{"id":325,"date":"2007-10-09T11:05:38","date_gmt":"2007-10-09T16:05:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ezing.me\/transfer\/?p=325"},"modified":"2014-09-23T09:25:29","modified_gmt":"2014-09-23T14:25:29","slug":"researchers-simulate-rainstorms-to-evaluate-potential-of-rice-fields-in-cutting-water-pollution-ii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/researchers-simulate-rainstorms-to-evaluate-potential-of-rice-fields-in-cutting-water-pollution-ii\/","title":{"rendered":"Researchers Simulate Rainstorms to Evaluate Potential of Rice Fields in Cutting Water Pollution"},"content":{"rendered":"

\nOXFORD, Miss. – Pesticides are an important part of modern
\nagriculture, enabling farmers to grow vast amounts of food
\nby keeping hungry insects away from the crops. But when
\nthose pesticides wash off the fields and into nearby lakes
\nand streams, they pose a problem for wildlife and even
\npeople.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\nResearchers at the University of Mississippi Field Station
\nare evaluating the possibility that another crop – rice –
\nmay provide a natural, effective way to prevent pesticide
\nrunoff from fouling freshwater resources.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nA research team from the USDA-Agricultural Research Service
\nNational Sedimentation Lab is conducting tests and
\ngathering samples in several rice fields growing at the
\nField Station. The study, led by ecologists Charlie Cooper
\nand Matt Moore of the Sedimentation Lab’s Water Quality and
\nEcology Unit and Robbie Kroger, a post-doctoral wetland
\necologist at the Field Station, focuses on the ability of
\naquatic plants – in this case, rice plants – to decrease
\nthe contamination levels from pesticide runoff. “Rice is
\nan interesting plant to use because it is an aquatic plant
\nthat also serves as a food source,” Moore said.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nPesticide runoff generally occurs after rainstorms, so the
\nteam simulates a summer storm – minus thunder and lightning
\n– and diverts insecticide-laden runoff water into a rice
\nfield. By taking samples at intervals as the water flows
\nthrough the field and analyzing them in the lab,
\nresearchers can gauge the levels of pesticides that leach
\noff into plants, water and sediment.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nThe scientists are measuring the capability of rice plants
\nto filter (or capture) insecticides from the water and to
\nsee how the insecticides affect the plant itself. As part
\nof the project, Kroger is examining pesticide breakdown and
\npotential release by dead rice plants over several months.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n“An interesting contamination question that is often asked
\nis, Will the pesticide that is on the rice plant be
\nreleased back into the water and harm plants and organisms
\ndownstream?'” Kroger said. “We just don’t know yet.
\nAssessing decomposing rice as well as pesticide
\nconcentrations in the water over several months will tell
\nus what we need to know.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nHowever, early results from the project look promising. “It
\nappears that in the decomposition experiment, the rice
\nplants’ pesticide concentrations decrease dramatically
\nduring decomposition, and that pesticide does not cycle
\nfrom plant to water within the system,” he said. “Most
\nimportantly, water released from these ponds has very small
\nconcentrations of pesticide, concentrations well below
\nwater quality standards.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nThe organo-phosphate insecticide used in the study is a
\ncommonly used pesticide for rice and corn. Rice was chosen
\nfor this project not only because it is an aquatic plant
\nbut also because it is a major agricultural crop in the
\nDelta and in California.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n“Eventually I want to do a life cycle study from seed to
\nseed,” Moore said. “I want to see how much pesticide will
\nbe transferred to the rice plant during the entire growing
\nseason, ending with the harvesting of the seed. Of course,
\nthat includes the rice grain, which may be used for food if
\nit is free from pesticides.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nThis is the second year of the rice study funded by the
\nU.S. Department of Agriculture in cooperation with the
\nField Station. Ray Highsmith, director of the UM Center for
\nWater and Wetland Resources and the Field Station, and
\nMarge Holland, professor of biology, are the university’s
\nprincipal investigators, and Charlie Cooper serves as the
\nUSDA’s project coordinator.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n “The National Sedimentation Lab scientists, in cooperation
\nwith Dr. Holland, have been very important partners for
\nthe center and Field Station,” Highsmith said. “They have
\nbeen conducting related studies at the Field Station for
\nmany years. This research is important not only for the
\nagricultural industry and wildlife managers but also for
\nsociety that depends upon sources of clean water.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nFor more information on the UM Field Station, go to
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n
\nhttp:\/\/baysprings.olemiss.edu\/<\/a>.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

OXFORD, Miss. – Pesticides are an important part of modern agriculture, enabling farmers to grow vast amounts of food by keeping hungry insects away from the crops. But when those pesticides wash off the fields and into nearby lakes and streams, they pose a problem for wildlife and even people.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[222],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nResearchers Simulate Rainstorms to Evaluate Potential of Rice Fields in Cutting Water Pollution - Ole Miss News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/researchers-simulate-rainstorms-to-evaluate-potential-of-rice-fields-in-cutting-water-pollution-ii\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Researchers Simulate Rainstorms to Evaluate Potential of Rice Fields in Cutting Water Pollution - Ole Miss News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"OXFORD, Miss. – Pesticides are an important part of modern agriculture, enabling farmers to grow vast amounts of food by keeping hungry insects away from the crops. But when those pesticides wash off the fields and into nearby lakes and streams, they pose a problem for wildlife and even people.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/researchers-simulate-rainstorms-to-evaluate-potential-of-rice-fields-in-cutting-water-pollution-ii\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Ole Miss News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"-0001-11-30T00:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2014-09-23T14:25:29+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@OleMissRebels\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@OleMissRebels\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/\",\"name\":\"Ole Miss News\",\"description\":\"The official source for University of Mississippi news\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/?s={search_term_string}\",\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/researchers-simulate-rainstorms-to-evaluate-potential-of-rice-fields-in-cutting-water-pollution-ii\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/researchers-simulate-rainstorms-to-evaluate-potential-of-rice-fields-in-cutting-water-pollution-ii\/\",\"name\":\"Researchers Simulate Rainstorms to Evaluate Potential of Rice Fields in Cutting Water Pollution - Ole Miss News\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"-0001-11-30T00:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2014-09-23T14:25:29+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/#\/schema\/person\/4515cb1b4f8a759552c0827c3df56430\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/researchers-simulate-rainstorms-to-evaluate-potential-of-rice-fields-in-cutting-water-pollution-ii\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/#\/schema\/person\/4515cb1b4f8a759552c0827c3df56430\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/#personlogo\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/0.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3e8e7562bf6d779d771ad8ce4cecd7ef?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=325"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43093,"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325\/revisions\/43093"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=325"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=325"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=325"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}