Effectiveness of Three 'Best Management Practices' for Reducing Non-Point Source Pollution From Piedmont Tobacco Fields

摘要

We evaluated effectiveness of three BMPs for tobacco production: no-till (NT) versus conventional tillage (CT), grassed field-side filter zones (GFZs), and forested filter zones (FFZs) for two years. Level spreaders were installed within both FFZs and GFZs zones to convert channelized runoff into sheet flow. The primary objective was to test three BMPs in series to determine the total reduction in suspended solids and nutrients as runoff exited the lower flumes of the FFZs. A secondary objective was to compare yield and quality of tobacco from NT versus CT. Another secondary objective was to compare the effectiveness of the same FFZ first with a mature stand of pines and hardwoods, and later with vegetation following clear cutting. The study was conducted on the Oxford Tobacco Research Station in Granville County, North Carolina.