United States Department of Agriculture
Natural Resources Conservation Service		 Tropical Technology Consortium Go to Accessibility Information
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Priority Activities

Consortium activities will evolve with time and demand. High priorities that can assist with implementing current NRCS programs and initiatives in the tropics are listed below.

High-priority areas:

  • Water Quality:
    • Assess, adapt and, if necessary, develop appropriate support tools and technologies for water quality including conservation practices or management tools such as those addressing nutrient and sediment management with the major objective of conserving and enhancing water quality and quantity.
    • Proposed project areas include but are not restricted to:
      • Identify and evaluate species and management practices for stream buffer establishment and maintenance
      • Evaluate buffer effectiveness for nutrient or heavy metals absorption, sediment retention and soil erosion control
  • Soil Quality:
    • Assess, adapt and, if necessary, develop appropriate support tools and technologies for soil quality improvement including conservation practices or management tools such as those addressing soil degradation.
    • Identify, assess and, if necessary, develop appropriate indicators of soil quality in tropical agroecosystems
    • Proposed projects areas include but are not restricted to:
      • Identify and evaluate cover crop species and management systems
      • Identify and evaluate crop residue management systems
      • Assess the applicability of existing assessment indicators/methods for the tropics
      • Examine the potential role of soil as an environmental indicator
  • Human Dimensions of Land Use Management:
    • Assessment, adaptation and, if necessary, development of appropriate support tools and technologies for assessing and improving traditional management systems
    • Examine issues affecting the adoption of conservation practices
    • Proposed projects include but are not restricted to
    • Examine the land reclamation, conservation, and productivity aspects of local agroforestry systems in the Pacific Basin.
    • Examine the impact of the traditional "tres bollilos" agricultural system in upland areas of Puerto Rico on soil and water resources.