The Center for Water Policy at UW-Milwaukee will co-host a day-long conference on February 7, 2023, called “Phosphorus: Lessons from 10+ Years of Numeric Standards for Wisconsin’s Waters.” This is a retrospective on Wisconsin’s phosphorus rules, analyzing implementation, compliance, and impact. The conference will connect academic researchers to water and agricultural/conservation professionals/agencies, farmers/producers, policymakers and the public; explore Wisconsin’s leading efforts to regulate and manage phosphorus. This conference will help inform a research agenda for the next decade and beyond.
The conference will feature research and case studies to foster discussion around policy mechanisms that address the ongoing challenge of phosphorus pollution. Academic researchers (including students) are invited to provide academic research posters related to the theme of this conference. Areas of particular interest are:
- Status of phosphorus levels in Wisconsin’s waters
- Connections between land use and phosphorus loading
- Monitoring phosphorus levels in surface waters
- What in Wisconsin’s phosphorus rules has been working, failing, not yet implemented
- The role of water infrastructure funding to reduce costs of P control at wastewater treatment plants
- Compliance options for phosphorus numeric criteria (variances, trading, adaptive management)
- NR 151 agricultural performance standards
- Management challenges
- Potential solutions for farmers/producers (non-point, point source CAFOs, perennial grasslands)
- Other creative directions for applied research and practice
Interested researchers should send a short description of 250 words or less about your poster topic to waterpolicy@uwm.edu by Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2022. Please include your name, title and university. Up to 20 posters will be selected and on display throughout the conference, with dedicated time at the beginning and end of the day when attendees will be able to view the posters and interact with researchers.
This effort is supported in part by the Freshwater Collaborative of Wisconsin.