Growing up on a family farm near Sterling, Colo., Zach Karg witnessed firsthand the challenges facing today’s farmers. Now, as a mechanical engineering doctoral student at South Dakota Mines, he is helping develop innovative technologies designed to make agriculture more efficient, affordable and sustainable.
Karg is part of a research team that includes Carson Daly, a senior double major in mechanical and electrical engineering; Stirling Wallace, a senior mechanical engineering student; and Prasoon Diwakar, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Leslie A. Rose Department of Mechanical Engineering. Together, they are working to reduce fertilizer costs, improve crop yields and advance more sustainable farming practices.
Their work is part of the National Science Foundation-funded Advancement of Microbial Technologies for Sustainable Agriculture (AMiTSA), a multidisciplinary and institutional collaboration led by South Dakota State University (SDSU) that explores microbial-based fertilizers as an alternative to traditional synthetic fertilizers.
Along with Mines and SDSU, North Dakota State University and Sitting Bull College are also part of the $4 million research award, now in its third year.
“The core of this project is precision agriculture,” Diwakar said. “If we can help farmers know exactly which parts of a field need attention, farmers can reduce fertilizer use, lower costs and minimize the adverse effects on the soil.”
Source : sdsmt.edu