FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Andrew Sharpley, professor of crop, soil, and environmental sciences at the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, was named a Fellow of the Soil and Water Conservation Society at its annual conference during the summer. The designation of Fellow is conferred upon society members who have performed exceptional service in advocating the conservation of soil, water and related natural resources.

The society recognized Sharpley as a world authority on assessment, management and remediation of the impacts of agricultural management on water quality. "His 35-year research career focuses on soil chemistry, the fate of phosphorus applied in fertilizer and manure, subsequent phosphorus release to runoff water, and the impacts of agricultural management on those processes and water quality," the society said. "He works to increase national and international awareness of the effects of agriculture on water quality and develop cost-efficient methods to protect water quality."

The society also noted that Sharpley pioneered the development of novel environmental risk assessment tools and simulation models that are used by regulatory and resource conservation agencies throughout the world. It said his research provides the scientific and technical framework for national nutrient management and water quality policies that have an important influence on nutrient management on farms. 

Sharpley is the leader of Big Creek Research and Extension Team currently studying the effects of a hog farm in the Buffalo River watershed. In 2012 he received the Distinguished Agriscientist Award from the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation and American Farm Bureau Federation. He has also been inducted into the USDA Agricultural Research Service Hall of Fame.