With extreme heat forecast across Michigan and the region during the week of June 17, we remind all those working in Michigan agriculture, and throughout the Great Lakes states to be aware of the forecast change in conditions, heat safety and heat first aid steps.
This is an especially important message for anyone new to working outside. Heat illnesses are prevalent in those who are just starting out at their job, who may not be well-acclimatized to hot conditions.
Background: Extreme Heat Forecast
The National Weather Service has put Michigan in the center of an extreme heat advisory for next week. The image below (created June 14) shows Michigan, Northern Indiana and other parts of the upper Great Lakes in the NWS’ highest heat advisory category mid-next week. Many areas will experience mid to upper-90’s conditions.
This highest NWS advisory category represents a “level of rare and/or long-duration extreme heat with little to no overnight relief affects anyone without effective cooling and/or adequate hydration.”
Action Steps
Anyone working outside should keep this in mind and prepare in advance with:
Anyone showing the signs of heat exhaustion or stress needs to stop working, move somewhere cool and sip water. Learn more about these conditions and first aid response at: https://www.weather.gov/safety/heat-illness.
The following map is from NWS HeatRisk. The map was generated Friday, June 14 showing forecast conditions Wednesday, June 19.
As MABA members and Michigan farmers were hard at work with planting this past month, our Association was focused on our core goals of information sharing, advocacy and convening the industry. We had an opportunity to travel the state for meetings with members, partners and elected officials, and announced yet another big step forward on the member services front! Here are some highlights from May 2024:
The agriculture industry nationally continues to deploy new innovation and embrace best practices – optimizing nutrient use, advancing stewardship of the air, land and water and delivering climate solutions. Just some of the results achieved by industry are detailed in the most recent annual report from The Fertilizer Institute that’s available here.
MABA encourages everyone in Michigan agriculture to do their part to keep building on these impressive results. This starts with reviewing and following best practices for use of crop nutrients, including careful review of upcoming weather forecasts and available field analytics.
That information can help avoid losses to heavy rainfall events, the main culprits driving nutrient losses from fields. Proper timing of fertilizer applications in light of the prevailing and forecast conditions is a critical element to avoid nutrient losses that contribute to water pollution, particularly in sloping fields where runoff can be exacerbated.
To address this issue, farmers and agricultural experts statewide refer to and follow the “4R” principles of fertilizer use: applying the Right fertilizer source, at the Right rate, at the Right time, and in the Right place. More information about the 4R program can be found here.
Across Michigan, expert agronomists are key partners for farmers to examine nutrient use and optimize it for each field, leveraging today’s advanced technology.
As TFI notes, “Whether creating custom blends of bulk fertilizers or through precision agriculture techniques for soil analysis and crop mapping, agronomists are a valuable farmer resource…Many industry agronomists are Certified Crop Advisers (CCAs), having met rigorous standards prescribed by the American Society of Agronomy. CCA certification assures farmer customers that their crop advisers are equipped to apply leading edge technical knowledge to fertilizer recommendations.”
Here in Michigan we have 300 CCA’s who play a critical role in safeguarding the environment.
By working together to continue implementing the 4R principles and properly timing fertilizer applications, farmers and agricultural experts can help to reduce the risk of nutrient losses and protect the water quality in watersheds statewide.
In 2023, the Michigan Pesticide Container Recycling Program collected approximately 174,480 pounds of empty, properly-cleaned containers from more than 60 participating businesses
We encourage MABA members to learn about, and participate in this program. Here’s how you can participate in the Pesticide Container Recycling Program:
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