Registration is now open for NACD's 2025 Summer Conservation Forum & Tours! Hosted with Wisconsin Land + Water, the NACD Summer Meeting will be held in Milwaukee, WI this July 25-29, 2025.

Early bird registration is only open for a limited time, so don't delay. Save $50 per person by registering before July 7.

Hotel rooms in the NACD room block are available to reserve at the iconic Pfister Hotel. Room rates start at $235/night. Rooms in NACD’s room block are first come, first served and there may be limited or no availability as the deadline for the room block nears. The last day to reserve available rooms in the room block is July 7.

Experience Milwaukee and surrounding counties with us by joining the tours! Included in the cost of registration are tours to the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Freshwater Sciences, and a variety of conservation project locations and farms. Attendees will learn about water research and conservation, regenerative agriculture, habitat restoration, and more.

Looking to add more fun to your meeting experience? Join us for a night with the Brewers! On Monday, July 28, meet up with colleagues at the American Family Field stadium in Milwaukee to enjoy a baseball game. Tickets can be purchased when registering for the meeting.

Learn more about the Summer Meeting, see the agenda, and reserve your spot amongst the action now!

ENVIROTHON COMPETITION SEASON UNDERWAY

The 2025 Envirothon competition season is in full swing, with state- or provincial-wide competitions taking place from March to June. These qualifying events will identify the teams eligible to advance to the upcoming 2025 NCF-Envirothon annual competition.

Hosted by the National Conservation Foundation (NCF) and the Alberta Envirothon Association, the 36th Annual NCF-Envirothon Competition is scheduled for July 20-26, 2025 at Mount Royal University in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Major sponsors for this year’s event include the Forest Resource Improvement Association of Alberta, Weyerhaeuser, West Fraser, Foothills Forest Products, Canfor, USDA NRCS, Smithfield Foods, Inc., and Canon U.S.A.

During this weeklong event, over 50 teams from around the world are expected to participate, showcasing their expertise in various subjects, including aquatic ecology, forestry, soils and land use, wildlife, and this year's pressing environmental issue: “Roots and Resiliency: Fostering Forest Stewardship in a Canopy of Change.” Teams will compete for nearly $50,000 in awards and scholarships, alongside gaining well-deserved recognition for their achievements.

Preparation and Resources

To help teams prepare for the upcoming competition, key topics, learning objectives, and study materials in the five study areas have been developed and are now available online. These resources will highlight the ecology and natural resources of Alberta, focusing on aquatic ecology, forestry, soils and land use, wildlife, and the current special topic.

Registration for the 2025 NCF-Envirothon Alberta Competition is open until June 6. Qualifying teams, their advisors, chaperones, and interested guests can find complete details, including rules, registration fees, and links, in the 2025 Event Guide. This six-day event promises to be filled with learning, activities, competition, and enjoyment for all participants!

Complete competition details, study resources, event guide, and registration links can be found at envirothon.org/2025-alberta/. 

WHAT'S UP IN WASHINGTON? GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS UPDATE

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is holding public listening sessions for various stakeholders regarding the upcoming proposed rule to narrow the scope of jurisdiction and to better align the definition with the Supreme Court decision in Sackett. NACD participated in listening sessions for both agriculture and conservation stakeholders and provided a comment letter on the need for consistency, clarity, and utilizing local knowledge. 

NACD signed on to support a bipartisan bill to remove expensive permitting and engineering requirements for floodplain restoration by simplifying the “No Rise” rule. The “Floodplain Enhancement and Recovery Act” would create a new pathway for ecosystem restoration projects that result in less than a one-foot increase in base flood elevation and has no adverse impact to critical infrastructure. Thanks to the Montana Association of Conservation Districts for their work with Senator Daines and Senator Murray to create a functional, straightforward bill that will enable rural communities to manage and restore floodplain ecosystems to build resilience and positively impact water quality both in the area and downstream.

Leaders in the House of Representatives have delayed an Agriculture Committee markup that was planned for this week, joining the Energy and Commerce Committee and Ways and Means panel in punting discussion until issues over spending cuts are resolved. Several obstacles remain for the Agriculture Committee, including concerns over cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

On Tuesday, May 13 at 3:00 p.m. ET, NACD President Gary Blair will participate in a Senate Agriculture Committee hearing on “Perspectives from the Field, Part 4: Conservation.” President Blair will join Brad Doyle from the Arkansas Farm Bureau, Lynn Tjeerdsma from Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever, Chad Ellis from the Texas Agricultural Land Trust, and Megan Dwyer from the Illinois Corn Growers Association in testifying to the full committee. The hearing will be livestreamed here.

STRENGTH IN PARTNERSHIP: NC SWCDS FORGE A PATH FOR POST-HELENE RECOVERY

When Hurricane Helene swept across western North Carolina, it left a lasting mark on the region’s forests, watersheds, and communities. According to preliminary data released by the U.S. Forest Service, the storm caused moderate to catastrophic damage to more than 187,000 acres across the Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests, including the loss of vegetation on over 117,000 acres. Forest infrastructure was also hard hit with nearly 900 miles of roads and an estimated 800 miles of trails damaged or blocked by debris. The storm’s ecological toll raised new concerns about wildfire risk, habitat loss, invasive species, and watershed health, factors that will shape the region’s recovery for years to come.

The Mecklenburg Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) had already begun exploring the potential of biochar through a funding proposal aimed at improving soil and water health in agricultural and stormwater applications. But when the storm struck western North Carolina in late September 2024, the urgency and scale of the effort shifted dramatically, as several events converged to elevate biochar from a promising conservation tool to a critical component of disaster recovery. What began as a local conservation initiative quickly became part of a statewide, partnership-driven approach. Biochar emerged as both a tool for environmental remediation and a potential vehicle for rural economic development.

“Helene changed everything,” said Barbara Bleiweis, President of the North Carolina Association of Soil & Water Conservation Districts (NCASWCD) and Chair of Mecklenburg SWCD. “Suddenly, biochar wasn’t just about carbon. It was about cleanup, recovery, and building resilience in our communities.”

For communities impacted by Helene, biochar offers an environmentally sound alternative to traditional debris disposal methods such as open burning or landfilling. In collaboration with the NC Division of Soil and Water Conservation and the USDA NRCS, NCASWCD identified the need for a long-term strategy to manage storm debris and recognized biochar as a promising solution to advance both watershed recovery and rural economic revitalization.

The partnership's strategy includes harvesting storm hardwood debris and working with partners to reestablish regional processing capacity. Local production of biochar is seen as a critical component of the solution, offering a long term outlet for low value timber while supplying material to help remediate contaminated soils and restore storm impacted farmland. As districts throughout North Carolina continue to expand their forestry and recovery efforts, partnerships like these are demonstrating how local conservation leaders can bridge local needs with broader state and federal initiatives.

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