RICHLAND SWCD PROMOTES POLLINATOR CONSERVATION
THROUGH UAC GRANT
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When we think of pollinator gardens, we often think of plants with bright, showy flowers, but did you know native grasses also provide important food, shelter and nesting sites for pollinators?
In the video above produced by the Richland Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) in South Carolina, you’ll discover several reasons to incorporate native grasses into your landscape. You’ll also learn about four grasses growing in Richland County’s pollinator demonstration garden. This video also features Richland SWCD's Education Analyst Chanda Cooper (pictured right).
In 2020, the SWCD received an NACD Urban Agriculture Conservation (UAC) Grant to expand a pollinator conservation demonstration and teaching area in a county-owned park, as well as use the area to provide pollinator conservation technical assistance to small farmers, educators and home/community gardeners throughout the midlands of the state through a series of outreach events and publicity campaigns.
This outreach included several short videos like the one above, produced by the district to promote pollinator conservation. The "Watch and Learn" series includes 18 episodes and has been viewed over 16,000 times.
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TA GRANT PROGRAM BOOSTS
BUTTE SWCD'S STAFF CAPACITY
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The grant has allowed the Idaho conservation district to provide a full-time employee to work alongside Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) staff to assist with all aspects of conservation planning and producer contract maintenance.
“Our local NRCS office is ranked number one in our state for needing workload assistance, and we are so thankful that we can work with NACD and NRCS to provide those extra hands to help get conservation on the ground in our district,” said Randy Purser, board chairman.
Through the grant, the employees hired have been treated as part of NRCS's team and have been able to attend NRCS trainings, conduct fieldwork, and work with producers to generate conservation plans for their farm and livestock operations.
One of the goals of the grant program is to convert the technicians into future NRCS employees. This aspect of the grant has been very successful for Butte SWCD. Two of the TA employees have gone on to be hired by the district's local NRCS office. The training and guidance they received while working with NRCS provided the skills and experience needed to be hired as NRCS employees.
"The grant position allowed me to hit the ground running," said Berret Erb, who filled the TA position in 2019, and is now a range management specialist for NRCS. Likewise, Jennifer Weathered, the TA in 2020, was recently hired as a soil conservationist with NRCS.
“Working as a TA allowed me to make connections with other NRCS employees and attend trainings, which foster a smooth transition into a permanent position within the agency," said Weathered. "It has been an invaluable learning opportunity.”
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PARTNERS SPEED RESTORATION OF PRONGHORN IN SOUTHEAST NEW MEXICO |
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In 1820, Major Stephen Harriman Long was appointed to lead an expedition through the American West, exploring areas acquired in the Louisiana Purchase. He and his men observed that pronghorn were abundant near water in the northeastern part of New Mexico. Since then, most anecdotal evidence suggests that the pronghorn population declined precipitously in the century of settlement that followed. In 1916, Aldo Leopold, who at the time was supervisor of the Carson National Forest in New Mexico, estimated there were just over 1,700 pronghorn in the state.
This decline coincided with the expansion of livestock raising in New Mexico, especially sheep ranching. From the mid-1800s through the 1900s, thousands of miles of netwire and multiwire fences were constructed across the landscape to manage livestock within individual ranches. One of the lesser-known characteristics of pronghorn, and one that is a critical part of its management, is its aversion to jumping fences. The unintended consequence of fencing was the curtailing of pronghorn’s ability to move across the prairies following the green-up that occurs after rainstorms, thereby fragmenting and eliminating important habitat for migrating pronghorn herds.
But of course, the story did not end there. The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish has been working with private landowners and agencies to help restore pronghorn populations through research, surveys, transplants, habitat management and monitoring for several decades now. As a result of this cooperation, pronghorn populations throughout the state are now estimated at nearly 50,000: a dramatic conservation success story.
Yet, there is still much more work to be done, particularly in the southeastern portion of the state. As project coordinator with the New Mexico Association of Conservation Districts (NMACD), Jesse Juen builds new partnerships between landowners, agencies, nonprofits and businesses to restore pronghorn herds and movement throughout southeast New Mexico in concert with existing grazing operations.
"Since we have implemented our wildlife-friendly fence modifications, we are seeing herds of antelope throughout our ranch again," said Clyde Harrison of Harrison Ranches in Chaves County. "This definitely benefitted the antelope, as they were severely impacted by the drought of 2011-2013.”
To view the full story, click here. This story by Jesse Juen was re-published with permission from NMACD.
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NACD'S PRESIDENTS
ASSOCIATION VIDEO SERIES:
STEVE STIERWALT, ILLINOIS
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As part of our 75th Anniversary celebration, NACD is proud to present our Presidents Association Video Series. In early 2020, we sat down with Presidents Association members, who reflected on their time with the national association, the importance of conservation districts and locally-led conservation, their vision of NACD's legacy and more.
This edition features Steve Stierwalt of Sadorus, Ill. Stierwalt is a full-time farmer and serves as the Immediate Past President of the Association of Illinois Soil and Water Conservation Districts (AISWCD). He has been involved with SWCDs since the middle '90s and serves as the delegate to NACD's Annual Meeting. Stierwalt is also the North Central Region Representative on NACD's Executive Board.
"What I think is so cool about soil and water conservation districts (SWCDs) is we are local," Stierwalt said. "We understand local people and we identify local resource concerns."
"We don't own the land," said Stierwalt on why conservation matters. "We're caretakers for the next generation, and so if we don't do the best job we can, this valuable resource won't be the same resource for them."
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Interested in submitting a story? We're still accepting stories for this special 75th Anniversary newsletter all year round!
You can submit stories as many times as you want. Please provide a short summary of what you are submitting, your contact information and your district/state association's information, and NACD will reach out to you for further information.
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