The Woodchip Bioreactor Partnership was established in 2017 and is a multi-year collaboration between Illinois Farm Bureau, Illinois Land Improvement Contractors Association Inc., University of Illinois, and Illinois USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. The goal of this partnership is to install a woodchip bioreactor each year and to support research into the impact of woodchip bioreactors on water quality at each site for the duration of the collaboration period and beyond. In previous years, the partnership has installed woodchip bioreactors in Bureau, Henry, McDonough, and Sangamon counties. A field day was held in Sangamon County and attendees were able to see the woodchip bioreactor and saturated buffer just after installation.
In May 2023, partners of the Woodchip Bioreactor Partnership participated in a planning meeting with Henry County, which also brought together farmers with existing bioreactors to review data and talk about future research needs.
In 2024, the partners finalized the installation of their sixth woodchip bioreactor in McLean County. Plans to host a field day in summer 2025 are pending.
For more information, see illica.net/projects or Ilfb.org/nlrspractices.
