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| Friday, March 15, 2002 Washington, DC. |
"Do the best you can in every task, no matter how unimportant it may seem at the time. No one learns more about a problem than the person at the bottom."
FOCUS ON THE FIELD
Boy Scouts + NRCS = High Adventure Planning in Alaska -
The Western Alaska Council of Boy Scouts of America has purchased 2,200 acres - just six miles from the boundary of Denali National Park - for development of a remote High Adventure Camp. The Council teamed up with NRCS to begin the resource management planning process at ground level, starting with soil and vegetation inventories in this roadless area. The High Adventure Camp will be a low-impact, high-energy, outdoor skill oriented camp for Scouts from ages 12 to 18, where they will experience the wonders of nature, hone their leadership skills, and take home a new respect for the great outdoors. Alaska's Mat-Su Field Office will work closely with the Council in its planning efforts, taking the opportunity of this locally led project to extend conservation planning and stewardship concepts that can be adapted by the Council as they move forward with new projects.
Your contact is Calvin Steele, NRCS resource conservationist, Mat-Su Field Office 907-373-6492.
China Delegates Tour Post-fire EWP Sites in California -
Two delegates of the State Forestry Department of the People's Republic of China recently toured NRCS Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) projects in wildfire sites in California's Sequoia National Forest. NRCS Soil Conservationist Jae Lee, Engineer Jon Whan, and Soil Conservationist Aide Karla Hoobler gave presentations on the program and led site tours of post-fire conservation practices installed after the King Fire of 2000. District Conservationist Jack Wright conducted a presentation and tour of EWP assistance implemented after the 79,000-acre Manter Fire, which occurred in Tulare County at the same time. Presentations on the administrative and technical aspects of the EWP Program were well received by the foresters and led to many hours of inquiry and discussion. The U.S. Forest Service sponsored the tour.
Your contact is Jolene Lau, NRCS public affairs specialist, at 831-754-1595.
Kansas Elementary School Students Have a "WACKY" Day -
Approximately 250 students and teachers at Phillipsburg, Kansas Elementary School recently participated in a W.A.C.K.Y. (Wildlife, Agriculture, Conservation, and Knowledge for Youth) Day sponsored by Phillips County Conservation District, the Phillips Farm Bureau Organization, and the Kirwin National Wildlife Refuge. This special day was designed to help students learn about natural resources and have fun at the same time. Students rotated through of nine stations featuring three wildlife presentations, three agriculture related stations, and three natural resource conservation stations. Topics included migration of monarch butterflies, farm safety, how wheat is grown and used, healthy eating using the USDA food pyramid, how farmers protect and conserve natural resources on their land, and how natural fibers are produced and used.
Your contact is Jean Stapel, Phillips County Conservation District Manager, at 785-543-2518 or jean.stapel@ks.usda.gov.
New ESRI ArcGIS 8.1 Training -
The Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI), Inc. learning center at the National Cartography and Geospatial Center (NCGC) now offers an "Introduction to ArcGIS I (for ArcView 8, ArcEditor 8, and ArcInfo 8) " training course. The training is offered at the NCGC Geographic information System (GIS) training room on 16 high-end GIS configuration CCE computers. Training at other sites can be scheduled provided adequate facilities and equipment are available. The 3-day course begins by introducing students to ArcGIS and providing the foundation for becoming a successful ArcView 8, ArcEditor 8, or ArcInfo 8 user. Students then go on to learn how to use ArcMap, ArcCatalog, and ArcToolbox and explore how these applications work together to provide a complete GIS software solution. The course covers fundamental GIS concepts, as well as how to create, edit, and work with georeferenced spatial data. Students learn how to manipulate tabular data, query a GIS database, and present data clearly and efficiently using maps and charts. The NCGC instructors added a third day of instruction incorporating sections on the fundamentals on Global Positioning System (GPS) technology, ArcIMS (Internet Map Service), and ArcSDE (Spatial Data Engine) and other agency specific issues. For more information, visit the course web site at http://www.ftw.nrcs.usda.gov/gistraining/training_courses.htm.
Your contact is Patsy Hudson, NRCS GIS specialist, at 817-509-3361 or phudson@ftw.nrcs.usda.gov.
Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) Increases 100 Percent -
WRP is a big hit in York County, Nebraska. NRCS biologist Dick Hayes, who works at the York field office, has seen WRP enrollment in the area increase 100 percent since he started there in 1998. Hayes thinks WRP meets farmers' needs by giving them an opportunity to deal with non-productive agricultural land. WRP lets landowners voluntarily put their cropped wetland acres into 10-year, 30-year, or permanent easements, in exchange for a payment based on the agricultural value of the land. NRCS manages the program and provides technical and financial support to WRP participants. "WRP provides a win-win situation for farmers with wetlands and wildlife," Hayes said. Local farmers agree. After calculating the amount of rent paid for land versus the number of times a crop was lost due to standing water in the fields, it didn’t take long for farm operator Dan Zierott to convince his landlord to enroll 35 acres into WRP. Hayes is currently working on 54 WRP projects across the natural resource district. Since the program is strictly voluntary, Hayes says he sometimes feels like a salesman when he explains WRP benefits to farmers and ranchers. "If I do, it's because I believe in the program and what it accomplishes," Hayes said.
Your contact is Joanna Pope, NRCS Public Affairs Specialist, at 402-443-3463.
First Ohio Minority Farmers Conference -
"Marketing and Managing for Success" will be the theme of the first conference for minority farmers in Ohio. It will be designed to present information dealing with improving production and increasing profits in order to help reverse the decline of the State’s minority-owned and operated farms. The conference will also present an opportunity for learning, communicating, and networking among Ohio’s minority farmers and those who work with them. "Marketing and Managing for Success," planned in response to minority farmer interest expressed at an NRCS-led meeting held last year, will be held March 23, at Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio. Topics will cover alternative enterprises, assistance for tobacco growers, contracting with food processors, economic development and marketing, growing and marketing organic foods, and landlord/tenant contracts and agreements. Keynote speaker DeWayne Boyd, Agricultural Liaison and Chairman of Community to Enhance Resources for Underserved Farmers (CERUF) will address the group. For registration information, contact the Miami Valley Resource Conservation and Development District, at 513-695-1336.
Your contact is Tomika Walker, NRCS outreach coordinator, at 614-255-2496 or tomika.walker@oh.usda.gov.
WORD FROM WASHINGTON
Celebrate Women's History Month! -
The official theme for this year’s celebration is "Women Sustaining the American Spirit." Schools and communities will celebrate the month with special curriculum and events, and many States and cities have extended the observance year-round by creating women's halls of fame.
The first International Women's Day was March 8, 1911. In 1981, U.S. Representative Barbara Mikulski and U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch cosponsored a Joint Congressional Resolution proclaiming the week of March 8 as National Women's History Week. In 1986, the National Women's History Project helped expand the celebration to the entire month of March. In 1987 and subsequent years, National Women's History Month resolutions have been approved by Congress. Check out the many interesting events of Women's History Month by visiting the Feminist Majority website calendar at http://www.feminist.org/calendar/Calendar.asp.
Your contact is Barbara Compton, NRCS National Federal Women's Program Manger, at 301-504-2183.
Deadline Near For First Annual Excellence in Conservation Award -
NRCS employees have just 2 weeks left to complete their nominations for the First Annual Excellence in Conservation Award that will recognize the valuable contributions that those outside of government have made to natural resource conservation on private land. Nominations must be received by the NRCS Human Resources Management Division on or before April 2, 2002. Any non-governmental individual, group, tribe, or organization is eligible for nomination by an NRCS employee. The nomination must describe the voluntary contributions made by the nominee in such areas as communications, program delivery, technology transfer, outreach, or a combination of these criteria. Each nomination must be accompanied by a citation of accomplishments (200 words or less) summarizing the work performed by the nominee to conserve natural resources on private land. For complete information and nomination form, see the NRCS homepage at http://www.nhq.nrcs.usda.gov/CCS/exaward.html. Nominations should be submitted to NRCS; Room 6218-S; 14th & Independence Avenue, SW; Washington, D.C. 20250.
Your contact is Sandra Thompson, NRCS human resources specialist, at 202-720-2900 or sandra.thompson2@usda.gov.
New Sustainable Agriculture Website -
Development Councils, has launched an interactive website at http://www.rcdsuccess.com/. The site will collect and make available success stories of sustainable agriculture, forestry, and community development activities and projects, both domestic and international (with U.S. partnerships). In addition to a searchable on-line database of these stories, the web site will be a source of stories for a publication to be distributed both nationally and at the World Summit on Sustainable Development scheduled to be held in Johannesburg, South Africa, this August. Information about the project, a data entry template, and recent story entries are also located at the above web site.
Your contact is Jeri Berc, NRCS natural resource manager, at 202-720-2534.
TECH TIP
NRCS Releases Core 4 Survey of Small and Limited Resource Farmers - NRCS has released Core Conservation Practices: Adoption Barriers Perceived by Small and Limited Resource Farmers (T-019), which examines sociological variables such as farm education, income, knowledge, and farm size, relative to adoption patterns of the Core 4 conservation practices among African American and Caucasian small and limited resource farmers. The Core 4 practices are conservation tillage, buffers, and nutrient and pest management. The report, the first of its kind, compares the understanding and adoption of the Core 4 based on group affiliation. Findings are based on responses from 834 farmers in Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi. An Executive Summary developed from the report lists key NRCS action items that can be undertaken to overcome barriers. NRCS' Social Sciences Institute and rural sociologists from Auburn University developed the report. The report and Executive Summary are available at http://www.ssi.nrcs.usda.gov.
Please send 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.
You can receive NRCSTW via e-mail by sending an e-mail to: listproc@nrcs.usda.gov (NHQ personnel should send their e-mail to: GW:"listproc@nrcs.usda.gov@i"). 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 Rachel Carson). 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" is posted on the NRCS Homepage.
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.
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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