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

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workers with chain saws work from boats to cut away and remove fallen trees and limbs clogging Virginia's Northwest RiverLocally Led Contract a Winner
NRCS Virginia State Conservationist M. Denise Doetzer was recently recognized by the City of Chesapeake along with Virginia Congressman Randy Forbes at a televised council meeting for providing assistance to remove debris from over five miles of the Northwest River resulting from Hurricane Isabel.  The river was clogged with a lot woody debris blown down during the hurricane.  The Northwest River is the backbone drainage way for residential and agricultural areas.

M. Kat Anderson, NRCS ethnoecologist, explains in her new book, Tending the Wild, that many types of land management were practiced by California Native Americans for centuriesNRCS Plant Materials Specialist Publishes Book
Although conservationists may think of stewardship tools such as prescribed burning and intelligent herding of livestock to favor some plant species and control others as new ideas, M. Kat Anderson, NRCS ethnoecologist, explains in her new book, Tending the Wild, that these and many other types of land management were practiced by California Native Americans for centuries.


 

NRCS Mourns Loss of Snopack PioneerNRCS Meteorologist Robert Beaumont
NRCS Meteorologist Robert Beaumont's "Snow Pillow" invention revolutionized the way scientists and environmentalists measure snowpack.  In the early 1960s, as a scientist for the NRCS, Mr. Beaumont invented a device that automatically measured the snowpack's water content, allowing the agricultural industry to predict how much water from runoff would be available for crops during the spring.



 

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water sample taken from the lagoon in a filtering system in use on a farm in Taylor County, Iowa -- eligible EQIP participants who are implementing conservation practices, such as this manure storage, can qualify for USDA’s one-time payment adjustment for escalating energy costsUSDA Offers Energy Cost Offset for Completion of EQIP Practices
USDA has announced that $40 million will be used to help eligible Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) participants complete conservation practices that have been delayed because of recent increases in energy prices. The one-time adjustment will apply to participants who signed EQIP contracts in 2004 or earlier and to practices most affected by increased costs in construction materials such as concrete, steel and plastic pipe.

Get the details...
Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP)
USDA’s Energy Campaign

Sutainable Agriculture Research and Education Spotlight Feature header bar

SARE publicationsInnovative Soil Management Strategies Featured in SAN Publications
When a nearby horse stable went out of business, it forced Alex and Betsy Hitt to search for an alternative to horse manure to amend the soil on their five-acre farm. The Hitts, who raise 75 varieties of vegetables and an equal number of cut flowers just outside Chapel Hill, N.C., created an elaborate rotation featuring both winter and summer cover crops to supply organic matter and nitrogen, lessen erosion, and crowd out weeds.

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, 1400and Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.