The Floridan Aquifer Collaborative Engagement for Sustainability (FACETS) project promotes economic sustainability of agriculture and silviculture in North Florida and South Georgia while protecting water quantity, quality, and habitat in the Upper Floridan Aquifer and the springs and rivers it feeds.
Funded by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture as a Regional Center of Excellence, the project brought scientists and stakeholders together in a participatory process to develop new knowledge needed to explore tradeoffs and synergies between the regional agricultural economy and environmental quality; understand changes needed to achieve agricultural water security and environmental protection; and to develop tools, incentives and educational programs for improved decision making.
Who We Are
Sixty researchers, facilitators, and students from the University of Florida, the University of Georgia, Albany State University, and Auburn University collaborated on the FACETS project.
A Project Advisory Committee, comprised of key representatives from agricultural, environmental, regulatory and scientific organizations in the region, helped define expectations for, and evaluate quality of, outcomes and impacts of research, education, and Extension activities throughout the project.
The Participatory Modeling Process brought together stakeholders from diverse sectors to collaborate with the project team in model development interpretation of model outputs and communication of model results.
Goals and Themes
BMP Research: Best Management Practice field research was conducted to quantify water and nutrient use and water quality impacts of promising new cropping systems and BMPs that had not been previously demonstrated or widely adopted by stakeholders in the region.
Modeling: A comprehensive modeling platform was built to predict farm/forest- and regional-scale impacts of alternative land use and production practices on the water quantity, water quality, and economy of North Florida and South Georgia.
Stakeholder Engagement: Stakeholders’ experience was integrated with scientific data and models to explore economic-environmental tradeoffs among current and potential future climate, land use, and Best Management Practice (BMP) adoption scenarios to understand changes needed to achieve agricultural water security and environmental protection.
Stakeholder Preferences & Policy Design Research: Stakeholders’ perceptions of financial incentives to help adopt Best Management Practices were evaluated including landowners’ and producers' Willingness to Accept (WTA) and the general public’s Willingness to Pay (WTP) for such practices.
Communications Research: Stakeholder’s mental models and perceptions about water quality and quantity in Georgia and Florida were explored, and recommendations were developed to improve the effectiveness of communications about water with and among stakeholders.
Extension Programming: Innovative Extension Best Management Practice demonstrations, digital decision toolkits and training programs for diverse stakeholders were developed and delivered to support the adoption of Best Management Practices and understanding of key findings from this project.
Themes Overview
