From the USDA Administrative Convergence Implementation Planning Team (ACIPT) - Leaders and Deputies of the five ACIPT Functional Teams met in Washington, DC. They planned how the five functions--Information Technology, Human Resources, Financial Management, Civil Rights, and Management Services--will operate in the new Support Services Bureau. George Aldaya (FSA) is the team leader for the IT functional area, and Tom Christensen (NRCS) is the deputy team leader.

The ACIPT State Leadership Council has been named. Of the twelve members selected, six will be assigned to administrative convergence and six to the Service Center Implementation Team. The council will provide guidance on state level administrative plans.

On May 14, the three Under Secretaries involved in administrative convergence issued guidance on filling vacancies during the implementation planning process. Agencies are allowed the flexibility to ensure that needed resources are available to support program functions, but filling vacancies should not reduce opportunities for current employees involved in administrative convergence.

ACIPT encourages employee questions and comments about administrative convergence. Team Leader Joe Leo or a member of his staff would be pleased to discuss ACIPT's goals and progress on group conference calls. Please call Kenya Bradley at 202-205-2894 to schedule a call-in time. You may fax comments or questions to the ACIPT Communications fax number at 202-690-2578. Administrative Convergence Update messages are available by phone. Call 1-800-384-8090 for the current week's message. Messages are available to hearing-impaired employees on TDD at 202-720-7882.

Information Systems Security Program Plan Completed - NRCS submitted the annual NRCS Information Systems Security Program Plan to the Department the week of May 11. The plan combined a report on last year's accomplishments with the goals for the upcoming year. One of the most significant accomplishments in the first half of FY1998 was moving the day-to-day management of users at the Departmental Computer Centers from the NHQ Security staff to the National Help Desk located in Fort Collins. Goals for this year include completion of a new security awareness course under the leadership of the National Employee Development Center in Fort Worth and the revision of the NRCS Security policy.

NRCS Personnel Change - In addition to his regular duties as Associate Chief, Danny Sells will serve as Acting Regional Conservationist for the West Region through June 6. Effective June 7, Joan Perry will serve as Acting Regional Conservationist for the West Region, pending final approval from the Office of Personnel Management. Ms. Perry is presently NRCS Director, Pacific Basin Area.

IN THE FIELD

First WHIP Practices Completed - The first Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP) practices to be installed in the country have been completed on two sites in New Jersey. Through WHIP, Trout Unlimited has helped to provide streambank stabilization and fish habitat improvements on a dairy farm in Warren County, NJ, along the Pohatcong Creek and within the Hunterdon County Parks system. These bioengineering projects included the installation of 1,000 feet of bankers willow wattles, elderberry, and redosier dogwood on the farm and 350 feet of cuttings within the park. At both sites, Trout Unlimited will help maintain and improve trout habitat, a priority practice for WHIP in New Jersey. The New Jersey farmer is very excited to be involved in this new program and will soon receive the first WHIP payment anywhere in the United States.

Praise for Backyard Conservation - Paul Kravchenko, president of the Upper Parramatta River Catchment Management Coalition of New South Wales, Australia, was thrilled by the Backyard Conservation campaign. "Thank you, thank you, thank you for the beautiful booklet! The advantage of your booklet is that it presents environmental and conservation concepts in an easy to understand and attractive way to suburban people. I commend you and your organization for having succeeded in this. The booklet, fact sheets and info on the web pages has given me inspiration to adapt something similar locally."

NRCS Provides Educational Workshops - NRCS reports that some limited resource farmers in Guam have difficulties receiving Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) benefits because the practice of record-keeping is not an element of their culture. To help alleviate this situation, the agency is entering into an EQIP educational assistance contract with the University of Guam. Assistance will include workshops and one-on-one assistance with record keeping. This action will have a positive impact on how existing and potential participants perceive USDA programs.

NRCS Workshops in New Hampshire - NRCS assisted the University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension with forestry law workshops for community officials in Hillsborough and Merrimack Counties. The subjects included Best Management Practices and Wetlands.

CONSTITUENCY AND PARTNERSHIP NEWS

Habitat Planning Guide To Be Updated - To advance the wildlife habitat-related goals of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Wildlife Habitat Council (WHC) and NRCS, the Wildlife Habitat Management Institute (WHMI) is initiating work with the WHC to adapt its existing WHC Management Series species-specific habitat planning guides to meet NRCS fish and wildlife conservation planning needs. These species-specific guides will assist field staff in developing habitat management plans under the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program and the Environmental Quality Incentives Program. The guides will be useful tools in developing other conservation plans. They will also be used to aid landowners in their efforts to enhance fish and wildlife habitats on their lands.

NRCS Creates Outreach Council - NRCS has developed a proposal to create an Outreach Council that will ensure that all historically underserved customers have opportunities to participate in and benefit from the agency's services. NRCS is formulating a partnership with the Portland Urban League to move forward with this proposal. The council will consist of representatives from diverse groups.

LEGISLATIVE NEWS

NRCS Small Watershed Program - On May 20, the Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee (Chairman Boehlert, R-NY) of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee marked up legislation to authorize two proposed projects, the Upper Delaware River watershed in Kansas and the East Fork of the Grand River in Iowa and Missouri. The Subcommittee passed the two projects on to the full Committee with a positive recommendation on a voice vote with no objections. The full Committee is tentatively scheduled to take up the measure on June 4.

Livestock Issues - On June 10, Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee (Chairman Lugar, R-IN) will hold a hearing on livestock issues including demand, overseas development, pricing, industry structuring and other related subjects.

Methyl Bromide Phase Out - On June 10, Forestry, Resource Conservation, and Research Subcommittee (Chairman Combest, R-TX) of the House Agriculture Committee will hold a hearing on the Environmental Protection Agency's phase out of methyl bromide, an ozone-depleting pesticide used to control insects, nematodes, weeds, pathogens, and rodents.

SUBSCRIBE TO NRCS THIS WEEK

Receive NRCS This Week by E-mail - You can receive NRCS This Week by e-mail the minute it's cleared. To get on the NRCS-THIS-WEEK mailing list, send an e-mail to: listproc@nrcs.usda.gov. Do not use a subject line and put the following in the body of the message: subscribe NRCS-THIS-WEEK Firstname Lastname (example: subscribe NRCS-THIS-WEEK Fred Jacobs).

To get help with other commands that are available at the "listproc@nrcs.usda.gov" address, send a message with no subject and the word HELP on a line by itself in the body of the message. NRCS This Week will continue to be posted on the NRCS Homepage.

UPCOMING

June 14-16 - National Association of Conservation Districts, Northern Plains Regional Meeting, Badlands Motel, Medora, ND. For more information, contact Robert Raschke at 303-988-1810; fax: 303-988-1896.

June 21-23 - National Association of Conservation Districts, Water Resources Committee Meeting, Statehouse Inn, Boise, ID. For more information, contact Bill Horvath at 715-341-1022; fax: 715-341-1023.

June 28-July 2 - The President's Interagency Council on Women will host the "Second International Conference on Women in Agriculture" in Washington, DC. The conference is chaired by USDA Under Secretary Jill Long Thompson and will focus on the business of agriculture, the agricultural economy, and the agricultural community. SF-182 training forms are being accepted for the $250 conference registration fee. For more information, contact Robin Bailey at 301-585-1030 or visit the conference web site at: http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rd/icwa/.

July 5-9 - Soil and Water Conservation Society (SWCS) Annual Conference, "Balancing Resource Issues," San Diego, CA. For more information, contact Pat Mulligan at 515-289-2331, extension 17, or visit the SWCS website at: http://www.swcs.org/AnnConf98/ACWelcome.htm.

July 12-14 - National Association of Conservation Districts, North Central Regional Meeting, Holiday Inn, Worthington, OH. For more information, contact Brad Ross, 614-265-6614; fax: 614-262-2064.

July 19-22 - The Iowa State University College of Agriculture and University Extension will host a conference on "Animal Production Systems and the Environment: An International Conference on Odor, Water Quality, Nutrient Management, and Socioeconomic Issues" to be held at the Convention Center in Des Moines, IA. For more information, contact Deb Schmidt, 515-294-5961; e-mail: x1schmid@exnet.iastate.edu.

July 27-August 1 - 11th National Envirothon, Michigan State University, Lansing, MI. For more information, contact Brenda Weiser at 800-825-5547, ext. 27 or e-mail: envirothon@nacdnet.org.

August 9-14 - Ninth North American Forest Soils Conference, "Forest Soils and Ecosystem Sustainability." Granlibakken Conference Center, Tahoe City, CA. Information and Registration form available at http://weber.u.washington.edu/~robh/S-7/NAFSC, or e-mail: request to jdjoslin@tva.gov; or fax: 423-632-1493.

QUOTE

"All my life through, the new sights of Nature made me rejoice like a child."

Marie Curie (1867-1934) Polsih-born French chemist

NRCS This Week is issued weekly by the Conservation Communications Staff, NRCS headquarters, Washington, D.C., and posted in the SCS:SCS shared folder on FTS2000Mail. Please send correspondence and material via FTS2000Mail to !A16SCSOPA and type "This Week" on the subject line or e-mail: fred.jacobs2@usda.gov or mail to Editor, "NRCS This Week," NRCS, P.O. Box 2890, Washington, DC 20013 or fax to Editor, "NRCS This Week," 202-690-1221.

< NRCS This Week Archives