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The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced in late May that it is funding a new collaboration between two institutes and a research center at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign that will create an integrated farm of the future in the US Midwest.

This three-year project, titled I-FARM: Illinois Farming and Regenerative Management, has received $3.9 million in funding from the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). The Illinois-led study will develop an 80-acre agricultural proving ground where crops (corn and soybeans) and livestock will be raised using synergistic and sustainable methods.

“We will accelerate the creation, maturation and adoption of new management technologies that are fundamentally more sustainable, profitable, affordable and scale neutral. The new practices are enabled by mature digital farming technologies developed in a wide-ranging research effort at the University of Illinois,” said Primary Investigator Girish Chowdhary, Associate Professor of Agricultural and Bioengineering and Computer Science.

URBANA, Ill. – For years, bats have gotten a bad rap as the creepy creatures lurking in the dark. But for just as long, agricultural producers have known the winged wonder is actually the hero of the story, not the villain.

Now a plague is decimating bat colonies. The culprit: white-nose syndrome. And it’s costing U.S. agriculture up to $495 million each year, according to a recent paper from the University of Illinois and Colorado State University (CSU).

“Countries are investing significant public resources to reduce the impact of stormwater runoff,” Amy Ando, study author, said in a statement. “Green roofs are part of that solution because they capture some of the rain that would otherwise end up in sewage systems. Knowing the benefits from investing in green roofs is important for implementing public policies.”

A new study from Reed College in collaboration with the University of Illinois and Portland State University explores the benefits of green roofs and how much Portland residents are willing to pay to increase the number of green roofs across the city. 

URBANA, Ill. ­– Plant-covered roofs have become a regular sight in Portland, Oregon. The city is a leader in incorporating green infrastructure for stormwater management, including free street trees, rebates for small residential housing footprints, and green roofs.

Green roofs, also known as rooftop gardens or ecoroofs, typically have a layer of plants growing in soil on top of the roof, as well as material for waterproofing, structural support, and insulation. A new study from Reed College in collaboration with the University of Illinois and Portland State University explores the benefits of green roofs and how much Portland residents are willing to pay to increase the number of green roofs across the city.

GENESEO, Ill. — The notion of carbon markets is not new, but has been pushed to the forefront of recent in ramped-up efforts to sequester carbon dioxide.

“The main reason to reduce those emissions is because of climate change concerns and an often-stated goal is to reach carbon neutrality,” said Gary Schnitkey, University of Illinois farm management specialist, in a Wyffels Hybrids-hosted webinar on April 5.

“Agriculture is seen as an activity that’s part of the thing that can reduce carbon emissions. According to 2019 EPA estimates, agriculture produces 10.2% of the greenhouse gases that are emitted in the United States. By far the larger parts of those emissions are transportation, electricity generation and industry.

“Agricultural activities are looked at as a sink for carbon, not as necessarily a part of the problem, and that’s sort of a good place to be and better than some of the alternatives.”

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