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The Nevada Agricultural Experiment Station (NAES) is housed in the College of Agriculture, Biotechnology and Natural Resources (CABNR) and serves as the research arm of the college. NAES has a statewide mission to improve the quality of life for all Nevadans through education and research programs that 1: support the agriculture enterprise 2: promote community health and well-being 3: sustain natural resources and the environment and 4: stimulate economic development. The (NAES) has been in continuous operation at the university since its establishment in 1888. The passage of the Hatch Act of 1887 and succeeding state legislation provided for the establishment of the experiment station.
The majority of the faculty working at the experiment station have joint responsibilities with resident academic programs in CABNR, College of Business, or Cooperative Extension.
Federal funds are appropriated through the USDA under the Hatch Act to promote high-quality research activities on agricultural and natural resource issues that are important to the state, the West and the nation. McIntire-Stennis Act allocations promote research for the development, protection and efficient utilization of resources from the nation’s forests and rangelands. Animal health allocations are directed toward solving and understanding the health problems of livestock. Finally, multi-state research projects allow NAES to interdependently collaborate in projects that two or more states share as a priority.
On-campus research is conducted in the Max C. Fleischmann Agriculture Building, the Howard Medical School Building, and the Applied Research Facility. The research capability of NAES faculty is also enhanced by cooperative arrangements with the USDA-Agriculture Research Service, the US Forest Service, and the USDA Plant Materials Testing Center.
NAES also operate several off-campus research sites as an integral component of research programs. The Main Station Field Lab (MSFL) abuts the eastern boundary of the Sparks and Reno metropolitan area and encompasses 850 acres. MSFL hosts livestock, horticultural, and agronomy projects and is the home of Wolf Pack Meats, the only USDA certified slaughter and meat processing facility available to livestock producers in a large area of western Nevada and eastern California.
The Valley Road Field Laboratory is a 47 acre complex located just five minutes from campus. It houses the NAES 29,000 sq ft Greenhouse Complex, state-of-the-art Genomics Center, Equestrian Center, and the Desert Farming Initiative, whose primary focus is on horticultural research. Also located at the facility are several buildings including the Knudtsen Resource Center, Renewable Resource Center and Agricultural Education Building.
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