Welcome to the NACD Southwest Region newsletter, delivering announcements and news to NACD Board Members, conservation districts, state associations and agency leadership across the Southwest. Please feel free to forward this to anyone who might be interested - they can subscribe to the mailing list on the Southwest Region Webpage.
Josh Smith, Vice Chair of the Southwest Region, NM
Jim Berlier, Executive Board Member of the Southwest Region, NM
Please reach out to Rachel with questions and newsletter content ideas.
|
|
It’s hard to believe that summer is already wrapping up! It has been a very mild summer here in the high country of Colorado, and there have already been a few mornings when I’ve woken up to a dusting of snow in the mountains.
July was a busy month for me! I spent a week with the fantastic folks in New Mexico while the New Mexico Association of Conservation Districts (NMACD) embarked on the northern portion of their Summer Traveling Roadshow. This is an annual event where the association visits the districts in every region. NMACD shares what they’ve been doing to support the districts for the past year, and the districts have a chance to share their successes and provide NMACD with suggestions. Not only did I get to see some gorgeous country, but I had the chance to introduce myself to many of the districts in northern New Mexico and hear about their innovative projects. A special thank you to Debbie Hughes, Brent Van Dyke, Willard Hall, Xavier Montoya, Kris Graham Chavez, Anthony Chavez, Julie Maitland, Jeff Witte, and Alicia Rodriguez for making me feel so welcome as we traveled around the state together.
|
|
At the end of the month it was off to Chicago for the NACD Summer Meeting! After a year and a half in relative solitude being in such a big city was a bit overwhelming! But it was wonderful to finally meet many of you in person as well as say hello to some familiar faces that I hadn’t seen in quite some time. More info on the Summer Meeting can be found below.
The Southwest/Pacific Region Meeting is coming up next week! I’m looking forward to seeing many of you there. As always, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me if there’s anything I can do for you.
Here’s hoping we can all get out and enjoy the last few days of summer!
|
|
Virtual Option Added for Southwest/Pacific Region Meeting |
|
Due to the ever-changing COVID-19 situation, the Wyoming Association of Conservation Districts has added a virtual option for the region meeting on August 30th. Please note, only the first day of the meeting will be available virtually. The second day of the meeting will only be available in person. Virtual registration can be completed here.
|
|
NACD's Summer Meeting in Chicago |
|
It was great to see many of you in person at the NACD Summer Meeting in Chicago! While it was an abbreviated agenda, a lot of great work got done and it seemed like everyone was reenergized by being together in person!
On Saturday, July 25, NACD celebrated its 75th anniversary in Chicago, Illinois, where the association was founded in 1946.
|
|
The national association hosted a 75th Anniversary Celebration at the Hancock Center, which featured remarks from United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth, as well as a historical presentation from Soil and Water Conservation Society (SWCS) Historian Joe Otto.
In attendance at the celebration were numerous NACD past presidents and NACD's current president, pictured left to right in the above photo: Tim Palmer, Brent Van Dyke, Earl Garber, Michael Crowder, Lee McDaniel, Steve Robinson, John Redding, Gary Mast, Rudy Rice, Gerald L. Vap, Billy Wilson and Gerald Digerness.
|
|
NACD Technical Assistance Grants Awarded to Southwest Districts |
|
On July 27, 2021, NACD Chief Executive Officer Jeremy Peters announced the award of $2.1 million nationwide as part of the second round of 2021 awards from the NACD Technical Assistance (TA) Grants program. The awards are made possible with funding from the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
Collectively, Southwest Region recipients were awarded nearly $200,000 during this second round of 2021 TA funding.
Congratulations to the following grantees:
-
Wyoming - Laramie County CD, Sheridan County CD
-
Utah - Northern Utah CD
-
Nevada - Big Meadow CD
You can view the full announcement here.
|
|
NACD's Presidents Association Video Series
|
|
As part of our 75th Anniversary celebration, NACD is proud to present our Presidents Association Video Series. In early 2020, NACD 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 Lee McDaniel of Darlington, Maryland. McDaniel has served the Harford Soil Conservation District in many forms, starting as a supervisor around 1990 and serving as a chairman of the board since 2005. He has also served as the Maryland Association of Soil Conservation Districts president and as an NACD president, board member and executive board member.
"NACD matters because it is the voice of conservation districts at the national level," he said.
"Anybody that wants to get involved with NACD should get involved because you're making a better world for the future," he said. "Whether it's conservation, education, environment, economics - we need to have the next generation to have an opportunity to have a better world than the way we found it."
|
|
Help Recruit for the 2022 NGLI Cohort |
|
The National Conservation Foundation (NCF) will announce the application period for the 2022 cohort of the Next Generation Leadership Institute (NGLI) in July.
Help us recruit for the Next Generation Leadership Candidate from your state and encourage them to explore applying for NGLI. Currently-appointed conservation district officials are eligible to apply, as well as district officials with current or potential for a statewide leadership position.
Learn more about NGLI here.
|
|
Call for Nominations:
Friend of Conservation and Distinguished Service Awards
|
|
NACD's Annual Awards Program recognizes individuals and organizations for their outstanding work and leadership in soil and water conservation.
Nominations for the Friend of Conservation Award and the Distinguished Service Award are now open until Aug. 31.
The 2021 awardees will be recognized at a ceremony held in their honor at NACD's 2022 Annual Meeting.
|
|
Hugh Hammond Bennett Award |
|
The National Conservation Planning Partnership's (NCPP) Hugh Hammond Bennett (HHB) Award for Conservation Excellence recognizes both producers and conservation planners from within the NCPP partnership who have exemplified outstanding service through development and implementation of sound conservation planning and other conservation techniques.
One national winner in each category—producer and conservation planner—is chosen each year and recognized at the NACD annual meeting.
Stay tuned to this web page for a nomination form that will be available in mid-August. Nominations will close October 1, 2021.
|
|
Southwest Team Among the NCF-Envirothon Top Ten |
|
Congratulations to the New Mexico Envirothon Team! They came in 6th place at the National Envirothon Competition, and scored first in the aquatics category! The issue for the 2021 competition was "Water Resources Management: Local Control, Local Solutions". To learn more about this year's competition or start preparing for next year, visit the NCF-Envirothon website.
|
|
Call for Urban and Community Webinar Proppsals! |
|
If you enjoy NACD’s monthly urban and community conservation webinar series now is the time to plan your own session! NACD is seeking presentation proposals for Fiscal Year 2022 on urban and community resource conservation issues like soil health, water quantity/quality, pollinators, forestry, community-focused initiatives and outreach to underrepresented clients in conservation.
Submit your webinar idea online, and share the web link with others who may be interested. NACD is proud to offer this program in collaboration with The Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation.
In the meantime, you can check out the recordings from all the great previous webinars here.
|
|
Submit Your Ideas: NACD 2022 Annual Meeting Theme |
|
NACD's 76th Annual Meeting is scheduled to be held Feb. 12-16, 2022 in Orlando, Fla.
Help us come up with a theme that celebrates conservation in the Sunshine State! The winning submission will earn a complimentary full registration to the 2022 Annual Meeting.
|
|
NACD Seeks Input on 30x30 Proposal
To gain a stronger understanding of how 30x30 will impact our conservation district membership, NACD is seeking member feedback. Please provide your feedback on the 30x30 program here or by clicking the button below.
|
|
Southwest Districts at Work |
|
Wasatch CD Improves Water Quality in the Wallburg Watershed
In Wasatch County, Utah, Deer Creek Reservoir serves as the main drinking water source for 65 percent of all Utahans; however, water quality and other resource concerns have been identified by local landowners. Total maximum daily load (TMDL) and water quality studies showed that phosphorous loads in the reservoir were very high, and that Main Creek was a big contributor. The studies found that while Main Creek contributes eight percent of the flow into the reservoir, it contributes 17 percent to the reservoir’s phosphorus load.
County partners set out to address this issue, and the Wasatch Conservation District became the lead agency for watershed improvement. In 2012, the district conducted a series of landowner meetings to help brainstorm ways to solve this problem.
“It was really neat that it happened this way,” said Daniel Gunnell, the district’s resource coordinator. “It wasn’t the Utah Division of Water Quality going in and telling them what they need to do to fix it. It was the conservation district bringing all the landowners together and saying, ‘We have a problem, what can we do to fix it?’”
According to Gunnell, these meetings were extremely successful. The landowners identified all the major problem areas in the watershed and where they should first focus their stream restoration projects.
“By doing stream restoration and keeping the banks in place, we were getting the best bang-for-our-buck to control phosphorous loading into the Deer Creek Reservoir,” said Gunnell.
|
|
Sep. 27-30, 2021 - State Association Executive Directors' Conference | Asheville, N.C.
April 22 - May 1, 2022 - 67th Annual Stewardship Week: "Healthy Soil: Healthy Life"
July 15-17, 2022 - 2022 NACD Summer Meeting | San Juan, P.R.
July 24-30, 2022 - NCF - Envirothon | Oxford, Ohio
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
