March 1, 2000

By Rorie Hanrahan 

BOZEMAN, Mont. -- A collaboration of ag groups will demonstrate technologies designed to improve producer management of agricultural chemicals in Montana's vast wheat belt.

The project will evaluate the use of aerial imagery as compared to ground scouting for the preparation of zone maps required for variable rate application of herbicides. It will also evaluate different types of aerial imagery, with soil sampling as a control, as a way to prescribe zones for the variable rate application of herbicides and nitrogen fertilizer.

Triangle Ag-Services, Chouteau County Conservation District and Montana State University have been awarded $34,000 from NASA and $10,000 from the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation for the project.

The grants will pay for multi-spectral imaging and digital photography within the Golden Triangle area of Montana that roughly extends from Great Falls to Shelby to Havre. It will also pay for field expenses related to the demonstration of new technologies designed to improve producer management of ag chemicals. Project collaborators will be providing in-kind donations to make up the $100,000 dollar value of the project.

"We have a lot of producers and ag businesses who have a vested interest in this new technology," said project initiator DeImna Heiken of Triangle Ag-Services. "The output of the trials will include the validation by local stakeholders of several technologies, viewed currently as 'promising research.' If this project is successful, we will be well on our way to putting more of the resources that we already have to productive use. Then we can think about expanding these opportunities," said Heiken.

The Chouteau County Conservation District applied for the DNRC grant on behalf of the project and will be issued the funds. Heiken, who has several commitments from regional producers and organizations with variable rate equipment, is seeking additional participants to cost share ag chemical and soil analysis expenses.

Assistance for the project came from a number of sources, including the MSU TechLink Center, which helps companies to commercialize NASA and Department of Defense technologies. TechLink helped organize the project and assisted principal investigator Dan Long of the MSU Northern Ag Research Center in applying to NASA for the grant. Long is a leading researcher in the field of site-specific management for small grain production and marketing. His recent work has focused on the benefits of management zones for increasing protein in wheat.

NASA is partnering on one of the grants to support both the scientific and commercial goals of the project. The NASA funding goes directly to Positive Systems, of Whitefish, to pay for aerial multi-spectral imaging of areas totaling some 200 square kilometers (a square roughly 10 miles on a side). Positive Systems has several ties with NASA, and is a leader in the development of technologies for government and commercial digital aerial photography applications. They have provided aerial remote sensing solutions since 1991.

Richard Anderson, chairman of the Chouteau County Conservation District, observed that variable rate application offers a potential way for local producers to prosper, while minimizing the environmental impact.

"Smart ag chemical management works for everyone," Anderson said.

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