An online tool uses weather and soil information to help farmers prevent spreading fertilizer when there is a risk of runoff. 

Andrea Topper

Andrea Topper is with Wisconsin’s Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection.  She tells Brownfield the potential for runoff events is highest in the fall and the spring. “In the summer, the forecasting tool looks out 72 hours into the future, so three days into the future. When the ground is frozen, it looks out ten days into the future, so trying to capture a little bit more of that potential time frame when the risk is still there for manure to be able to run off.”

Topper says the tool uses more than a simple weather forecast. 

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