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Pacific Northwest
Conservation Tillage Handbook Series No. 12
Chapter 10 - New Technology Access, Adaptation and Economics, December
1999
New
PNW Direct Seed E-mail List Server
Author:
Roger Veseth, WSU/UI Extension Conservation Tillage Specialist, Moscow,
ID
The Growing
PNW Internet / E-Mail Connection
The Internet and
e-mail are rapidly becoming major technology access and communications
tools for PNW Ag support personnel and growers. Most county offices of
cooperative extension, conservation districts, NRCS, Ag service industries,
and an increasing number of growers in the Pacific Northwest have Internet
/ e-mail access. A recent USDA Agricultural Statistics Service study showed
that 40% of PNW growers have Internet / e-mail access in 1999, up dramatically
from 18% in 1997. Washington growers lead the NW and are second in the
nation at 50%. At the same time, growers are increasingly moving towards
direct seeding and more intensive cropping systems to improve productions
efficiency and profitability, cropland productivity, and environmental
protection. The PNW STEEP Internet Web site and new PNW Direct Seed List
Server are helping meet this expanding PNW demand for computer technology
access and an improved communications network on direct seed cropping
systems.
The Internet Web
site (http://pnwsteep.wsu.edu)
"PNW STEEP Conservation Tillage Systems Technology Source" was
initiated in 1997 as part of an educational effort by the PNW STEEP Cropping
Systems Specialists Team under the STEEP (Solutions To Environmental and
Economic Problems) research and educational program on conservation tillage
systems in Idaho, Oregon and Washington. It is also part of the educational
efforts under the Columbia Plateau Wind Erosion / Air Quality Project
and SARE Direct Seed Case Study Project.
The Web site currently
averages over 400 hits per day and now contains a wealth of resources
including: the entire PNW Conservation Tillage Handbook Series (147
publications), PNW STEEP III Extension Conservation Tillage Update
newsletters since 1996; proceedings of the 1998 and 1999 Northwest Direct
Seed Cropping Systems Conferences, Annual STEEP Research Report; PNW STEEP
On-farm Test Results publications, new PNW Direct Seed Case Study Series
publications, and will continue to expand access to other related information
resources. Printed copies of these publications are limited and it would
not be feasible to provide copies to all applicable PNW growers and Ag
support personnel who could benefit from the information. However, electronic
access through the Internet is a very low cost, effective means of providing
unlimited access to up-to-date STEEP and related technologies. A search
engine has also been installed which provides extensive key-word searches
within the entire Web site.
New Additions
- Two new Internet / e-mail tools are being added that have the potential
of greatly expanding communications and information sharing among PNW
growers and Ag support personnel. First, is the PNW Direct Seed E-Mail
List Server (described below), that is currently underway. Second,
is the PNW Grower Direct Seed Forum, which is tentatively scheduled
to be operational early in 2000. It will be a "threaded discussion"
page designed to facilitate more in-depth discussions on direct seed cropping
systems technologies among growers and Ag support personnel. A "threaded
discussion" refers to the arrangement of stored messages on the page,
allowing participants to follow and respond to discussions starting on
the original messages and continuing with successive replies to those
messages. As soon as the Forum page is activated, it will be announced
through the List Server and news releases for PNW Ag publications.
PNW Direct
Seed Systems List Server
The new Pacific Northwest
e-mail / Internet list server on direct seed cropping systems offers an
exciting communications link on new information resources, events, research
results, technology innovations and experiences from the dryland production
regions of the Inland Northwest. It will also help provide access to direct
seed systems technology from other regions and countries that may be adapted
to Northwest production conditions. Messages are received by e-mail and
stored on the server Internet site for later access by new subscribers.
This communications
network was established to help accelerate the development and grower
adaptation of direct seed cropping systems in the dryland production regions
of the Inland Northwest - - to improve production efficiency, profitability
and competitiveness in global markets, to enhance the productivity of
our cropland resources, and to increase protection the environment.
The list server is
part of a PNW technology access project by the PNW Extension Cropping
Systems Specialists Team under the STEEP (Solutions To Environmental and
Economic Problems) research and educational program on conservation tillage
systems in Idaho, Oregon and Washington. The Team includes: Roger Veseth
- WSU/UI; Don Wysocki and Russ Karow - OSU; Bill Schillinger, Steve Dofing
and Joe Yenish - WSU; and Stephen Guy, Larry Robertson, and Brad Brown
- UI. It is also facilitated in conjunctions with other related PNW programs,
including a new STEEP project on building a Northwest Coalition on Direct
Seed Cropping Systems Research.
The initial address
list included over 230 county/area Ag extension educators, conservation
districts, university and USDA-ARS researchers, extension specialists,
USDA-NRCS staff, PNW grower organizations, growers and Ag industries representatives
from across the dryland cropping areas of the Inland Northwest. From this
initial base network, the List server will expand to interested growers
and other Ag support personnel across the region.
The e-mail list server
Internet site can be accessed through the PNW Web site above (http://pnwsteep.wsu.edu)
for subscription and viewing of earlier messages. You can also subscribe
to the list server by sending an e-mail message to Roger Veseth (rveseth@uidaho.edu)
including the state, organization / occupation, name and e-mail address
of the person(s) to be subscribed. Two examples are: ID grower - John
Doe <e-mail address>; OR AgChem Co - Mary Smith <e-mail address>.
Note that for your e-mail privacy, the list server member list will not
be accessible to anyone except the list server administrator.
All interested growers
and Ag support personnel are encouraged to participate in this new list
server. A stronger communication network and partnership among growers,
researchers, Ag-support groups and agencies, and Ag industry will greatly
accelerate the successful development and grower adaptation of direct
seed systems in the region.
Questions
/ Suggestions - If you have questions or suggestions on the new
PNW Direct Seed E-mail List Server or other related Internet efforts,
contact Roger Veseth, WSU / UI Extension Conservation Tillage Specialist,
208-885-6386 or e-mail (rveseth@uidaho.edu).
Go
to the PNW Direct Seed List Server
Pacific Northwest
Conservation Tillage Handbook Series publications are jointly produced
by University of Idaho Cooperative Extension System, Oregon State University
Extension Service and Washington State University Cooperative Extension.
Similar crops, climate, and topography create a natural geographic unit
that crosses state lines in this region. Joint writing, editing, and production
prevent duplication of effort, broaden the availability of faculty, and
substantially reduce costs for the participating states.
The Pacific Northwest
Conservation Tillage Handbook is a large, three-ring binder handbook
that is updated with new and revised Handbook Series publications. It
was initiated in 1989 as a PNW Extension publication in Idaho, Oregon
and Washington. Updates to the Handbook are provided when the updating
card is returned. By 1999, 47 new PNW Conservation Tillage Handbook Series
have been added to the original 98. Copies of the complete Handbook are
available for $20 through county extension offices in the Northwest or
ordered directly by calling state extension publication offices: Idaho
-- (208) 885-7982; Oregon -- (541)-737-2513; Washington
-- (509) 335-2999 (some shipping and handling charges and sales tax may
apply). It's now accessible on the Internet! All of the PNW Conservation
Tillage Handbook and Handbook Series are on the Internet
home page (http://pnwsteep.wsu.edu) Pacific Northwest
STEEP III Conservation Tillage Systems Information Source. The home page
also contains recent issues of the PNW STEEP III Extension Conservation
Tillage Update, listings of other conservation tillage information
resources, coming events and much more. For more information on the Handbook
or updates to the Handbook, contact Roger Veseth, WSU/UI Conservation
Tillage Specialist, Plant Soil and Entomological Sciences Department,
University of Idaho, Moscow, ID 83844-2339, phone 208-885-6386, FAX 208-885-7760,
e-mail (rveseth@uidaho.edu).
Cooperative Extension
programs and policies comply with federal and state laws and regulations
on nondiscrimination regarding race, color, gender, national origin, religion,
age, disability, and sexual orientation. The University of Idaho Cooperative
Extension System, Oregon State University Extension Service and Washington
State University Cooperative Extension are Equal Opportunity Employers.
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