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 accessing articles, please contact the NACD Communications Team.
NACD Blog: Fourth Graders Paddle Down the Kankakee River and Gain a Boatload of Knowledge
11/12/2024
Recently, on the banks of the Kankakee River, busloads of local 4th graders came together to learn about the beauty and history of the river and the importance of watershed stewardship. Their final test and reward? Paddling on the Kankakee in 24-foot replica Voyageur canoes! Indiana’s LaPorte County Soil & Water Conservation District (LPSWCD) presented its annual Kankakee River Days at the Kingsbury Fish & Wildlife Area at the end of September.
Barn Raiser: A Second Trump Administration Threatens Longstanding USDA Conservation and Insurance Programs
By Miles MaClure
11/04/2024
The CRP, created in the 1985 Farm Bill, is a popular program among farmers. Nearly 25 million acres nationwide, totaling nearly $2 billion in payments, are currently enrolled through CRP contracts or through the CRP Transition Incentive Program. The program’s very existence is now threatened. The Heritage Foundation’s Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise—a nearly 1,000-page playbook of guidance and policy proposals for every corner of the federal government that it calls Project 2025—recommends elimination of CRP, along with a host of other farm bill programs.
Ag Web: Who Will Be the Next U.S. Secretary of Agriculture?
By Jim Wiesemeyer
11/07/2024
Trump, who won election in 2016 as the 45th president, now will be the 47th and just the second candidate in U.S. history to win nonconsecutive White House terms. Now that the results are in, it begs the question: Who will be the new USDA Secretary? That parlor game has returned with a host of possibilities which include the following.
No-Till Farmer: ‘Grandfather of No-Till’ Bill Richards Passes, Leaving Behind Conservation Legacy
By John Dobberstein
11/13/2024
William J. “Bill” Richards, the former NRCS director in Washington in the early 1990s who was considered by many as the ‘Grandfather’ of no-till practices in the U.S., passed away Tuesday at his home. He was 93. He inspired countless growers across the U.S. to adopt and evolve no-till practices and had a deep repository of historical lessons learned about conservation policies in Washington. He was keenly aware of what policies stood the best change of resonating with farmers as he drew upon his practical experiences.
KTTC: Farmer-led research looks to create environmental sustainability
By Ryder Blair | Rochester, MN | North Central Region
10/31/2024
A few miles north of Austin Minnestoa the Sustainable Anwer Acre (SAA) farm is an 8-acre plot of land used for farming sustainability research and owned by Nexus Cooperative. The research team is a farmer-led group and works with ten separate organizations, including the Mower County Soil and Water Conservation District.
Agriculture Dive: California voters reject ban on ‘factory farming’
By Sarah Zimmerman | California | Pacific Region
11/06/2024
California voters in the major agricultural region of Sonoma County overwhelmingly voted down a controversial ballot proposal to phase out large farms in a win for the meat industry.
Fox Weather: Invasive species never seen before in North America found in California
By Hayley Vawter | Sacramento, CA | Pacific Region
11/08/2024
An invasive species of freshwater mussel never-before-seen in the United States was found in California. Golden mussels, or Limnoperna fortunei, were recently found at the Port of Stockton in the Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta, the California Department of Parks and Recreation (PARKS) said.
Tri-City Herald: ‘A feeling of community’: Vets on the Farm cultivates mentors to grow in civilian life
By Treva Lind | Spokane, WA | Pacific Region
11/10/2024
(Edited) When Army veteran Duane Zbranek left the military and returned home after two tours in Iraq serving as a medic, he felt disconnected. He decided to turn that experience into something more by going to school. Zbranek went through Spokane Community College’s greenhouse management program, and then found Vets on the Farm, a Spokane Conservation District program started nearly 10 years ago.
Farms.com: Fridays on the Farm: Grounded on the Ranch
By Sabrenna Bryant | North, SC | Southeast Region
11/11/2024
This Friday meet Jim McClain, Marine Corps veteran and owner of Flying Leatherneck Ranch in North, South Carolina, where he grows hay and raises 100 head of beef cattle on 600 acres of beautiful, rolling hills. Jim decided to get back to his farming roots after years of serving in the Marine Corps as a flyer, infantry officer, and public affairs officer, as well as working as a senior vice president in corporate America.
Farm Progress: Drought response: Emergency haying, grazing allowed
Ohio | North Central Region
11/12/2024
In response to persistent drought conditions, USDA’s Farm Service Agency announced that 79 Ohio counties are authorized for emergency haying and grazing of Conservation Reserve Program acres. CRP participants in all remaining Ohio counties are also authorized to donate emergency haying and grazing rights to livestock producers affected by severe drought conditions in southeast and southern Ohio.
CBS News: A New Jersey veteran started mushroom farming. He went from taking lives to “just being around life.”
By Cara Tabachnick | Cherry Hill, NJ | Northeast Region
11/12/2024
New Jersey veteran Stephen Robinson thinks about the logistics of growing mushrooms and sending them to farmers’ markets and restaurants — a far cry from the logistics he managed as an Army convoy commander during battles in Iraq. He runs an urban farm in south New Jersey called Urban Farmer Steve, where he grows mushrooms, microgreens, vegetables and flowers.
The Olympian: Next phase begins for a Spokane year-round farmers market to open this spring
By Treva Lind | Spokane, WA | Pacific Region
11/13/2024
Over construction noises Tuesday, project leaders dug in for the building phase of a Spokane year-round farmers market set to open by spring. The Spokane Conservation District, with offices on the same 50-acre site, is leading the project at 4422 E. Eighth Ave., near Havana Street. The market is expected to draw nearly 250,000 people a year with indoor-outdoor vendors, a commercial kitchen, food truck incubator, classes and events, operating all year long instead of the traditional spring-to-fall farmers market model.