"America is too great for small dreams."  Ronald Wilson Reagan, 40th U.S. President

In This Issue

Status of Farm Bill Rules
Grassland Reserve Program
Income Limits
Technical Service Provider Assistance

Farm Bill Delivery Workshop
FSA and NRCS Team Up to Represent USDA!

NRCS Drought News
Get linked to the latest drought data!

Focus on the Field
Nebraska Dams Reduce Flood Damage
NRCS to Help Buy Easements on 2,600 Acres in Montana
Pennsylvania Watershed Groups Awarded $650,000 in Chesapeake Bay Small Watershed Grants
Louisiana Drainage Plan to Flow from Grant
NRCS Wisconsin Celebrates Coon Creek Anniversary

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Contact Us

Status of Farm Bill Rules

Grassland Reserve Program
The Notice of Funding Availability for a national program was published in the Federal Register on June 13, 2003.
Your contact is Leslie Deavers, NRCS natural resource manager, at 202-720-1067, or leslie.deavers@usda.gov.

Income Limits
The Adjusted Gross Income final rule was published in the Federal Register on
June 4, 2003.
Your contact is Anne Dubey, Acting Director, NRCS Resource Conservation & Community Development Division, at 202-720-2847, or anne.dubey@usda.gov.

Technical Service Provider Assistance
An amendment to the TSP interim final rule will be published in the Federal Register soon. This amendment establishes an approval process for public agencies to be TSPs separate from the certification process. An amendment to the TSP interim final rule was published on March 24, 2003, that sets forth a process for establishing payment rates, clarifies the certification process, and describes subcontracting. Comments on that amendment must be received by June 30, 2003.

The TSP policy, handbook, and amendment to the rule are available on the NRCS website at http://techreg.usda.gov/WhatsNew.aspx.
Your contact is Melissa Hammond, NRCS TSP Group Leader, at 202-720-6731, or melissa.hammond@usda.gov.

As of June 27, 2003, nearly 1,500 entities have registered through the TechReg web site at http://techreg.usda.gov, and 750 of those have been certified as Technical Service Providers. A total of 150 businesses and agencies have registered, of which 133 have been certified.

Farm Bill Delivery Workshop

FSA and NRCS Team Up to Represent USDA!
In a first for the sibling agencies, Farm Service Agency (FSA) and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) are teaming to implement the Grassland Reserve Program (GRP), in coordination with the Forest Service. NRCS Chief Bruce Knight and FSA Administrator Jim Little shared the podium for a Joint Executive Session held at a Farm Bill Delivery Workshop in Reno, Nevada, June 24.

The fact that FSA state executive directors (SEDs) and NRCS state conservationists (STCs) were gathered together, Knight said, was a statement in itself.

“The Secretary’s advice is sound in bringing us to the table to share responsibilities,” Knight said. “Having Jim Little for a good friend is important in fostering this relationship. Watching out for each other while handling our own mission is important to us. It will lead to a compounding of our efforts and strengths.”

Little emphasized that his friendship with Knight is based on mutual respect and recognition of shared goals. “With limited technical, financial and human resources,” Little said, “partnering is also imperative, and a concept that our county offices have embraced for a long time. At the county level, our producers look to both agencies for financial and technical support and often do not distinguish one agency from another. They view us as we should view ourselves, as a team representing USDA.”

Knight issued a challenge. He asked SEDs and STCs to look at the top leadership of both agencies as examples of how we will work together, and as a legacy to be built upon for farmers and ranchers. Knight considers this dual implementation approach a new model for accountability, ethics and confidentiality. He called GRP a bellwether, a leader for future relationships and considers it illustrative of how we will deliver programs in the future.

Little concluded by thanking everyone for their dedication, hard work and willingness to team together. “Every one of us here today faces daunting challenges and a massive work load,” said Little, “but I believe that together we can implement this program, strengthen the conservation of grasslands and broaden our perspectives on mutual accomplishments.”

Nearly 130 people attended the GRP training. Additional discussion topics throughout the three-day meeting included Farm Bill programs and allocations, effective Farm Bill delivery and streamlining Farm Bill programs.

Sandra Adams, FSA State Executive Director from Massachusetts, said, “Nationwide, our farmers and producers rely on us to deliver both financial and technical services. GRP, EQIP and other programs will strengthen the partnership. Hearing the chief and administrator reinforce this message is a good thing for USDA.”

“It was a privilege for me to be part of the first joint leadership meeting of FSA state directors and NRCS state conservationists,” said Steve Chick, State Conservationist from Nebraska. “Most striking to me was the quality of committed leaders we have within both agencies, who are united by one common purpose -- delivering the Farm Bill programs as efficiently and effectively as possible to our customers. Discussion of the tremendous workload pressures we face to deliver our respective programs spawned a climate of camaraderie and a spirit of cooperation. I strongly encourage top leadership of FSA and NRCS to continue this effort by annually convening an agency leadership meeting at a common site where we can meet jointly together for one day.”

NRCS Drought News

Check out…
Defending Against Drought
NRCS Colorado Drought Information
USDA Disaster Assistance Web Site
National Drought Monitor Web Site

Focus on the Field

Nebraska Dams Reduce Flood Damages
Last month’s floods in southern Thayer County and parts of Jefferson County, Nebraska, were bad, but without 13 NRCS flood control structures in the Bowman Springs and Buckley Creek watersheds the floods would have been much worse.

Without the structures, more farmsteads, parts of Highway 8, and bridges would have been inundated and tens of thousands of dollars more damage inflicted. Similar dams in the area, built with NRCS assistance in cooperation with the Little Blue Natural Resources District, further contributed to holding back water.

“These dams were built in the 1960’s and ’70’s with 75 percent of the land above them treated with conservation practices like terraces, which further slowed the runoff water,” State Conservationist Steve Chick said.

“In one sense, the flood damages prevented were partial payback to the citizens who had the foresight to build these dams,” Chick added. “And the good part it is that they are still there for future protection.”

(Photos: NRCS flood control structures in Thayer County protect lives and property from storm runoff that ravaged areas of southern Nebraska.  Courtesy of Pat McGrane, NRCS State Public Affairs Specialist.)

NRCS to Help Buy Easements on 2,600 Acres in Montana
NRCS will spend $1.6 million to help nonprofit groups buy conservation easements on 2,600 acres of Montana farm and ranch lands, the agency announced Monday. NRCS will work through the Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program (FRLPP) to help land trusts in Flathead, Missoula, and Gallatin counties acquire conservation easements on five tracts of land. The program provides up to 50 percent of the costs. The biggest of the easements is 1,500 acres north of Belgrade that will be purchased in conjunction with the Trust for Public Land, Gallatin Valley Land Trust, and the Gallatin Valley Open Lands Board. FRLPP will provide about $625,000. The Flathead Land Trust will acquire two easements totaling 507 acres in Flathead County, adjacent to easements acquired in previous years. Altogether, just over 888 acres in Flathead County has been protected through FRLPP. In Missoula County, Five Valleys Land Trust will use agency funding to acquire two easements that include historical structures.

Pennsylvania Watershed Groups Awarded $650,000 in Chesapeake Bay Small Watershed Grants
Department of Environmental Protection Deputy Secretary for Water Management Cathleen Myers recognized 17 Pennsylvania watershed groups for their efforts in implementing community-led restoration activities in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The groups were awarded more than $650,000 in Chesapeake Bay Small Watershed Grants to develop watershed management plans and innovative, local programs to improve water quality and restore habitats within the Chesapeake Bay watershed. “With the help of programs like this, Pennsylvania watershed groups can continue to work at the local level toward improving water quality crucial to the return of abundant plant and animal populations in the Chesapeake Bay.” Funding is provided by NRCS, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Forest Service, the Department of the Interior's Office of Surface Mining, and the Keith Campbell Foundation for the Environment.

Louisiana Drainage Plan to Flow from Grant
On June 27, NRCS Louisiana and local partners signed a cooperative agreement bringing a $650,000 grant to create a flood and drainage plan for Lincoln Parish. The first phase of the agreement calls for a comprehensive study of drainage problems throughout the parish. “The first phase will probably take two-to-three years,” NRCS Assistant for Water Resource Projects Britt Paul said in the Monroe News Star. “We’ll look at all aspects of the drainage problem, including the agricultural impact and try to build one big plan that addresses all of the problems.” The D’Arbonne Soil and Water Conservation District and the Lincoln Park Police Jury join NRCS in the agreement.

NRCS Wisconsin Celebrates Coon Creek Anniversary
On June 26, NRCS Wisconsin cosponsored an event celebrating the 70th anniversary of the historic Coon Creek watershed and recognizing the efforts of the Wisconsin Watershed Coalition to secure resources for repair of PL566 watershed structures in southwestern Wisconsin. About 100 people attended, including staff of U.S. Senators Russell Feingold and Herb Kohl, and U.S. Representative Ron Kind. In 1933, the Soil Erosion Service (now NRCS) selected Coon Creek as the first watershed in which to demonstrate the values of soil conservation measures. Those measures have reduced soil erosion by 75 percent since 1934.

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Contact Us

Please end correspondence and material for "NRCS This Week" to the editor by: e-mail to: fred.jacobs@usda.gov or by fax to: Editor, "NRCS This Week," 202-720-1564; or by mail to: Editor, "NRCS This Week," NRCS, P.O. Box 2890, Washington, D.C. 20013.

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The NRCS Mission: The Natural Resources Conservation Service provides leadership in a partnership effort to help people conserve, maintain, and improve our natural resources and environment.

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