Progress 08/15/09 to 08/14/12
Outputs OUTPUTS: This project included several areas of integrated applied research and associated outreach programming. 1 The UW Discovery Farms Program which implemented the second generation of watershed study sites and redirected staff and monitoring efforts toward establishing a baseline set of data (such as runoff/precipitation). This research is ongoing with the use of other funds. They also completed the papers with the information gained from the previously graduated farms and are disseminating results. 2 Conservation Professional Training (CPT) staff provided training on using the SNAP-Plus Nutrient Management (NM) Planning software program and curriculum designed for the preparation of nutrient management plans in accordance with Wisconsin's most recent 590 Standard. Workshop and training topics includ CNMPs, Conservation Planning, Cover Crops, Drainage, Upland Treatment, Invasive Species, Manure Applicator Certification, Manure Spill Response, NM planning, PI/SNAP Plus, Organic Transition Plan Development, Native Pollinators, Mason and Leafcutter Bee Management, Managed Grazing, RUSLE2, and TSP Requirements. Climate change issues are being incorporated into existing conservation training curriculum. State funding is now being used to continue SNAP-Plus training. 3 Nutrient Management Planning (NMP) workshops were held which increase producers understanding about the principles of sound NM and related environmental regulations and help producers use appropriate amounts of nutrients for their operations. Producers who implement NMPs can improve farm profitability and limit nutrient losses to surface water or groundwater. We revised the UWEX NM Farmer Education (NMFE) Program Curriculum to comply with the most recent version of the 590 Standard. The curriculum utilizes UWEX soil fertility, crop nutrition, soil testing and nutrient crediting materials. Each farmer receives at least 20 hours of instruction time. The requirement of a 590 NMP for Farmland Preservation (FPP) and Working Lands Initiative (WLI) has created an increased demand for the NMFE program. The cost of hiring a consultant to prepare a NMP often exceeds the financial incentive offered by either FPP or WLI. This programming is also being continued with state funding and new projects covering 20 counties were started in 2012. 4. Innovative Education Programs were conducted by the Environmental Resources Center and Extension Natural Resource Educators and reached thousands of residents. These included A. developing projects and strategies to help farmers meet Wisconsin NR 151 Ag Performance Standards and Prohibitions, B. establishing stream-based volunteer water quality monitoring projects statewide and creating a real-time database where users can enter measurements on the web against certain parameters which indicate the health of a stream, C. assisting local government and citizen groups with creating strategies for TMDL development and implementation in various watersheds and impaired sites statewide, and D. implementing workshops for landowners on wetland protection, stormwater management, ag runoff management, shoreline and streambank, and forest land management. PARTICIPANTS: Farmer Nutrient Management Education includes a partnership consisting of the UW Madison Environmental Resources Center (ERC), UW Madison Nutrient and Pest Management (NPM) Program, UW-Extension Natural Resources Educators, County Extension staff, ERC Publications and Program Evaluation Specialists and other State Specialists, Land Conservation Department (LCD) staff, agribusinesses and ag co-ops, Discovery Farms staff, various WI Technical Colleges, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (WDATCP) and USDA-NRCS. SNAP Plus is being developed and maintained by UW-Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences Soils Department staff and programmers. The Natural Resources Educators are a network of 12 UW-Extension Educators placed at key points around Wisconsin and they work with DNR (Department of Natural Resources) staff, County Ag Agents, local government staff, private conservation services/business and other stakeholders. Discovery Farms include partnerships with UW-Platteville Pioneer Farm, Wisconsin Ag Stewardship (WASI) members, WI NRCS, Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board (WMMB), Sand County Foundation, numerous livestock farms and commodity organizations, US Geological Survey (USGS), Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey (WGNHS), and of course UW-Extension. Training and Professional Development features of this program are the main focus and thus are listed in other areas of this report. TARGET AUDIENCES: Ag Producers, WI Conservation Professionals (Govt. Agency, Educational and Private), Wisconsin Citizens (esp. rural residents), under-served audiences (including the Amish, minority and women farmers, Citizen Water Quality Monitoring Volunteers, Private Contractors (with a conservation impact or connection). Conservation Professionals in other states are now being reached in a national expansion of Technical Service Provider training on Conservation Reserve Program inventories, plans and forms PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: This project had been extended to allow for another crop year for Discovery Farms watershed study baseline data collection and for evaluation of local nutrient management farmer education projects.
Impacts 1. Discovery Farms Program (DFP): Installation of new monitoring equipment at new Watershed study farms was completed. We installed four stations in the upper reaches of the Red Cedar Watershed to get a handle on nutrient losses under two different farming systems. These are paired sites, and the data from these sites will help us further define what is happening on farms in this watershed. Three other sites have been installed in the Jersey Valley Watershed which include a range of manure management techniques, farming systems and physical settings. These sites are linked with three stream stations to determine where and when losses occur in this watershed. We are still collecting samples in the lake and below the lake to determine the impact of the lake on the stream below the dam. Edge of field site selection in the Willow River Watershed also began. State funds are assisting in the continuation of this work. 2. Conservation Professional Training: Over 450 conservation professionals per year attend technical update workshops and training sessions that help meet state and federal certification requirements, provide continuing education to maintain certifications, and provide research based technical information in the areas such as conservation/ environmental protection and enhancement, meeting technical design standards, and working with diverse clientele. More than 20 states now participate in a national expansion of this work in a new project funded by NRCS. 3. 29 Nutrient Management Farmer Education projects were awarded grants in the project period and $662,000 of in-kind support was provided by counties and Technical Colleges in order to conduct the projects. The loss of earmarks has reduced the number of new local projects to whatever the state can afford. We hope additional federal funding can be found. 4. Innovative Conservation Education: Environmental Resources Center (ERC) staff conducted numerous programs for thousands of participants. Specific impacts of note include the volunteer water quality monitoring program which provided trainings for over 400 annually. Selected trainees now enter water quality data from more than 100 monitoring sites into a web database. Where possible, ERC trainings include non-personal Pre and Post workshop surveys. A majority of participants planned to adopt conservation-positive behaviors based on what they learned. Finally, ERC staff developed printed and electronic conservation oriented publications distributed to tens of thousands nationwide each year. They also developed and maintained popular websites for professionals and producers such as runoffinfo.uwex.edu. which itself receives 50000 hits per year. It should be noted that these federal funds resulted in a leveraging of more than 5 state, local and private dollars to every federal dollar spent.
Publications
- No publications reported this period
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Progress 08/15/10 to 08/14/11
Outputs OUTPUTS: This project includes several areas of integrated applied research and associated outreach programming. 1 The UW Discovery Farms Program is implementing the second generation of watershed study sites and has redirected staff and monitoring efforts toward establishing a baseline set of data (such as runoff/precipitation). They also completed the papers with the information gained from the previously graduated farms and are disseminating results. 2 Conservation Professional Training (CPT) staff provided training on using the SNAP-Plus Nutrient Management Planning software program and curriculum designed for the preparation of nutrient management plans in accordance with Wisconsin's most recent 590 Standard. Workshop and training topics include, but are not limited to: Comprehensive Nutrient Management Planning (CNMPs), Conservation Planning, Cover Crops, Drainage, Upland Treatment, Invasive Species, Manure Applicator Certification, Manure Spill Response, Nutrient Management, PI/SNAP Plus, Organic Transition Plan Development, Native Pollinators, Mason and Leafcutter Bee Management, Managed Grazing, RUSLE2, and TSP Requirements. Climate change issues are being incorporated into existing conservation training curriculum. This program is now a model that is being expanded nationally. 3 Nutrient Management Planning workshops were held which increase producers understanding about the principles of sound nutrient management and related environmental regulations and help producers use appropriate amounts of nutrients for their operations. Producers who implement nutrient management plans can improve farm profitability and limit nutrient losses to surface water or groundwater. We revised the UWEX Nutrient Management Farmer Education Program Curriculum to comply with the most recent version of the 590 Standard. The curriculum utilizes UWEX soil fertility, crop nutrition, soil testing and nutrient crediting materials. Each farmer receives at least 20 hours of instruction time. The requirement of a 590 Nutrient Management plan for Farmland Preservation (FPP) and Working Lands Initiative (WLI) has created an increased demand for the Nutrient Management Farmer Education program. The cost of hiring a consultant to prepare a nutrient management plan often exceeds the financial incentive offered by either FPP or WLI. 4 Innovative Education Programs were conducted by the Environmental Resources Center and Extension Natural Resource Educators and reached thousands of residents. These included A. developing projects and strategies to help farmers meet Wisconsin NR 151 Ag Performance Standards and Prohibitions, B. establishing stream-based volunteer water quality monitoring projects statewide and creating a real-time database where users can enter measurements on the web against certain parameters which indicate the health of a stream, C. assisting local government and citizen groups with creating strategies for TMDL development and implementation in various watersheds and impaired sites statewide, and D. implementing workshops for landowners on wetland protection, stormwater management, ag runoff management, shoreline and streambank, and forest land management. PARTICIPANTS: Farmer Nutrient Management Education includes a partnership consisting of the UW Madison Environmental Resources Center (ERC), UW Madison Nutrient and Pest Management (NPM) Program, UW-Extension Natural Resources Educators, County Extension staff, ERC Publications and Program Evaluation Specialists and other State Specialists, Land Conservation Department (LCD) staff, agribusinesses and ag co-ops, Discovery Farms staff, various WI Technical Colleges, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (WDATCP) and USDA-NRCS. SNAP Plus is being developed and maintained by UW-Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences Soils Department staff and programmers. The Basin Educators are a network of 15 UW-Extension Educators placed at key points around Wisconsin and they work with DNR (Department of Natural Resources) staff, County Ag Agents, local government staff, private conservation services/business and other stakeholders. Discovery Farms include partnerships with UW-Platteville Pioneer Farm, Wisconsin Ag Stewardship (WASI) members, WI NRCS, Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board (WMMB), Sand County Foundation, numerous livestock farms and commodity organizations, US Geological Survey (USGS), Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey (WGNHS), and of course UW-Extension. Training and Professional Development features of this program are the main focus and thus are listed in other areas of this report. TARGET AUDIENCES: Ag Producers, WI Conservation Professionals (Govt. Agency, Educational and Private), Wisconsin Citizens (esp. rural residents), under-served audiences (including the Amish, minority and women farmers, Citizen Water Quality Monitoring Volunteers, Private Contractors (with a conservation impact or connection). Conservation Professionals in other states are now being reached in a national expansion of Technical Service Provider training on Conservation Reserve Program inventories, plans and forms. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: This project was extended to allow for another crop year for Discovery Farms watershed study baseline data collection and for evaluation of local nutrient management farmer education projects.
Impacts 1. Discovery Farms Program (DFP): Installation of new monitoring equipment at new Watershed study farms is progressing. The weather this past year was not as wet, making the access to field sites easier. We installed four stations in the upper reaches of the Red Cedar Watershed to get a handle on nutrient losses under two different farming systems. These are paired sites, and the data from these sites will help us further define what is happening on farms in this watershed. Three other sites have been installed in the Jersey Valley Watershed which include a range of manure management techniques, farming systems and physical settings. These sites will be linked with three stream stations to determine where and when losses occur in this watershed. We will also be collecting samples in the lake and below the lake to determine the impact of the lake on the stream below the dam. Edge of field site selection in the Willow River Watershed is beginning. 2. Conservation Professional Training: Over 450 conservation professionals per year attend technical update workshops and training sessions that help meet state and federal certification requirements, provide continuing education to maintain certifications, and provide research based technical information in the areas such as conservation/ environmental protection and enhancement, meeting technical design standards, and working with diverse clientele. We expect up to 20 states to participate in a national expansion of this work in a new project funded by NRCS. 3. 29 Nutrient Management Farmer Education projects were awarded grants in the project period and $662,000 of in-kind support was provided by counties and Technical Colleges in order to conduct the projects. The loss of earmarks has reduced the number of new local projects to whatever the state can afford, which will be about 10 in the new year. We hope additional federal funding can be found. 4. Innovative Conservation Education: Environmental Resources Center (ERC) staff conducted numerous programs for thousands of participants. Specific impacts of note include the volunteer water quality monitoring program which provided trainings for over 400 annually. Selected trainees now enter water quality data from more than 100 monitoring sites into a web database. Where possible, ERC trainings include anon. Pre and Post workshop surveys. A majority of participants planned to adopt conservation-positive behaviors based on what they learned. Finally, ERC staff developed printed and electronic conservation oriented publications distributed to tens of thousands nationwide each year. They also developed and maintained popular websites for professionals and producers such as runoffinfo.uwex.edu. which itself receives 50000 hits per year.
Publications
- No publications reported this period
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Progress 08/15/09 to 08/14/10
Outputs OUTPUTS: This project includes several areas of integrated applied research and associated outreach programming. Programming in the 4 areas in the past year includes: 1. The UW Discovery Farms Program began implementing the second generation of watershed study sites, while at the same time working to complete the papers with the information gained from the recently graduated farms. 2. Conservation Professional Training (CPT) staff provided training on using the SNAP-Plus Nutrient Management Planning software program and curriculum designed for the preparation of nutrient management plans in accordance with Wisconsin's most recent 590 Standard. Workshop and training topics include, but are not limited to: Comprehensive Nutrient Management Planning (CNMPs), Conservation Planning, Cover Crops, Drainage, Upland Treatment, Invasive Species, Manure Applicator Certification, Manure Spill Response, Nutrient Management, PI/SNAP Plus, Organic Transition Plan Development, Native Pollinators, Mason and Leafcutter Bee Management, Managed Grazing, RUSLE2, and TSP Requirements. Climate change issues are being incorporated into existing conservation training curriculum. This program is now a model that other states are adopting, including Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. 3. Nutrient Management Planning workshops were held which increase producers understanding about the principles of sound nutrient management and related environmental regulations and help producers use appropriate amounts of nutrients for their operations. Producers who implement nutrient management plans can improve farm profitability and limit nutrient losses to surface water or groundwater. We revised the UWEX Nutrient Management Farmer Education Program Curriculum to comply with the most recent version of the 590 Standard. The curriculum utilizes UWEX soil fertility, crop nutrition, soil testing and nutrient crediting materials. Each farmer receives at least 20 hours of instruction time. The requirement of a 590 Nutrient Management plan for Farmland Preservation (FPP) and Working Lands Initiative (WLI) has created an increased demand for the Nutrient Management Farmer Education program. The cost of hiring a consultant to prepare a nutrient management plan often exceeds the financial incentive offered by either FPP or WLI. 4. Innovative Education Programs were conducted by the Environmental Resources Center and Extension Basin Educators and reached thousands of residents. These included A. developing projects and strategies to help farmers meet Wisconsin NR 151 Ag Performance Standards and Prohibitions, B. establishing stream-based volunteer water quality monitoring projects statewide and creating a real-time database where users can enter measurements on the web against certain parameters which indicate the health of a stream, C. assisting local government and citizen groups with creating strategies for TMDL development and implementation in various watersheds statewide, and D. implementing workshops for landowners on wetland protection, stormwater management, ag runoff management, shoreline and streambank, and forest land management. PARTICIPANTS: Farmer Nutrient Management Education includes a partnership consisting of the UW Madison Environmental Resources Center (ERC), UW Madison Nutrient and Pest Management (NPM) Program, UW-Extension Basin Educators, County Extension staff, ERC Publications and Program Evaluation Specialists and other State Specialists, Land Conservation Department (LCD) staff, agribusinesses and ag co-ops, Discovery Farms staff, various WI Technical Colleges, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (WDATCP) and USDA-NRCS. SNAP Plus is being developed and maintained by UW-Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences Soils Department staff and programmers. The Basin Educators are a network of 15 UW-Extension Educators placed at key points around Wisconsin and they work with DNR (Department of Natural Resources) staff, County Ag Agents, local government staff, private conservation services/business and other stakeholders. Discovery Farms include partnerships with UW-Platteville Pioneer Farm, Wisconsin Ag Stewardship (WASI) members, WI NRCS, Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board (WMMB), Sand County Foundation, numerous livestock farms and commodity organizations, US Geological Survey (USGS), Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey (WGNHS), and of course UW-Extension. Training and Professional Development features of this program are the main focus and thus are listed in other areas of this report. TARGET AUDIENCES: Ag Producers, Conservation Professionals (Govt. Agency, Educational and Private), Wisconsin Citizens (esp. rural residents), under-served audiences (including the Amish, minority and women farmers, Citizen Water Quality Monitoring Volunteers, Private Contractors (with a conservation impact or connection). PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.
Impacts 1. Discovery Farms Program (DFP): A number of record setting summer rain storms have made the installation of new monitoring equipment challenging. We installed four stations in the upper reaches of the Red Cedar Watershed to get a handle on nutrient losses under two different farming systems. These are paired sites, and the data from these sites will help us further define what is happening on farms in this watershed. Three other sites have been installed in the Jersey Valley Watershed, and we have another two field sites to be put in after harvest. The sites in Jersey Valley include a range of manure management techniques, farming systems and physical settings. These five sites will be linked with three stream stations to determine where and when losses occur in this watershed. We will also be collecting samples in the lake and below the lake to determine the impact of the lake on the stream below the dam. Edge of field site selection in the Willow River Watershed is happening this fall. 2. Conservation Professional Training: Over 450 conservation professionals per year attend technical update workshops and training sessions that help meet state and federal certification requirements, provide continuing education to maintain certifications, and provide research based technical information in the areas such as conservation/ environmental protection and enhancement, meeting technical design standards, and working with diverse clientele. 3. 29 Nutrient Management Farmer Education projects were awarded grants in 2009 and 2010 and $662,000 of in-kind support was provided by counties and Technical Colleges in order to conduct the projects. Several of the other counties which were not awarded funding provided additional instruction to more then 150 interested producers using the Nutrient Management Farmer Education curriculum. 4. Innovative Conservation Education: Environmental Resources Center (ERC) staff conducted numerous programs for thousands of participants. Specific impacts of note include the volunteer water quality monitoring program which provided trainings for over 400 annually. Selected trainees now enter water quality data from more than 100 monitoring sites into a web database. Where possible, ERC trainings include anon. Pre and Post workshop surveys. A majority of participants planned to adopt conservation-positive behaviors based on what they learned. Finally, ERC staff developed printed and electronic conservation oriented publications distributed to tens of thousands nationwide each year. They also developed and maintained popular websites for professionals and producers such as runoffinfo.uwex.edu. which itself receives 50000 hits per year.
Publications
- Characterization of Poultry Manure - 2009 (Dennis Frame, Paul Kivlin, Kevan Klingberg, Amber Weisenberger, JoAnn Opsal)
- Effect of Headland Stacking of Poultry Manure on Groundwater - 2009 (Paul Kivlin & Dennis Frame)
- Discoveries on headland-stacked poultry manure - 2009 (Dennis Frame, Paul Kivlin & Kevan Klingberg)
- Grazing Based Dairy Systems - 2009 (Kevan Klingberg)
- Farm, Site and Study Design - 2009 (Kevan Klingberg)
- Equipment, Procedures and Sampling - 2009 (Kevan Klingberg & Dennis Frame)
- Understanding Surface Water Runoff at Breneman Farms" - 2009 (Kevan Klingberg, Dennis Frame, Fred Madison, Anita Thompson, Amanda Crowe, & Tim Radatz)
- Sediment and Nutrient Loss from An Out-winter Paddock Area On A Grass-Based Dairy - 2009 (Kevan Klingberg, Dennis Frame, Fred Madison, Anita Thompson, Amanda Crowe, & Tim Radatz)
- Management Intensive Grazing and Groundwater Quality - 2009 (Kevan Klingberg & Nancy Turyk)
- Dry Matter Intake and Manure Production for Management Intensively Grazed Dairy Cattle - 2009 (Kevan Klingberg, Dennis Frame, & Dennis Cosgrove)
- Potential Runoff from Stacked Poultry Manure - 2009 (Dennis Frame, Paul Kivlin, Kevan Klingberg, Amber Weisenberger, JoAnn Opsal)
- Stockpiling Manure and Soluble Salts: Site Remediation for Crop Production - 2009 (Paul Kivlin, Dennis Frame, Fred Madison, JoAnn Opsal)
- Discoveries on a Grass-Based Dairy System - 2009 (Kevan Klingberg & Dennis Frame)
- History of the Manitowoc County Discovery Farms Project Area - 2009 (Scott Gunderson, Dennis Frame & Eric Cooley)
- Farm, Site and Study Design - 2009 (Dennis Frame and Eric Cooley)
- Equipment, Procedures and Sampling - 2009 (Dennis Frame & Eric Cooley)
- Understanding Surface Water Runoff - 2009 (Eric Cooley & Dennis Frame)
- Sediment and Nutrient Losses - 2009 (Eric Cooley & Dennis Frame)
- Impact of Discovery Farms Research on Agricultural Management at Soaring Eagle Dairy, Public Perception, and Future Discovery Farm Research Site Criteria - 2009 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Scott Gunderson)
- Understanding Nutrient and Sediment Loss at Soaring Eagle Dairy - 2009 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Scott Gunderson)
- Farm, Site, and Projects - 2009 (Paul Kivlin, Kevan Klingberg & Kate Meeks)
- Swine Facility Emission & Odor Monitoring - 2010 (Paul Kivlin, Kevan Klingberg, Amber Radatz, Dennis Frame)
- Nutrient Best Management Practice Verification Project - 2010 (Paul Kivlin, Kevan Klingberg & Kate Meeks)
- Determining Swine Manure Nutrient Contents: A Comparison of Sampling Methods - 2010 (Paul Kivlin, Kevan Klingberg & Kate Meeks)
- Understanding Air Quality and Nutrient Management at Harrison Farms - 2010 (Paul Kivlin, Kevan Klingberg, Amber Radatz & Kate Meeks)
- A Producers Guide to Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plans in Wisconsin - 2008 (Kevan Klingberg & Tim Popple)
- Understanding and Locating Tile Drainage Systems - 2009 (Matt Ruark, John Panuska, Eric Cooley & Joe Pagel)
- Farm, Site and Study Design - 2010 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Aaron Wunderlin)
- Equipment, Procedures and Sampling - 2010 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Aaron Wunderlin)
- Water Budget at Pagel's Ponderosa Dairy - 2010 (Eric Cooley, Aaron Wunderlin & Dennis Frame)
- Understanding Water Loss at Pagel's Ponderosa Dairy: Surface Water - 2010 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Aaron Wunderlin)
- Understanding Water Loss at Pagel's Ponderosa Dairy: Tile Drainage - 2010 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Aaron Wunderlin)
- Soil moisture and potential for runoff - 2010 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Aaron Wunderlin)
- Single storm event loss comparison to total annual sediment and nutrient loss - 2010 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Aaron Wunderlin)
- Concentration comparison to yield for sediment and nutrient loss - 2010 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Aaron Wunderlin)
- Impact of Discovery Farm Research on: Agricultural Management at Pagel's Ponderosa Dairy, Public Perception, and Future Discovery Farm Research Site Criteria - 2010 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Aaron Wunderlin)
- Understanding Water Loss at Pagel's Ponderosa Dairy: Surface and Tile Drainage comparison - 2010 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Aaron Wunderlin)
- Sediment Loss Potential at Pagel's Ponderosa Dairy - 2010 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Aaron Wunderlin)
- Phosphorus Loss Potential at Pagel's Ponderosa Dairy - 2010 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Aaron Wunderlin)
- Nitrogen Loss Potential at Pagel's Ponderosa Dairy - 2010 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Aaron Wunderlin)
- Understanding Nutrient & Sediment Loss at Pagel's Ponderosa Dairy - 2010 (Eric Cooley, Dennis Frame & Aaron Wunderlin)
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