Use of the Nutrient Management Plan Policy Tool to Overcome Barriers to Adoption of Precision Agriculture in the Palouse Region of the Inland Pacific Northwest.

Precision fertilizer management has promise for addressing nitrogen loss issues on the Palouse while increasing profitability for growers. However, even with government financial incentives programs called Nutrient Management Plans (NMPs), which are targeted to overcome start-up costs and increase adoption, precision fertilizer practices are not commonly used. This study increases understanding of financial and non-financial barriers to adoption of precision practices and participation in NMPs. We conducted a budget analysis and found that farms using precision practices have more consistent annual yields, profit margins and higher profits than other farms. We assessed participation in government incentives programs and adoption of improved nutrient management practices through an exploratory mixed-methods social study (survey and interviews) of growers. Forty-two percent of growers surveyed have participated in precision fertilizer NMPs. From the survey, the most common identified reasons for not participating in NMPs were insufficient financial incentives and too much paperwork involved in participation; one of the least common barriers was too much time involved in implementation. Interviewed growers commented that successful implementation of precision practices is highly profitable and productive but time consuming. To increase adoption of precision fertilizer practices, information obtained from grower interviews and their economic analyses should be disseminated in a way that fosters grower-to-grower connections and education. Possible paths forward for NMPs to more effectively address nitrogen loss issues through the promotion of precision fertilizer practices are presented.