Toward a collaborative approach to watershed management: Lessons learned from the Boone River Watershed, Iowa

Abstract

W ater quality degradation is a problem of local and national concern. Nutrients, sediment, and bacteria from nonpoint agricultural sources pose a public health risk, reduce biodiversity, and contribute to hypoxic conditions in the Gulf of Mexico. For decades, agricultural communities have struggled to manage nutrient and soil loss, but public concern over water quality has led to enhanced efforts to build innovative watershed management programs. The Boone River Watershed (BRW) initiative in north central Iowa, United States, is a large, multistakeholder effort to design a scalable system of adaptive watershed management. Program partners include environmental and agricultural organizations from public, private, and nonprofit sectors. These groups collaborate to improve environmental performance on multiple scales while preserving farmer well-being. Partners' dedication to a watershed-wide, multiscale monitoring program and to working with local farmers has enabled them to target solutions, leverage funding, and engage new stakeholders. In 2012, partners commissioned a three-part science evaluation to measure biophysical and socioeconomic indicators of success, identify remaining barriers, and offer recommendations for future program outputs. Our team conducted a third-party evaluation of social dynamics in the BRW to provide insight on improving partner alignment and farmer engagement. Here we present findings and recommendations useful to…