Finding Balance

Through Agricultural Water Futures, Merrin Macrae is working together with farmers, government, and industry to navigate the challenges of feeding the world while protecting freshwater ecosystems.

Fertilizers are key to agricultural productivity. They contain phosphorus and nitrogen, which are essential nutrients that support plant growth. At the same time, these nutrients pose a threat to freshwater and ecosystem health. When it rains or when we irrigate fields, the water flowing from fertilized land, also called runoff, carries excess nutrients into rivers and lakes, where they help bacteria and algae grow.

Not only are algal blooms stinky, but they can also be harmful to freshwater ecosystems. Certain types of algae affect oxygen levels, and some produce toxins that can affect human and animal health. Algal blooms are an increasingly significant issue across Canada, and globally. 

Merrin Macrae studies the impacts of land use and climate variability on water quality. In her role as Professor of Geography and Environmental Management at University of Waterloo, she is especially interested in how agricultural practices, such as fertilizing, tilling, and draining fields, can impact lakes and rivers.

Managing runoff and preventing these blooms is a complex challenge. “We can’t simply stop applying nutrients to fields,” Macrae says. “We must manage environmental consequences, but we also need to grow food. It’s about finding balance.”

Working together to find balance

Through the Agricultural Water Futures program, Macrae and her team work together with farmers, government, and industry to determine how we can effectively manage land to better protect water quality in lakes, rivers, and tributaries, especially as the climate changes.

“We want to understand the tradeoffs and help our partners make informed decisions,” Macrae says. “Nobody can afford to put every management practice into action, but we can help our partners develop strategies, set benchmarks, and make the best decisions based on their individual circumstances.”

Importantly, Macrae’s team also wants to tell them why these practices will work. Getting there, however, requires robust partnerships. “We’ve worked hard to effectively communicate the challenges, build trust, and actively listen to our partners and their challenges,” Macrae says. “It’s impossible to do this work without their voices.”

In her experience, farmers are good partners want to work together to find solutions. For instance, many farmers have been eager to volunteer parts of their fields for her team’s research. This is a significant contribution, since accommodating the research team requires farmers to rethink how they tend to their fields. “They’re also very open to trying new ways to managing their fields so we can understand the impact,” she says.

Developing tools to inform decisions

The data Macrae’s team gathers from those farmers’ fields translates into action in the real world. Along with other data sets, these inform AgriSuite, the Ontario government’s free agricultural and environmental suite of decision support tools related to crop management, nutrient management, and minimum distance separation.

“Our work through AWF is user-driven,” Macrae explains. “Of course, we are guided by scientific questions, but we’re also motivated by the fact that our work directly benefits the farmers. It must help answer their questions and make their jobs easier.”

In addition to supporting AgriSuite and other partner initiatives, Macrae’s team maintains a regular circuit of agricultural events and conferences. “We go where our partners are. We want to listen to their input and consider their questions, and we want to share what we’ve learned and develop new projects together to address new challenges.”

New and necessary conversations

As AWF’s principal investigator, Macrae says participating in the overarching Global Water Futures (GWF) program has allowed her to build new relationships, share knowledge, and take her research to the next level.

“Being part of GWF has broadened my water quality network, and it has also connected me with people across Canada who specialize in crops and climate change, as well as researchers who study economics and social science,” she says. “These people bring new dynamics to our work and help us pose new questions and have deeper conversations.”

“Global Water Futures made it possible to create invaluable collaboration across disciplines. The work will continue long after the program is complete.”