November 7, 2003

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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Focus on the Field

A Close Call For Bobwhite Quail: New Trend Toward Healthier Numbers
Bobwhite have been seriously receding into what might have become just a memory. But in parts of West Tennessee that seems to be changing. Michael Hansbrough, NRCS biologist in Jackson, Tennessee, credits the 361 miles of native grass buffers and large blocks of native grasses installed in the last three years through USDA programs.  FULL STORY

Iowa Employee Mentors Disabled Students on Conservation Careers
Two Des Moines, Iowa, 9th grade students with disabilities recently shadowed NRCS Soil Conservationist Sue Snyder Thomas for half a day as part of an annual mentoring program designed to help disabled students learn about various career fields.  FULL STORY

Washington's First Interagency Living Snow Fence Project
NRCS and cooperative partners improved winter driving conditions by installing a living snow fence in Lincoln County. The living snow fence project took over a year to plan, locate and prepare a site for planting.  FULL STORY

Native Grasses in Demand to Repair Stripped Land
A flood of demand across the Southwest for native grasses has tapped out seed supplies at the NRCS plant research center in Los Lunas, New Mexico.  FULL STORY

RiverSmart Campaign Clears Up Misconceptions about River Pollution
The North Jersey Resource Conservation and Development Council and the Upper Delaware Watershed Management Project with funding assistance from the River Network recently ran a successful print and television public service announcement campaign in the New York-Philadelphia metro areas.  FULL STORY

NRCS-backed GIS Lab Opens at Texas' Prairie View A&M
NRCS has formed a partnership with Prairie View A&M University to provide high-tech training that will help farmers and ranchers make better use of land and improve crop production.  FULL STORY

Rehabilitation Team Visits Grand Canyon State
Dam rehabilitation specialists from around the country were invited to Arizona to familiarize themselves with dams in Arizona and discuss technical issues. The first visit by the team was on Wednesday, October 22nd, with a stop at the Florence Retarding Dam near Florence in Pinal County.  FULL STORY

Word from Washington

Recent Speeches
"Managing Animal Residuals for Economic Gain," Remarks at the Animal Residuals Conference: Alternative Technologies, Approaches and Biosecurity, Arlington, Virginia (Bruce I. Knight, Chief NRCS. November 3, 2003)

"Technical Service Providers: A Status Report," Remarks at the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers Annual Meeting, St. Louis, Missouri, (Bruce I. Knight, Chief, NRCS. October 29, 2003)

NRCS Proposed Reorganization Web Page
Get the latest official information about the proposed reorganization of NRCS. PROPOSED REORG WEB PAGE

NRCS Legislative Summaries, Testimony, and Reports
Timely and accurate information from NRCS Legislative Affairs.

Tech Tip

Fire Fact Sheet Available
For States suffering from the ravages of wildfires, the NRCS Soil Quality Institute has recently printed 10,000 copies of the Hydrophobicity fact sheet. States like California and New Mexico can use the fact sheet in information packets for landowners and public officials in burn areas.  FULL STORY

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD).

To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call 202-720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.