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<br /> <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />- ------- <br /> <br />CONSERVATION TILLAGE <br /> <br />Conservation tillage presently offers one of our best hopes for <br />improved resource management systems on cropland. Leaving adequate amounts <br />of crop residue on the soil surface year round reduces sheet and rill ero- <br />sion, the worst offenders on cropland, by as much as 90 percent. Reducing <br />erosion protects the long-term productivity of the soil. Conservation <br />tillage, or leaving residues on the surface, can playa major role in good <br />irrigation water management as well as erosion control. Good residue on the <br />surface improves infiltration, reduces translocation, and can reduce evapor- <br />ation losses. In some cases, conservation tillage will allow conversion <br />from high to low pressure irrigation systems, thereby saving energy and <br />reducing costs. <br /> <br />Conservation tillage alone, however, is not the total solution to <br />erosion problems and reduced fertility of cropland. Under many conditions, <br />conservation tillage must be applied as part of a complete resource manage- <br />ment system in combination with terraces, diversions, and other practices. <br />As part of a complete resource management system for cropland, conservation <br />tillage appears to be the most cost-effective method of controlling erosion <br />on Colorado's cropland. <br /> <br />The highest priority set by the Secretary of Agriculture is reduction <br />of soil erosion on cropland. Conservation tillage must be expanded. <br /> <br />Of Colorado's 2.8 million acres of irrigated cropland, conservation <br />tillage is being practiced on only 445,000 acres, and on 7.9 million acres <br />of non-irrigated cropland, conservation tillage is being practiced on only <br />1,160,000 acres, according to a 1982 inventory in each field office. There <br />is much opportunity for this practice to be increased. <br /> <br />Major strategies to promote conservation tillage where the concept is <br />feasible and consistent with available technology include: <br /> <br />1. Improve technical competence of field personnel. <br /> <br />a. Increase training and assistance to field offices on methods and <br />technology to increase conservation tillage for erosion control and <br />irrigation water management purposes. <br /> <br />b. Intensify conservation tillage training in courses for new <br />employees. <br /> <br />2. Advance technology in conservation tillage. <br /> <br />a. Work closely with the Agricultural Research Service, Extension <br />Service and State Experiment Stations on demonstration/research <br />projects. <br /> <br />b. Conduct a thorough survey of conservation tillage to identify <br />application rates, limitations and opportunities down to the field <br />office level. <br /> <br />c. Correlate tillage and management practices to Colorado soils. <br /> <br />III-ll <br />