On RFD-TV: Mike Boehm

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10/21/2020 Added

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Mike Boehm, Vice President for Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Nebraska, appears live Oct. 20, 2020 on RFD-TV speaking about a new initiative which brings together experts from agriculture, natural resources and public health to look at water holistically. More on the story: https://news.unl.edu/newsrooms/today/article/5m-gift-creates-program-on-water-climate-and-health/

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[00:00:00.520]Industry experts unite to improve the environment.
[00:00:03.580]The University of Nebraska is leading the effort to ensure
[00:00:06.630]a safe adequate water supply for agriculture.
[00:00:10.030]Vice President for Ag and Natural Resources, Mike Boehm,
[00:00:13.330]joins us now for a further look.
[00:00:15.310]Mike, thanks a lot for being here on the Market Day Report.
[00:00:18.890]Let's start right here by telling us about
[00:00:21.270]this new way of looking at water in your state.
[00:00:24.785]Yeah, absolutely John, good morning.
[00:00:27.250]You know, the new water climate and health program
[00:00:29.628]is intended to bring together experts from public health,
[00:00:33.536]agriculture and really take a look at the interface of those
[00:00:38.650]complex systems to be candid.
[00:00:43.240]Specifically, we're bringing experts
[00:00:44.850]from the Institute of Ag and Natural Resources,
[00:00:47.780]medical centers, College of Public Health
[00:00:49.980]and the Robert B. Doherty Global Institute for water,
[00:00:54.560]together to take a look at the interactions
[00:00:58.333]of cropping systems, groundwater quality,
[00:01:01.690]geology, hydrology and public health.
[00:01:04.600]The program is made possible from a very generous gift
[00:01:07.480]from Dr. Anne Hubbard, a retired physician
[00:01:09.880]and alumna of the Medical Center,
[00:01:11.970]to again, come back and bring the right mix of folks
[00:01:15.630]together to look at these wickedly complex
[00:01:18.170]and important societal issues
[00:01:19.810]related to climate, water and health.
[00:01:22.430]Mike, what are some of the specific areas
[00:01:24.270]that the program might look at?
[00:01:27.390]Yeah, for me John,
[00:01:28.960]the heart of it is really groundwater quality,
[00:01:31.710]taking a look at what influences groundwater quality
[00:01:34.590]from the agricultural production side
[00:01:36.750]to understanding the geology,
[00:01:38.300]but also looking at how that water is used
[00:01:41.390]in rural water systems for both livestock
[00:01:44.040]and importantly, human health.
[00:01:46.090]Some examples that we might take a look at,
[00:01:49.090]pediatric cancer rates, for example, taking a look at
[00:01:53.020]the impact of precision nitrogen applications
[00:01:55.690]on soil health, groundwater quality,
[00:01:58.462]would be another example.
[00:02:00.250]And then really dialing in and looking at
[00:02:02.770]the mapping of at risk populations
[00:02:05.900]and environmental exposures in the state,
[00:02:08.200]those are just a few examples of what the
[00:02:10.250]new program is gonna dial in and focus on.
[00:02:13.690]So why is it important to unite different perspectives
[00:02:16.610]to address these issues then?
[00:02:19.300]Yeah, you know, we live in
[00:02:20.800]fairly polarized times right now,
[00:02:22.830]when you think about water and you think about agriculture
[00:02:25.840]and you think about public health,
[00:02:27.710]they can be very divisive,
[00:02:29.130]I think most experts agree and the public might agree
[00:02:32.080]that water conservation, doing more with less,
[00:02:34.730]taking care of our natural resources is really important
[00:02:38.170]but when you get to water quality issues,
[00:02:40.970]it becomes divisive.
[00:02:42.661]And so this is a program, the first that I know
[00:02:45.300]where we're actually bringing together the whole spectrum,
[00:02:47.606]agricultural production experts, groundwater experts
[00:02:52.430]and public health experts
[00:02:54.260]to not only look at these complex issues,
[00:02:56.640]but also an important aspect John,
[00:02:58.940]is to train the next generation of scientists
[00:03:02.296]that will solve these wicked problems
[00:03:04.907]long into the future.
[00:03:07.200]University of Nebraska Vice President
[00:03:09.430]for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Mike Boehm.
[00:03:11.840]Mike, thank you very much for joining us here
[00:03:13.760]on the Market Day Report,
[00:03:14.680]sure appreciate it.

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On RFD-TV: Mike Boehm

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