More salvos are being fired in Maryland as efforts to clean up nutrient loading in the Chesapeake Bay region move forward.

BESIDES PICKING UP plenty of new ideas from the program and if networking with almost 650 fellow attendees wasn’t enough, some folks at the 13th annual National No-Tillage Conference in Cincinnati, Ohio, went home with a number of extremely valuable, big-time prizes.

In the Phoenix Rotary Equipment Ltd. conservation tillage essay contest, Katie Smith of Bainbridge, Ga., won first place and a $2,500 college scholarship. She attends Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College in Miami, Okla.

While there's extensive intrest in learning more about how no-till can help solve global warming concerns, some of the latest information on carbon sequestration may be coming from trees. That’s because a 3-year study in western Canada being conducted by a Wisconsin scientist will hopefully demonstrate the favorable impact that trees can have on global warming.

On the successful heels of last year's inaugural conservation tillage scholarship contest, Phoenix Rotary Equipment Ltd. will once again sponsor this year's essay contest. By eloquently writing about an aspect of conservation tillage, three high school or college students will earn a substantial scholarship, which will help them pay for furthering their education.

With approval pending from the Environmental Protection Agency, Monsanto expects to have a limited amount of a new corn rootworm product on the market for use next spring.