a watershed pose a greater risk to water quality impairment. How do these multiple factors interact at the watershed scale to impact water quality? What new outreach and education tools are needed to improve the efficacy of conservation practice implementation and maintenance? Successful projects should develop tools that can be used by stakeholders within a watershed and across a broader regional landscape to identify those areas that pose the greatest risk to degrade water quality. Projects should describe how research and extension activities can lead to improved effectiveness of conservation practices and programs at the watershed scale. Preference will be given to projects that: * Demonstrate a substantial potential to enhance (i) The long term knowledge base; (ii) Existing opportunities for leveraging; and (iii) Active public and private sector participation. * Take advantage of the participatory research, education, and extension opportunities engendered by watershed restoration and continued watershed management; and/or * Focus on watersheds where the project will better inform policy makers in developing the most equitable multi-state and/or regional strategies for water quality improvement. All PDs funded in this section of the program are expected to participate in the annual CSREES National Water Conference. Reasonable travel expenses to the CSREES National Water Conference may be claimed as part of the project budget. The intent of the NIWQP is to have Integrated Research, Education, and Extension projects funded by the program participate in, coordinate with, and share suitable information with the appropriate Regional Water Quality program. These interactions are intended to expand the geographic scope and impact of Integrated Research, Education, and Extension projects to a broader regional audience. Award recipients also are expected to provide copies of annual reports and updates to the appropriate Regional Water Quality Coordinator. Contact information for the Regional Water Quality Coordinator will be provided to award recipients at the time of the award. Examples of funded projects are available at www.usawaterquality.org/projects