The California Department of Food and Agriculture’s (CDFA) Fertilizer Research and Education Program (FREP) has scheduled its seventh annual conference on November 30, 1999 in Modesto at the Doubletree Hotel. This year’s conference is being organized jointly by FREP and UC SAREP. Topics will focus on the relationship between nutrient management and soil and environmental quality.

“With our shared goals of environmental stewardship and farm profitability, SAREP and FREP have a history of cooperation on a variety of projects and initiatives. This conference takes the collaboration between the two programs to a new level,” says David Chaney, SAREP education coordinator. Chaney is co-chairing the event with FREP Director Casey Walsh Cady.

The conference will feature presentations and reports from projects funded through both programs. Conference highlights include a panel on Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs), the latest trend in water quality regulation, and breakout sessions on nutrient management for orchard crops, organic matter management, integrated vineyard management, and managing nutrients through irrigation technologies.

FREP supports research and outreach projects to advance the environmentally safe and agronomically sound use of fertilizing materials in California. For more information or to request a copy of the conference program contact Debbie Scott at (916) 653-5340; Email: dscott@cfda.ca.gov. The full conference program is available on the FREP Web site: www.cdfa.ca.gov/inspection/frep/ 1999_conference.html.