Iowa NRCS District Conservationist Leads Tour at Student Ocean Conference

NRCS Earth Team volunteer Robert O’Connell (left) helps students during the Student Enviroscope

NRCS district conservationist Theresa Weiss shared her local expertise with a select group of students and teachers from 20 schools across five States by leading them on a farm tour of conservation practices as part of the Rivers to the Sea Student Ocean Conference held recently at the National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium.

Weiss and local landowner Ken Schmitt of Sherrill, Iowa, explained conservation practices to the group including, contour strip cropping, terraces, ponds, grassed waterways, and no-till farming. They also discussed how farmland nutrient management ties into Mississippi Riverwater quality issues. “Students and teachers learned that what happens in their watershed affects the river and eventually the ocean into which it drains,” said Weiss. “It related rural and urban problems in soil erosion and water quality with potential solutions.”

Weiss said the tour went upland into a watershed and explained how activities at the site affect the water quality of the tributary that drains into the Mississippi River. “It worked well because the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers had an active dredging project going on at the site showing students what the sediment load looked like,” she said.

Weiss and NRCS Earth Team volunteer Robert O’Connell assisted with the Student Enviroscope. The session consisted of a hands-on tabletop demonstration that allowed students to see various types of soil and water quality phenomena. Students developed solutions for their sites based on what they learned earlier on the land tour. “Overall, the conference was a great experience for me,” said Weiss. “I think students and teachers learned a lot about watersheds and some of issues we deal with on an everyday basis at NRCS.”
Your contact is Jason Johnson, NRCS public affairs specialist at 515-323-2701.