A significant amount of meteorological and climatological data is publically available, but it is neither tailored to the needs of public and private stakeholders nor available on an intuitive and applicable platform for resource managers, producers and policy makers to utilize effectively. Serving as data stewards, it is the mission of the State Climate Office of Ohio to connect Ohioans with weather and climate information necessary to improve lives. This funded project will lead to a multi-platform prototype tool consisting of the "FARM" (Fertilizer Application and Resource Monitor) mobile and web app and climate database. This tool will provide farmers in the Western Lake Erie Basin with the real-time weather and climate information needed to make compliance decisions concerning fertilizer and manure application. The project will also forge a new multidisciplinary research initiative within the OSU community and upper Ohio River region to compete for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments (RISA) grant. This consortium will develop and integrate climate data and inform resource management and public policy throughout the Midwest.
