Upcoming Workshops, Seminars
Feb. 12, 19/ Wildlife-Friendly Practices Workshop / Carmel This is the second of a three day workshop being over by Indiana Wildlife Federation to provide information on how to implement wildlife-friendly practices into daily work. Information on the program and registration can be found by clicking here.
Feb. 17 / Energy Efficiency in Farming / Muncie Blackford, Delaware, Grant, Jay, Madison and Randolph County SWCD have collaborated on this workshop on how to cut energy costs on the farm. More information on this program can be found by clicking here. To register for this event contact Debra Carpenter at 765.747.5531 ext. 3.
Feb. 18 / Hay Management and Marketing / Shelbyville Shelby County SWCD is helping to host this workshop on establishing a hay crop that meets your needs, harvesting, testing and providing different hay crops for different customers and also marketing the hay crop for profit. More information can be found on the flyer by clicking here.
Feb. 19 / Creating a Legacy: Options for Preservation / Shelbyville Hoosier Heartland RC&D and Central Indiana Land Trust are hosting this first in a three-part series of workshops. This event will cover topics such as the role of land trusts, incentives for conservation easements and the Farmland Preservation Program. Registration and more information can be found on the brochure by clicking here.
Feb. 24 / Moonlight Forestry Course / Centerpoint Clay County SWCD is hosting this three-part course. This first section will give a general introduction to forestry, forest management, tree planting practices and tree improvement within the woodlot. More information on this event and registration information can be found by clicking here.
Feb. 25 / Tri-State Conservation Farming Expo / Auburn St. Joseph River Watershed Initiative is hosting this conference which will cover topics like ag energy and conservation policy, cover crops, pest management, reducing input costs and more. The full program and registration information can be found by clicking here.
Feb. 26 / So You Have Decided to Sell Your Land- What Next? / Noblesville
Hoosier Heartland RC&D and Central Indiana Land Trust are hosting this second section in a three-part series of workshops. This event will cover topics like the effect of utilities and zoning while selling land, how to structure the sale and utilizing conservation tools. Registration and more information can be found on the brochure by clicking here.
Feb. 27 / Smart Farming for the Future / Lakeville St. Joseph County SWCD is hosting this workshop on nutrient management, conservation tillage, organic farming and other topics. View the flyer for this workshop by clicking here. To register contact St. Joseph County SWCD at 574.291.7444 ext. 3
Feb. 28 / Project WET Training Workshop / West Lafayette Project WET will be showing hands-on demonstrations of the lessons and activities that are a part of their Curriculum and Activity Guide. More information on this even and registration can be found by clicking here.
Mar. 4-5 / Water Quality Trading Workshop / Easton, MD More information on this workshop hosted by Conservation Technology Information Center can be found in the weekly update by clicking here.
Mar. 5 / Conservation Farming Workshop / Richmond Wayne County SWCD is hosting this workshop which will cover FSA, NRCS and watershed updates and discuss carbon credits in regards to soil and forestry options. More details can be found on the flyer by clicking here. Questions and reservations can be made by calling Wayne County SWCD office at 765.966.0191 ext. 3.
Mar. 5 / Northern Indiana Soil Management Seminar / Goshen
Elkhart County SWCD is hosting this seminar covering topics on cover crops, nutrient management, and pesticides. Credits are available for Certified Crop Advisors, Commercial Pesticide Applicators, and Private Applicators. Call the Elkhart County SWCD, at 574-533-3630 ext. 3, for more information or to receive a registration form.
Mar. 10 / Moonlight Forestry Course / Centerpoint Clay County SWCD is hosting this three-part course. This second section will discuss invasive plant and insect species and give information on how to control them. More information on this event and registration information can be found by clicking here.
Mar. 10 / Goose Management Seminar / Columbus Department of Natural Resources Urban Wildlife Project is hosting seminars to discuss various ways of managing the Canadian goose population and will include information regarding applicable laws and methods of controlling goose damage. Click here to read more about this program. Contact the Urban Wildlife Biologist at 812.334.1137 with any questions.
Mar. 11 / Source Water Protection Forum / Indianapolis Alliance of Indiana Rural Water will be covering the Water Source Protection Program, regulatory issues and needs, issues facing water utilities and more at this forum. The complete agenda can be found by clicking here. Contact Toby Days with any questions at 888.937.4992
Mar. 11 / Cover Crop Workshop / Fowler
Benton County SWCD will be hosting this cover crops workshop. Contact Michelle Scherer at 765.884.1090 ext. 3 for more information.
Mar. 12 / Goose Management Seminar / Evansville Click here to read more about this program. Contact the Urban Wildlife Biologist at 812.334.1137 with any questions.
Mar. 13-14 / Leadership in Change / Indianapolis Registration is currently underway for this two-day workshop by the Leadership Institute which is designed for supervisors and targeted towards leadership skills. More information on the topics that will be covered at this event and registration information can be found by clicking here.
Mar. 17-18 / Alliance of Indiana Rural Water 2009 Spring Conference / Bloomington Alliance of Indiana Rural Water will have a wide variety of training sessions, opportunities to earn water and wastewater credits as well seeing new products and services being offered by exhibitors. Registration and more information on this conference can be found by clicking here.
Mar. 19 / Goose Management Seminar / Indianapolis Click here to read more about this program. Contact the Urban Wildlife Biologist at 812.334.1137 with any questions.
Mar. 24 / Moonlight Forestry Course / Centerpoint Clay County SWCD is hosting this three-part course. This final part of the workshop series will give an introduction to timber marketing and sales. More information on this event and registration information can be found by clicking here.
Mar. 24 / Cover Crop Field Day / Greensburg Decatur County SWCD is hosting this field day which will showcase a variety of test plots featuring several types of ryegrass, clover, winter peas, oats and other cover crops. If you have any questions call the Decatur Co. SWCD office at 812-663-8685 ext. 3.
Mar. 28 / Keeping Your Land and Making a Profit / Greenwood
Hoosier Heartland RC&D and Central Indiana Land Trust are hosting this third workshop in a three-part series. This event will explore alternative options for landowners to use their land to generate income and will provide ideas, resources and tools to help landowners keep their land healthy and productive. Registration and more information can be found on the brochure by clicking here.
Mar. 31 / Goose Management Seminar / Lafayette Click here to read more about this program. Contact the Urban Wildlife Biologist at 812.334.1137 with any questions.
Apr. 1 / Goose Management Seminar / North Liberty Click here to read more about this program. Contact the Urban Wildlife Biologist at 812.334.1137 with any questions.
Apr. 2 / Goose Management Seminar / Fort Wayne Click here to read more about this program. Contact the Urban Wildlife Biologist at 812.334.1137 with any questions.
April 22-24, 2009 / Celebrate the Good Earth Festival / Indianapolis The State's Largest Classroom at the Indiana State Fairgrounds will host this festival, as well as tours for school children this fall.
>> Click here for more information. Call 317.927.7585 for more information about the field trips.
July 11-15 / Soil and Water Conservation Society’s Annual Conference / Dearborn, MI >> Click here for details.
IASWCD wants to encourage all District employees to utilize the great features of the USDA AgLearn Web site. AgLearn contains a vast collection of great information that can help District employees learn new skills, stay up-to-date in technology advances and more! This can be a great resource for Districts. Instructions on creating an AgLearn account can be found by clicking here.
Publications Links
|
For the Week of February 9 - February 13, 2009 |
|
In This Week’s Edition . . .
A Report from the Executive Director, Jennifer Boyle
Reminder: SWCD Annual Meetings. Changes and updates have been made to the list of SWCD Annual Meetings. The complete list of SWCD Annual Meetings can be found by clicking here.
District News:
New Employee. IASWCD would like to welcome Lisa Wynn to the St. Joseph County SWCD as their new Administrative Assistant!
New District Location. Hamilton County SWCD has moved to a new location! Their new address is 1155 South 10th Street in Noblesville. The phone numbers and email addresses have not changed.
Leadership In Change Workshop. The Leadership In Change workshop has been scheduled for March 13-14, 2009. It will be this year’s only “level one” workshop. It is recommended that all participants in the leadership series attend this level one Leadership in Change workshop before attending the three other workshops in the series. More information on this program as well as the registration information can be found by clicking here.
NRCS Online Conference. The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) will conduct a series of net conferences to review key changes in conservation programs brought about by the 2008 Farm Bill and published rules. All net conferences will be held from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., Eastern Standard Time (EST). The schedule is as follows:
- Feb.12: Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program (WHIP), and Agricultural Management Assistance (AMA) Program
- Feb. 13: Agricultural Water Enhancement Program (AWEP), Cooperative Conservation Partnership Initiative (CCPI), and Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG)
- Feb. 17: Technical Service Providers (TSP)
- Feb. 18: Regional Equity and State Technical Committees
- Feb. 23: Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP)
- Feb. 24: Grasslands Reserve Program (GRP) and Healthy Forest Reserve Program (HFRP)
- Feb. 25: Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program (FRPP)
Information on how to participate in these online conferences can be found by clicking here.
Have a good week,
Jennifer
NRCS Offers Easement Funds for Flooded Fields
It has been several months since farm fields in Indiana suffered huge damages from some of the most significant rainstorms and flooding ever in the Midwest. Last summer, as the flood waters receded, farmers were in their fields surveying damages and replanting drowned crops. In some fields the damages were so great that it will take years and great expense to restore them to adequate levels of productivity.
“We have seen places here in Indiana where flooding losses happen frequently enough, and productivity is low enough that they are not worth the investment it takes to continue to farm them,” says State Conservationist Jane Hardisty, of USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). “We have an opportunity to offer farmers who find themselves in that situation.”
“There are two conservation programs in which funding has been authorized to purchase easements on farmlands where flooding is a problem. We anticipate receiving significant dollars for both the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) and the Floodplain Easement Program (FEP) in 2009. The eligibility requirements are slightly different in the two programs, but this is an excellent time to enroll fields or parts of fields where flooding or flood damages have made crop production marginal,” says Hardisty. For the Floodplain Easement Program, land qualifies if it has been flooded at least once in the past 12 months, or twice in the past 10 years. In the Wetlands Reserve Program, land qualifies if it would have been considered a wetland area before it was converted to agricultural production.
Under both programs, NRCS buys easements on lands to remove them from production agriculture. Once the easements are in place, NRCS may do some restoration work to put the land back into floodplain use or wetland conditions. Restoration work is paid up to 100% by NRCS, and helps retain flood waters in floodplains and associated areas, restore water quality, and provide habitats for wildlife. Easement compensation is based on a cap set for each county, and the land is valued either as cropland or non-cropland. Interested landowners can get more information and apply by visiting NRCS at the local USDA Service Center. More information can be found on-line at http://www.in.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/ under “Easement Programs.”
USDA Service Center locations can be found at: http://offices.sc.egov.usda.gov/locator/app
Indiana Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts
OFFICERS:
President: Paula Baldwin, Marion Co.
Vice President: Ray McCormick: Knox Co.
Secretary: Jeff Meinders, Ripley Co.
Treasurer: Brian Campbell, Elkhart Co.
REGION DIRECTORS:
Board Roster / Region Map
North-Northwest: Larry Strole, Newton Co.
South-Northwest: Kenny Cain, Montgomery Co.
North-Northeast: Tom Crowe, Allen Co.
South-Northeast: Bobby Hettmansperger, Wabash Co.
North-Southwest: Bob Weaver, Johnson Co.
South-Southwest: Alan Weyer, Dubois Co.
North-Southeast: Brad Dawson, Dearborn Co.
South-Southeast: Brad Ponsler, Jennings Co.
IASWCD STAFF:
Executive Director: Jennifer Boyle, 317.692.7519
Watershed Information Specialist: Elizabeth Trybula, 317.692.7514
Communications Manager: DeeDee Sigler, 317.692.7374
Project Assistant: Jaclyn Casale, 317.692.7325
|
| |
|
|
