Conservation Clip List for Friday, July 26th, 2024

NACD Blog: Campbell County CD Leverages Friends of NACD Grant to Develop “Roots Run Deep” Educational Soil Trailer Project
07/22/2024 In 2023, the Campbell County Conservation District (CD) designed and developed a mobile educational “Soil Trailer” in partnership with the Bird Conservancy of the Rockies, Wyoming Community Foundation, Audubon Rockies, and the Friends of NACD. The trailer was created to provide local youth and adult audiences with a creative, engaging, and inclusive way to learn about the importance of soil health.

E&E News: Top Ag Republican offers bleak prognosis for farm bill
By Marc Heller07/16/2024Congress might be better off leaving an already overdue five-year farm bill unfinished in 2024, Arkansas Republican Sen. John Boozman said Tuesday.
At a forum sponsored by POLITICO at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Boozman — the top Republican on the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee — said extending the 2018 farm bill for the second year in a row would be preferable to passing a bill without significant changes in policy.

USDA Forest Service: Supporting science education: Helping fund student participation in Envirothon
By Alice Cohen
07/17/2024 The USDA Forest Service is helping cultivate the next generation of students through continued support of the National Conservation Foundation-Envirothon competition. Teams compete for recognition and scholarships by demonstrating their knowledge of environmental science, natural resource management topics and stewardship.

USDA: Biden-Harris Administration Announces $90 Million in Innovative Projects that Help Conserve Natural Resources and Address Climate Change as Part of Investing in America Agenda
07/18/2024Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $90 million in 53 Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) projects, which support the development of new tools, approaches, practices and technologies to further natural resource conservation on private lands.

KNEB: USDA Announces August 14 Deadline for ERP 2022 Applications
07/20/2024 The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) this week announced the deadline for commodity and specialty crop producers to apply for the Emergency Relief Program (ERP) for 2022 natural disaster losses is Aug. 14, 2024. USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) began accepting ERP 2022 applications in October 2023.

Agriculture Dive: Farmers sound alarm on deteriorating income
By Nathan Owens
07/24/2024 Net farm income is on track to plummet more than 25%, or $43 billion, the largest single-year decline on record, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The expected drop in income is coming after a 19% decline from 2022 to 2023, underscoring the significant pressures that farmers face across the country.

The Nature Conservancy: On Victor Ranch, caring for land and community goes hand-in-hand
Afton, OK | South Central Region
07/10/2024 This flourishing vista is the reward for decades of patient work, aided by funding from several Farm Bill conservation programs. And while Victor’s land stewardship has earned him state and national recognition, the fourth-generation farmer has not been content to rest on his laurels. He’s now sharing his lifetime of knowledge with farmers who’ve long been left out of the picture.

KPUG: Whatcom Conservation District receives $1.2 million federal grant to test new irrigation technology
Whatcom County, WA | Pacific Region
07/19/2024 The Whatcom Conservation District, which is receiving $1.2 million to test new weather-based technology that makes irrigation scheduling more efficient. The group will use soil moisture sensors and a weather-driven data collection system from Washington State University to test their effects on irrigation decisions made by farmers.

Star Tribune: What to know about the invasive purple flower that’s taking over Minnesota yards
By Greta Kaul | Minnesota | North Central Region
07/20/2024 Creeping bellflower isn’t new in Minnesota. It’s native to parts of Europe and Asia and has been here for at least a century, sometimes sold in garden stores. Wegscheid thinks the drought-tolerant invasive has had an advantage in recent years as other plants struggled with lack of rain (it also loves rain). Lately, it’s the talk of neighborhood Facebook pages around the Twin Cities, with posts aimed at helping neighbors identify and eradicate the plant.

Morning AgClips: Working Effectively with Hispanic Producers
Durham, NC | Southeast Region
07/21/2024 Tucked away in Durham, North Carolina, Hector Lopez at Hawk’s Nest Healing Gardens spoke to a group of United States Department of Agriculture – Natural Resources Conservation Service (USDA-NRCS) employees about his vision, goals, and desire to reconnect with the land. This was part of a weeklong training from June 24 to the 28th, appropriately named “Working Effectively with Hispanic Producers.”

Idaho Capital Sun: Strong demand for Power district’s no-till drill reflects growing interest in soil health statewide
By Steve Stuebner | Idaho | Pacific Region
07/23/2024 The soil health movement appears to be gaining significant momentum among Idaho farmers and conservation districts statewide. Over 10 years after the Natural Resources Conservation Service launched its Soil Health Initiative in 2012, a growing number of Idaho producers are embracing soil health farming practices and using no-till, direct-seed drills to plant cash crops and cover crops without tilling the soil.

The Daily Review: New investment of Clean Streams Fund allows BCCD to extend water program
By Phillip O’Dell | Maryland | Northeast Region
07/24/2024 A local conservation district will extend its program for water quality improvements due to new funding through a statewide fund included in the commonwealth’s budget. The Bradford County Conservation District plans to utilize around $3.5 million in funds from the Agriculture Conservation Assistance Program (ACAP).

Lancaster Online: Lancaster County teens learn forest management at week-long conservation camp
By Elizabeth Deornellas | Lancaster, PA | Northeast Region
07/25/2024 In a week in which the Lancaster County Youth Conservation School is celebrating the 80th anniversary of Smokey the Bear, one highlight proved to be the cutting-edge drone the Pennsylvania Game Commission uses to drop spherical “dragon eggs” whose chemical reactions spark the flames that fuel prescribed burns.