August 2, 2002

"There are no passengers on Spaceship Earth. We are all crew."

--Marshall McLuhan, semanticist and social commentator, 1911-1980
 

Focus on the Field

Soils of Alabama Program Airs on Public Television
The 30-minute Soils of Alabama video aired three times on Alabama Public Television in July 2002. The video was produced as a cooperative effort with the Discovering Alabama Public Television program, the Alabama State Soil and Water Conservation Committee, and Alabama Natural Resources Conservation Service. The video, which features the seven physiographic regions of the state and related soils, is a part of the Discovering Alabama series. As a segment of the Discovering Alabama series, it will air periodically throughout the year. The video is available to school systems in the state.
Your contact is Julie Best, NRCS public affairs specialist, on 334-887-4549 or Julie.Best@al.usda.gov.

State-of-the-art Streambank Project in Southwest Alaska
Alaska NRCS has amended the cooperative agreement with the City of Soldotna on the Kenai Peninsula to allocate $450,000 of earmarked funds for streambank restoration on the Kenai River. These funds, in addition to almost $1.4 million of previously earmarked funds, are being used to repair streambank and gully erosion, and to provide elevated, light-penetrating walkways for fishing access. Installation of the light-penetrating walkways provides long-term protection from future erosion in his high-impact, heavy-use area. The Kenai River, a world class fishery for King and Sockeye salmon, is visited by thousands of anglers each year. This year's conservation project funding will be used to revegetate a streambank site where sand and salt for winter road treatment was once stockpiled. NRCS is providing technical assistance for the walkway configuration and location, plant species selection, and revegetation techniques.  Your contact is Rob Sampson, NRCS Alaska State Engineer, on 907-271-2424, ext. 117.

NRCS North Dakota Assists in New State Wildlife Management Area
NRCS North Dakota, along with 50 individuals representing Federal, State, non-profit, and private interests, recently celebrated the dedication of the Joliet Ferry Wildlife Management Area. The land, enrolled in a patchwork of Emergency Watershed Protection Program and Wetlands Reserve Program contracts, was acquired by a non-profit organization for public use. NRCS provided the groundwork of securing easements and restoring wetlands and floodplain hydrology on this 555-acre parcel located along the Red River. The area has been donated to the North Dakota Game and Fish Department for public outdoor recreation, educational, and long-term management.  Your contact is Arlene Deutscher, NRCS public affairs specialist, on 701-530-2099.

Asian Pacific Islander Organization Training Conference Held
Nearly 100 NRCS and Forest Service employees recently attended the APIO's Fourth Annual Training Conference in Verdi, Nevada. Participants were updated on new program information, diversity and outreach initiatives, and self-development skills. In addition, a new partnership was formed between NRCS' API organization and the Forest Service's Asian Pacific American Employees Association. Lou Gallegos, USDA Assistant Secretary for Administration, was a banquet speaker. He updated participants on the latest USDA initiatives. Presentations also included the latest information on the 2002 Farm Bill and Asian Pacific Islander initiatives underway by NRCS and the Forest Service.  Your contact is Liz Warner, NRCS public affairs specialist, on 775-784-5863.

Farm Bill Update

Secretary Veneman Announces Release of Additional EQIP Funding
On August 1, Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman announced that the additional $227 million for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) has been released to all States, Puerto Rico and the Pacific Basin. NRCS State offices will receive allocated funding needed to provide financial and technical assistance to farmers, ranchers and tribes through EQIP for conservation practices that improve soil, water and air quality; wildlife habitat; and surface and ground water conservation on eligible agricultural land, including livestock operations. "These funds will enable farmers and ranchers to enhance and protect our nation's soil, air and water resources for the future by implementing sound conservation practices today," said Veneman.  See the USDA news release and a State-by-State list of funding at http://www.usda.gov/news/releases/2002/08/0323.htm.

Term "Technical Service Provider" Replaces "Third Party Vendor"
NRCS is continuing to develop a process for delivery of technical assistance in accordance with the 2002 Farm Bill legislation. As part of that development process, the term "third party vendor" has been changed to "technical service provider" to broaden and elevate the concept, and to more accurately reflect the relationships of these sources of assistance. Also, two interim final rules are being developed. One rule will cover technical service from the private sector and the other technical service from non-Federal public agencies. This effort will expedite the rulemaking process.  Your contact is Melissa Hammond, NRCS, on 202-720-6731.

2002 Farm Bill Discussed with South Dakota Tribes
In three meetings in western South Dakota, USDA staff met with tribal representatives regarding the 2002 Farm Bill. NRCS State Conservationist Janet Oertly, Rural Development State Director Lynn Jensen, and Farm Service Agency State Executive Director Steve Cutler, recently met in Spearfish with representatives from all South Dakota tribes. They discussed benefits of the new Farm Bill and potential benefits to tribes through participation in various programs.

On the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, NRCS South Dakota staff met with the lands department, tribal government and the tribal conservation district. Topics of discussion revolved around the Farm Bill's programs and Technical Service Providers. The final meeting emphasized the High Plains Aquifer, which is located under seven counties in south central South Dakota. The Rosebud Indian Reservation is located in Todd County and is located over the aquifer.

The Farm Bill authorizes the Environmental Quality Incentives Program. A special section of this program's legislation allows for additional water saving funding in the High Plains Aquifer. The High Plains Aquifer underlies eight States, including South Dakota. The purpose of this special section is to install "water savings" practices in agricultural operations, particularly on cropland.  Your contact is Dave Keith, NRCS, public affairs specialist on (605) 352-1228.

Word from Washington

NRCS E-Government and Accountability Expo 2002
On Thursday, August 1, 2002, NRCS personnel at National Headquarters (NHQ) presented an exposition of tools highlighting the agency's accountability systems and advances in E-Government. The advances displayed at the expo showed how the accountability and e-government initiatives are improving the efficiency and effectiveness of agency operations and customer service. It also provided policy-makers at NHQ with opportunities to become more familiar with the data available for their analyses and the technological advancements that affect the way field offices conduct business.

Chief Bruce Knight opened the expo with comments about some of the steps that NRCS has taken in order to meet the President's Management Agenda, particularly with regard to budget and performance integration and e-government.

Presenters from the Operations Management and Oversight, Ecological Sciences, and Conservation Operations Divisions were on hand to answer questions about their respective topics. Employees from various agencies within USDA talked to presenters about the Electronic Field Office Technical Guide (E-FOTG), progress and performance reporting and workload databases. The expo featured on-line demonstrations of E-FOTG, the NRCS Accountability Web site, the Integrated Accountability System, and the Performance and Results Measurement System (PRMS). The latter truly demonstrates advances in e-government, because the public has access via the World Wide Web to the progress and performance data that are entered by NRCS and its partnership on a daily basis. Any individual or partner can review progress for his or her county, congressional district, conservation district, or watershed and compare that data to the State or the Nation.

The E-FOTG will markedly improve the mechanism for updating and distributing the technical guidance documentation for the agency. The on-line accessibility means that once states have uploaded their technical guides, new information can be added and disseminated with minimal effort.

Another highlight of the expo was the Customer Service Toolkit presentation. This software application improves the efficiency and effectiveness of conservation planning by linking mapping capability with planning and resource assessment. Output from the toolkit will be useful to partner agencies. Maps are a traditional method of communicating with customers, and the toolkit makes it easy to develop these maps for customers. Your contact is Tish Toomer, NRCS NHQ Operations Oversight and Management Division, on 202-720-1864.

NACD Annual Meeting, Feb. 2003!
The National Association of Conservation Districts' 57th Annual Meeting is scheduled for February 9-13, 2003. For more information, go to the Conference Web Site at http://www.nacdnet.org/2003/.

Deadline for USDA Mentoring Program is Aug. 19
USDA's Office of Human Resources Management is looking for participants in the Department's Mentoring Program. Find out how to apply at http://www.usda.gov/da/employ/mentor-program.htm.

Correction
The July 26 edition of NRCS This Week incorrectly reported that NRCS and its Mississippi partners would host two Soil Climate Analysis Network Forums on August 14, 2002. In fact, one forum will be held that day. It is scheduled for 1:00-2:30 p.m., and will be held in conjunction with the Delta Research & Extension Center's Cotton Research Field Day, which is set for 8:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.

Tech Tip

Cool-season Legume Cultivars Released for Southeast
Four new cool-season annual legumes for the Southeast have been released cooperatively by the NRCS' Plant Materials Center in Americus, Georgia, together with Auburn University (AU) and the University of Georgia. These legumes were developed for use as conservation tillage plants, green manure, and cool-season cover crops, as well as nitrogen fixation providers. The release and use of these new cultivars are documented in the video, "New Legumes for Cover Crops," produced by Clemson University in collaboration with NRCS.

AU EarlyCover is an early blooming hairy vetch that provides early growth and maturity. Another hairy vetch, Americus, develops much later and provides more dry matter production and coverage for soil and water protection. AU Sunrise crimson clover, developed to be the earliest developing crimson clover on the market, blooms earlier than other crimson clovers, including AU Robin. Along with AU EarlyCover, AU Sunrise can expand the flexibility of conservation tillage and cover crop systems. AU GroundCover caley pea is used for forage production in heavy calcareous clay soils and provides good cover for conservation tillage. All of these legumes can be used in green manure and organic gardening systems.

Your contact is Mike Owsley, NRCS Plant Materials Center, on 912-924-4499, Mike.Owsley@gaamericu2.fsc.usda.gov.

NRCS people, projects, and programs appeared this week in the following newspapers:

Farmland Protection Program: Preserving Maine's Farms (Portsmouth Herald, NH)

Fire Recovery:  Property Tax Increase May Go on Ballot (Durango Herald, CO)

BAER Report Warns of Grizzly Gulch Runoff Danger (Rapid City Journal, SD)

EXTRA! Satellite photo of Oregon fires

Nutrient Management/Alternative Energy:  Western New York Farm Turns Cow Patties into Kilowatts (Buffalo News)

USDA's Farm Bill 2002 Website

Special NRCS Klamath Basin Reports

NRCS Legislative Summaries

Conferences for NRCS Employees and Partners

Events & Activities

AGRICOLA: USDA's AGRICultural Online Access

National Association of Conservation Districts e-Notes

NRCS PLANTS Web Site
Links to information on Fire Resistant Landscaping can be found at PLANTS by clicking on Links - Native Plants & Gardening - Fire Resistant Landscaping.

(NOTE: Links are tested at the time NRCS This Week is cleared. However, by the time readers try the link, the story may be off its server. In most cases, readers can go to the paper's homepage, where they will be able to access the story through the paper's archives).

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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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