| Conservation Clips is a weekly collection of articles distributed by NACD that provides our members and partners with the latest news in what’s driving conservation. These articles are not indicative of NACD policy and are the opinions of their authors, unless otherwise noted. If you have a relevant submission or need assistance with accessing articles, please contact the NACD Communications Team.
NCF: Massachusetts Team Named 2023 NCF-Envirothon Competition Champions On July 28, the Massachusetts Envirothon team from Lexington, Massachusetts, was named the champion of the 2023 National Conservation Foundation (NCF)-Envirothon, an international environmental and natural resources education competition for high school students. NACD Blog: Conservation Districts Collectively Leverage Resources to Deliver STEM Academy Program to Local Students in Washington’s Tri-Cities Area The Benton Conservation District and local partners created a program to educate students about salmon habitat, migration, dams, and fish passages. USDA: Biden-Harris Administration Announces New Round of Investments in Wildfire Protection through Community Wildfire Defense Grants Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service is again accepting applications for the Community Wildfire Defense Grant program. The program is designed to assist at-risk communities, including Tribal communities, non-profit organizations, state forestry agencies and Alaska Native Corporations with planning for and mitigating wildfire risks. Progressive Farmer: Land Legacy How-To: Succession Strategies for Land Vary in Cost and Goals When the family land passed to them from their mother, they initially considered offers to divide and sell it for homesites and development. But they decided the highest and best use of the property was for it to remain in timber and wildlife. Modern Farmer: Watching Grass Grow … From Space Knowing when your fields are an optimal length for grazing is crucial for grassland farmers or ranchers. Satellites may be the best way to get that information. AgNet West: Record Enrollment for Grasslands CRP The USDA’s Grasslands Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) saw a large amount of enrollment this year. In fact, John Berge, Acting Deputy Administrator for Farm Programs at the Farm Service Agency says more acres were enrolled in the Grasslands Conservation Reserve Program this year than ever before. Albany Herald: Conservation district participating in feral swine initiative The Lower Chattahoochee River Conservation District has announced its participation in the Georgia Association of Conservation Districts’ (GACD) Feral Swine District Initiative. Landowners located within Clay, Lee, Schley, Sumter, Stewart, Randolph, Webster, Terrell and Quitman counties are invited to participate in the district’s feral swine control services. KRQE News: T or C Envirothon team places fifth in international competition The Envirothon high school team out of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico, has placed in the top five at the international competition. LA Times: Invasive fruit fly outbreak prompts agricultural quarantine in Santa Clarita Valley Residents in and around Stevenson Ranch in the Santa Clarita Valley are urged not to move any fruits and vegetables off their property in the hopes of containing the Tau fruit fly, described by the California Department of Food and Agriculture in a press release earlier this week as a “serious pest for agriculture and natural resources with a very wide host range.” The Modesto: Need help harvesting your fruit tree? New Stanislaus County program will send volunteers The East Stanislaus Resource Conservation District is piloting a program to help food pantries in the county get more fresh produce, and to help residents harvest their trees of unreachable or unneeded fruit. ABC74: Grand Traverse County farm hopes to extend growing season with new hoop house addition “The goal for this is to have the farmers extend growing season because this will keep things a little warmer inside,” Grand Traverse Conservation District Executive Director Koffi Kpachavi said. “And that allows them to start a little earlier in the spring and then go a little later so they can produce more food.” MSU Extension: Add pollinator-friendly plants to your landscape (Opinion) Whether you live in a city apartment, a suburban neighborhood or on a farm, you can create a pollinator habitat. Try any of these beautiful plants in your pollinator garden, and I’m sure you will be pleased with the results. USFWS: Community Led Conservation with Deer Flat National Wildlife Refuge: Growing the Next Generation of Nature Lovers in Idaho’s Treasure Valley The Treasure Valley Urban Conservation Partnership (TVUCP) is a coalition of local organizations that support equitable and welcoming opportunities to learn and engage with nature. The partnership will foster community connections, steward natural spaces and build resilience to the effects of climate change and other threats to wildlife. Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Great Southeast Pollinator Census takes place Aug. 18-19, and you can help It’s time for the Great Southeast Pollinator Census. The event, now in its fifth year, is open to anyone in Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.
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