The National Network on Water Quality Trading uses a facilitated dialogue structure to connect stakeholders from agriculture, permitted point sources, state water quality agencies, environmental groups, and practitioners in order to share lessons learned and innovations, and work collaboratively on innovations that can benefit the water quality trading community.
Here is what the National Network has discussed so far:
Supporting those that support agricultural landscapes and conservation.
March 2017 Sacramento, CA
Local agricultural advisers such as conservation districts, cooperative extensions, crop advisers, and other third party practitioners play an important role in the implementation of agricultural stewardship programs. Collectively known as trusted intermediaries, these entities can play a number of roles in the implementation of a water quality trading program. How can programs support intermediaries and capitalize on their connections, knowledge, and trust to support participation from agricultural landowners in water quality trading?
Today's roadmap for stormwater incentives, markets, and crediting programs.
November 2016 Washington D.C.
Stormwater management is an actively evolving field that has increasingly looked to green infrastructure for its flexibility and multiple benefits. But implementation of green infrastructure often requires innovative funding mechanisms such as market based approaches. What is the current landscape of alternative storwmater management financing and what lessons can be learned to guide communities at different scales?
What does a successful trading program look like?
May 2016 St. Louis, MO
There is intense, ongoing debate as to whether water quality trading programs are producing their anticipated benefits, but it can be difficult to document claims of trading program advantages and disadvantages. In part, this is because many programs are small or new, but there’s also a lot of diversity in what “success” really means. How are current programs setting goals, evaluating success, and communicating both successes and challenges?
Sponsor an event
The Network’s dialogues workshops require significant time, resources, and expertise. To date this has been made possible in large part with funding support from USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. The National Network welcomes organizations interested in helping to support our efforts. If your organization is interested in broadening the engagement of stakeholders in a given dialogue, strengthening dialogues and helping to develop more or more ambitious products, we are very interested to talk about how you can help.