Bowling Green, Ky. - A longtime USDA soil scientist has taken on a new role with Western Kentucky University's animal waste research projects.

Darwin Newton, who worked with the USDA's Natural Resource Conservation Service for 35 years, is the new coordinator of public relations for the collaborative between the University's Applied Research and Technology Program and the USDA-Agricultural Research Service facility near the WKU farm.

"I'll be working with WKU researchers and the USDA-ARS to coordinate activities and take that research to landowners in southcentral Kentucky," Newton said. "The goal of the research is to reduce the environmental impacts of poultry, cattle and swine waste on the air quality, water quality and soil quality."

For example, researchers are looking for ways to reduce environmental impacts of poultry waste while utilizing the litter for fertilizer.

Newton, a Webster County native, graduated from Western in 1967 with a bachelor's degree in agriculture and biology. He received his master's in crop science from the University of Kentucky in 1972.

For the past 20 years he has been the director of the NRCS soil survey program in Tennessee.

Newton owns farms in Tennessee and Kentucky and is aware of potential environmental problems as urbanized areas move closer to agricultural areas. "We have to balance the needs of agriculture-based people who want land to farm and the urban-based people who want to maintain their air and water quality," he said. "We're trying to do things with our research to have the best environmental impacts for everybody."

Newton expects to spend much of his time visiting with farmers and landowners, speaking to civic and agriculture groups and working with the various researchers.

Since 2000, U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has secured more than $9 million in federal earmarks for animal waste management research at WKU. In the FY '05 Omnibus Appropriations Conference Report, McConnell secured $2.3 million for the design of an Agriculture Research Service lab at WKU. The federal lab will house the Animal Waste Management Research Unit, which will focus research efforts on creating innovative waste management strategies and technologies that will help reduce the environmental impact of livestock operations.

More WKU news is available at www.wku.edu. If you'd like to receive WKU news via e-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.

For information, contact Darwin Newton at (270) 745-2172.