TIMES

SESSION DESCRIPTION

9:00 am

Registration and Continental Breakfast

10:00 am

MORNING PLENARY

Welcome – Dr. Alison Bressler, University of Michigan Water Center (UMWC)

Opening Remarks
Phil Roos, Director, Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE)
Steve Chadwick, Senior Great Lakes Wetlands Advisor, Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR)
Tim Boring, Director, Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD)
Michelle Selzer, WLEB Strategist, MDARD

Updates on Best Management Practices Outreach and Implementation
Thad Cleary and Brittany Santure, EGLE
Michael Alexander, MDARD
Randall Knapic, DNR
 

11:15 am

Networking Break – move to breakout sessions

Track 1

Track 2

Track 3

11:30 am

Wetlands at Work: Designing for Wildlife and Water
Discover how partnerships drive innovative solutions for complex wetland restoration in Michigan’s Western Lake Erie Basin. Learn from the collaboration between the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Ducks Unlimited, and LimnoTech as they design a multifunctional wetland to improve water quality, reduce flooding, and enhance wildlife habitat. Dive into expert insights on balancing diverse project goals for lasting success.

Alex Wietin, Kali Rush, Timm Appleton, Duck's Unlimited
Hunter Kunzelmann, University of Georgia

Moderator: Randy Knapic, DNR

Performance-based Conservation Adoption Program: Accelerating Nutrient Reduction in the WLEB
Learn about the new performance-based conservation practice adoption program being developed at MSU and funded by MDARD. Learn the importance of using performance as the driving measure for conservation practice adoption, how the program will work, how it is connected to the other WLEB projects like the Nutrient Tracking Dashboard, and the proposed timeline for development and implementation of the program.   

Tim Boring, MDARD
Jeremiah Asher, MSU IWR 

Moderator: Michelle Selzer, MDARD

Implementation Science in Agricultural Systems: Potentials for and Assessments of Innovative Behavior Change Interventions
Typical approaches for promoting conservation in agriculture have yet to enable behavior change significant enough to meet environmental goals in many areas across the United States. At the same time, innovative interventions are not always evaluated in a way that assesses true impact. We will discuss potential points for innovation, as well as best practices for evaluating these approaches, pulling from the wealth of social science data on private lands conservation. We will engage the attendees to identify other evidence-based practices for improved private lands conservation.

Matthew Houser - University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science and The Nature Conservancy 
Robyn Wilson, PhD - The Ohio State University

Moderator: Adam Reimer, National Wildlife Federation 

12:20 PM

Networking Lunch followed by Keynote
Keynote: What Lake Erie’s past can tell us about its future  Dr. Laura Johnson, Chief Science Officer, MDARD

1:25 pm

Water Quality Updates
Point Sources - Phil Argiroff and Tom Asmus, EGLE 
Water Quality Monitoring - Gary Kohlhepp, EGLE

2:15 pm

Updates on High Density Water Quality Monitoring in the WLEB
Learn more about WLEBs new high density water quality monitoring project being funded by Michigan’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Erb Family Foundation. The session will overview select water quality data – including total and soluble phosphorus – from Spring 2025 precipitation event(s) along with a real-time continuous data viewer.

Angela Blatt, Alliance for the Great Lakes  
Ed Verhamme, LimnoTech  
Jeremiah Asher, Michigan State University Institute of Water Research (MSU IWR)

Moderator: Jen Read, Director, UMWC

Healthy Soils, Healthy Waters: Understanding links between soil health and water quality on farms in the WLEB
Learn about on-farm research linking agricultural management to soil health indicators and water quality outcomes in Michigan's portion of the WLEB. Provide feedback on preliminary results and the design of the next phases of the collaborative Healthy Soils, Healthy Waters project.

Jennifer Blesh and Brendan O’Neill, University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability

Moderator: Alison Bressler, UMWC

Social science perspectives on transforming agricultural landscapes into wetlands

Explore the crucial role of landowner engagement in wetland restoration efforts in the Western Lake Erie Basin. Speakers will delve into research on landowner attitudes and share insights from a collaborative study with Michigan DNR, Michigan State University, and Ducks Unlimited. Participate in a dynamic discussion on overcoming barriers and seizing opportunities for successful wetland restoration.

Meg Vona and Emily Pomeranz, PhD, MSU Fisheries and Wildlife 
Barbara Avers, DNR 
Moderator: Steve Chadwick, DNR

3:05 pm

Break

3:15 pm

Water Management for Water Quality and Crop Yield
Attend this session to learn about innovative strategies for managing water to enhance water quality and crop yield. This session explores ways to improve the performance of controlled drainage systems in minimizing nutrient loss, discusses the benefits of drainage water recycling for nutrient reduction based on research conducted in Iowa, and examines the effects of this technique on crop yield and nutrient loss in Missouri.

Ehsan Ghane, MSU Extension
Chris Hay, Hay Water Solutions, LLC 
Kelly Nelson, University of Missouri

Moderator: Alison Bressler, UMWC

Understanding Legacy Phosphorus in the Western Lake Erie Basin
Learn about what science can tell us about legacy phosphorus in agricultural watersheds. Dr. Mike Brooker will discuss the factors that influence P loss, how collaboration with the agricultural community can help identify high-risk fields, which BMPs are most effective, and how the implementation of these practices can be achieved voluntarily. This session will provide ample time for you to ask WLEB phosphorus experts your legacy phosphorus questions in fields and waterways.  

Dr. Mike Brooker, The Ohio State University

Moderators: Dr. Laura Johnson, MDARD; Santina Wortman, U.S. EPA

Designing Successful Farmer-led Conservation Efforts
Much of the research on farm conservation agrees that farmer-led efforts can be more impactful and durable than other approaches. However, even these initiatives are often unsuccessful at driving broad uptake of conservation practices among agricultural producers. We will discuss select cases of famer-led conservation successes and failures, and offer questions to attendees regarding their experiences and suggestions for improvement.

Douglas Jackson-Smith, The Ohio State University
Lauren Asprooth, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Matt Burkholder, The Nature Conservancy
Brice Armentrout, Kahler Family Farms

Moderator: Ruxandra Popovici, Independent Social Science Researcher

4:05 pm

Adjourn