Updates to the MANAGE database to facilitate regional analyses of nutrient runoff

Abstract

The first compilation of nutrient export coefficients for specific land uses in the United States was completed in 1980. Building off that effort, the “Measured Annual Nutrient loads from AGricultural Environments” (MANAGE) database was developed in 2006 to summarize annual field-scale nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) runoff data from agricultural land uses. It also presents descriptive data such as land use, tillage, conservation practices, soil type, soil test P, slope, and fertilizer formulation, rate, and application method, along with runoff, precipitation, and soil erosion. Here, we update MANAGE to facilitate regional analyses, adding 27 studies and Level II ecoregion delineations for each of the 94 studies such that data are now available from 11 of the 50 North American Level II ecoregions, representing the major U.S. agricultural regions. This contemporary data repository is freely available from USDA Ag Data Commons to support scientific analyses, model evaluations, and management and policy decisions.