About Chris Hay

I'm an agricultural water management engineer and consultant with over 30 years of experience spanning government, industry, university research, and applied conservation work. Through Hay Water Solutions, I help agencies, research institutions, and environmental and agricultural organizations solve complex water management and water quality challenges.

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My career has been deliberately broad. Early work as a water resources engineer in the private sector and an environmental specialist in production agriculture gave me a practical foundation. University research and extension roles at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and South Dakota State University built my expertise in drainage systems, evapotranspiration, water recycling, and nutrient management and taught me how to communicate technical findings to diverse audiences. Most recently, eight years at the Iowa Soybean Association gave me a rare vantage point: leading research and conservation design at scale, bridging the gap between field-level implementation and policy-level strategy.

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That combination, rigorous research credentials, deep extension and outreach experience, and firsthand knowledge of how conservation programs actually get implemented, is what I bring to consulting engagements. Whether you need technical analysis, program design, applied research support, or help translating science into actionable guidance, I can move fluidly between those roles.