United States Department of Agriculture
Natural Resources Conservation Service		 Go to Accessibility Information
Skip to Page Content





Gilmore County West Virginia (NRCS photo — click to enlarge)NRCS This Week mast head

The Natural Resources Conservation Service — Helping People Help the Land.

 Subscribe to NRCS This Week | NRCS This Week Articles Index | NRCS This Week Archives | Contact Us | Where to Get Information | eNotes from NACD | Adobe Acrobat Document TSP Express (Requires Adobe Acrobat.)

focus on the field header bar
 
Arkansas

a student counts the rings on a pine tree to determine its age (NRCS photo — click to enlarge)Backyard Conservation Water Fest
More than 700 seventh- and eighth-graders learned how to protect water — our greatest natural resource — during a Backyard Conservation Water Fest held recently at Lakewood Middle School in North Little Rock, Arkansas.

 

 

Pennsylvania

Terry Aho demonstrates an NRCS on-line soils tool to an American Planners Association attendeeAmerican Planners Association National Conference
As part of the NRCS National Soil Survey Center's (NSSC) ongoing mission to generate awareness that the agency is the premiere source of soils information and soils knowledge in general, the NSSC recently participated at the American Planners Association's national conference in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

 

Washington

amid the cherry tree branches of one of G&G’s orchards, Rene Garcia (left) and NRCS Conservation Agronomist Kevin Davis review the Garcia’s CSP conservation plan (NRCS photo)Success Story  Adobe Acrobat Document (Requires Adobe Acrobat.)
When Rene Garcia was a field worker in the orchards of the Yakima Valley more than 30 years ago, he never imagined that one day he would own more than 800 acres of productive orchards, operate his own state-of-the-art packing house and climate-controlled storage facility, and host the President of Mexico during an official state visit.

 

Connect to NRCS' State News, Newsroom, and News Releases!

accolades header bar

(above left) Crystal Leonetti and past APIO Vice President Manny Weil (NRCS photo)Alaskan Receives USDA Unsung Hero Award
Crystal Leonetti received the Organization of Professional Employees of the US Department of Agriculture Unsung Hero award this week for her hard work and many accomplishments as Statewide Native Liaison, District Conservationist for the Anchorage field office, and American Indian/Alaska Native Special Emphasis Program Manager. 

Word from Washington header bar

Public Service Recognition Week logoNRCS Exhibiting on the National Mall
This week NRCS is participating in Public Service Recognition Week activities being held on the National Mall (between 4th and 7th Streets).  Thursday through Sunday, more than 60 government offices and agencies, non-profit organizations, and private companies are providing interactive and educational exhibits that showcase the innovation and quality work performed by public employees.
 

PLANTS header bar

NRCS PLANTS — Most Heavily Used USDA Scientific Database
By serving over 54,000 customers per day, the PLANTS Web site has topped its previous record for number of daily user "hits" and with users spending an average of seven minutes during a site visit, NRCS figures PLANTS provides 6,300 hours of specialized technical assistance on any given day.  The cost/benefit ratio numbers are impressive.  Based on the above PLANTS assistance hours, each member of the small National Plant Data Center staff (working on the Web site) can claim a multiplier factor of 196 (as every hour they work yields 196 Web hours of assistance prorated over a 24-hour day, seven day week, throughout the year).  Based on a U.S. Office of Personnel Management GS-13 hourly wage rate, PLANTS generates additional staff delivery time valued at $238,000 per day.  Savings for all of the end users would even be higher since they don’t have to spend time researching this easily accessible high quality data.  Your contact is Scott Peterson, NRCS National Plant Data Center Director, at 225-775-6280.
 

Earth Team header bar

(above from left) in red shirts Jon Pedersen, Cory Shillington, and Mitch Williams (NRCS photo)Earth Team Volunteers Help Donate Trees
As part of a nearly decade-old Earth Day tradition, Humboldt, Iowa, NRCS secretary Terri Christensen hands out tree seedlings and explains the environmental benefits they provide. 

 


Links...

Earth Team in the News
Earth Day at the Canal       DCS teacher, Student Honored by General Assembly

tech tip header bar

completed animal waste retention ponds in Goshen County, Wyoming (NRCS photo -- click to enlarge)Wetter Is Better?
Wetter is better?  For those involved in the construction of waste storage ponds and treatment lagoons, that means a well designed, fully functional soil liner that meets minimum admissible thresholds.

 

 

NRCS Photo Album header bar


this September 1941 image shows a Civilian Conservation Corps enrollee planting tree seedlings in South Carolina — National Archives negative no. 114G 10,392-1 (NRCS image -- click to enlarge).Civilian Conservation Corps
 This September 1941 image shows a Civilian Conservation Corps enrollee planting tree seedlings in South Carolina — National Archives negative no. 114G 10,392-1 (NRCS image — click to enlarge). 

NRCS This Week features a weekly historical photo and caption.  NHQ, districts, States, RC&D councils, and all other NRCS entities are invited to submit a historical photo of activities or individuals who have worked or are working for the agency along with a caption. 



 

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or a part of an individual's income is derived from any public assistance program. (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 to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.