Recommendations for Administrative Convergence Out for Review - The three Service Center agencies have sent the draft plan for administrative convergence to regional, State, and other administrative offices. This plan was developed by 12 teams, made up of representatives from the three Service Center agencies. These teams looked at specific areas (for example, travel management, small purchases) selected by the Service Center agencies' division directors of Financial Management, Human Resources, and Management Services. The teams reviewed existing policy, including delegated authorities, and made recommendations for those activities where common administrative policies and procedures could be implemented, and those activities that could be assigned to a lead agency. The recommendations were reviewed by the division directors, consolidated into a master plan, and presented to the Deputies for Management of the Service Center agencies. The deputies have reviewed the recommendations and are seeking comments from our partners and Regional and Service Center offices. Two Service Center agency teleconferences were conducted on May 15 and 16. These teleconferences presented the recommendations to employees and gave them the opportunity to ask questions. Final comments on the draft plan are due back to the Deputy Chief for Management by May 30, 1997.

Work Continues on Designing American Heritage Rivers Program - A multi-agency team led by the Council on Environmental Quality, and including NRCS, is developing procedures for carrying out the American Heritage Rivers program announced by President Clinton in his State of the Union Address on February 4. The President will select 10 stretches of river as American Heritage Rivers in the first year to help communities alongside the rivers revitalize their waterfronts and clean up pollution. Regional stakeholder meetings were held recently. The nomination process is scheduled to begin in June. The program will not only provide specially focused assistance to rivers designated "American Heritage Rivers," but also provide enhanced service to all interested river communities.

The Leader in You Satellite Seminar Series Continues - Dr. Ken Blanchard, author of The One Minute Manager, will be the trainer for the June 3 seminar "Mission Possible: Creating a World Class Organization While There's Still Time." For more information, contact your training officer or Barbara Wallace on 616-456-2247.

You Can Join the National Organization of Professional American Indian/Alaskan Native Employees Association - This association has been organized to enhance the awareness of and to expand the full participation of American Indians in agriculture, natural resources, and related fields. Membership is open to all present and former NRCS employees. For more information, contact Jerry Rouse, President of the Association, W. 316 Boone Ave., Suite 450, Spokane, WA 99201-2348; telephone 509-353-2337.

IN THE FIELD

American Indian Workshop Held in Arizona - Arizona NRCS employees who work directly with American Indian Tribal Nations recently participated in a Harmony Workshop entitled, "Working Effectively with American Indians." Twenty-one American Indian tribes are headquartered in Arizona.

Participants learned about issues such as the sovereign status of Indian nations, Federal/Indian relationships, the role of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, land ownership complexities, and government-to-government relationships. For example, many American Indian lands are held in trust meaning that individual land ownership does not exist on lands held in trust. Government programs that tie benefits to the individual landowners, therefore, make it very difficult for American Indians to participate.

Employees also learned that in American Indian societies, the decisionmaking process is more inclusive. Employees who go to a meeting, present a proposal, and expect an immediate decision from the "top person" will be disappointed. Tribal leaders consult with tribal elders and others before making final decisions.

Conservation Planning To Be Carried Out on Indian Reservation - NRCS in Nevada and the Duck Valley Soil Conservation District have begun a conservation planning project on the Duck Valley Shoshone-Paiute Indian Reservation in Nevada and Idaho. During the project, 450 conservation plans will be developed for 250 reservation land holders covering 12,000 acres of irrigated pasture and hayland. The plans will be developed by an interdisciplinary team from Nevada and Idaho, including two tribal members, using the latest technology such as digital orthophoto quads and global positioning and geographic information systems. The project is expected to be completed in early 1988. The Duck Valley planning project is the result of a Memorandum of Agreement signed by Nevada State Conservationist William Goddard and Tribal Council Chairman James Paiva. This MOA formalizes a Government-to-Government Relationship between the reservation's tribes and NRCS.

Seminar Focuses on Latest Technology for Recovering Salmon Habitat - Thirty engineers, geologists, and biologists from six western States attended a seminar hosted by the Regional Salmon Habitat Recovery Team (SHRT) on state-of-the-art technology for stabilizing streams and restoring fish and wildlife habitat. The group looked at techniques such as installing "W" weirs, customizing and modifying stream barbs, and reestablishing channel geometry. Janine Castro, NRCS Geomorphologist with SHRT, presented the results of her research on the use and modification of the Rosgen Classification of Natural Rivers. This classification system is relatively new and encourages a classification and restoration approach based on a natural stability "blueprint." Castro has developed regional hydraulic geometry relationships which refine the classification system's use and application in the Northwest. For more information, Janine can be reached at 503-414-3082 or e-mail jcastro@or.nrcs.usda.gov.

RC&D Uses Volunteers to Rehabilitate Old Mine - The Loup Basin RC&D in Nebraska has organized community volunteers to rehabilitate the old Happy Jack Chalk Mine. According to RC&D Coordinator Verlon Barnes, "It's an important historical and cultural site in this area and it needed to be preserved. It creates enthusiasm in people." Built in the 1880's, the mine was last used in the 1940's. During that time, more than 122,000 tons of chalk were mined by hand. RC&D and local NRCS personnel have surveyed the mine and found that the main tunnel goes back more than 450 feet and the area of all the tunnels totals more than that of a football field. The RC&D is making a map of the tunnels in order to dig them out for tourists. Part of the mine will house a museum of antique mine equipment. The area around the mine is scenic, as well, and Scotia, NE, school groups are helping create recreation trails.

Game Teaches About Water Quality and Wetlands - NRCS Soil Conservationist LeAnn Zimmerman and Technician Lori Wright of O'Neill, NE, have created a game called "Hollywet Squares" to teach school children about water quality and wetlands. The game works like the television show except nine students pose as the "stars." They tried it out at a recent "Waterfall of Knowledge" festival. "We had pretty good luck with it," Lori says. "It kept all the kids involved and active." LeAnn and Lori have put together a binder of water questions and laminated X's and O's. For more information, contact Jody Holzworth at 402-362-4906.

LEGISLATIVE NEWS

Legislation of Note - The following bill of significance to NRCS and conservation was introduced:

H.R. 1489--Condit (D-CA)--To establish permanent authority for assistance to small orchardists to replace or rehabilitate trees and vineyards damaged by natural disasters.

CONSTITUENCY AND PARTNERSHIP NEWS

New Drinking Water Report Available - The Trust for Public Land has issued "Protecting the Source--Land Conservation and the Future of America's Drinking Water," which underscores serious declines in the quality and quantity of America's drinking water. To receive a copy of the report, contact The Trust for Public Land, 116 New Montgomery St., Fourth Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105, or call 800-714-LAND. Their Web site is http://www.tpl.org/tpl.

RESEARCH BRIEFS

Vanishing Ponds Not a Sure Sign of Spring -- According to research done at the ARS Soil and Water Management Research Unit at St. Paul, MN, the disappearance of ponded meltwater in the field may not be as accurate an indicator of spring thaw as generations of farmers have believed. The researchers are studying the effects of freezing and thawing on soil and how winter conditions affect chemical infiltration and water quality. They've learned that a frozen soil is not always impermeable and soil doesn't freeze in one large block. Their findings may lead to a change in tillage practices and timing of manure application. For more information, call John M. Baker at the Research Unit on 612-625-4249 or e-mail jbaker@soils.umn.edu.

Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP) Featured in ARS Magazine - The usefulness of WEPP as a tool for land managers, environmentalists, educators, and policymakers in evaluating alternatives for controlling soil erosion by water is examined in an article in the April 1997 issue of "Agricultural Research." For more information, visit the WEPP home page on the Internet at http://soils.ecn.purdue.edu:20002/~wepp/wepp.html, or call John Laflen at 515-294-8327 or e-mail laflen@ecn.purdue.edu.

INTERNET ADDRESSES OF NOTE

--The NRCS national PLANTS database is on the Web. You'll find plant names, symbols, State lists, FOCS Plants download, plant pictures, distributional maps, and other information. Visit http://plants.usda.gov.

--The University of California has put its "Directory of Water and Wildlife Expertise" on the Internet at https://www2.nceas.ucsb.edu:8502/exp/db/intro.

--National Envirothon can be found at http://host1403.homecom.com.

UPCOMING EVENTS

May - American Wetlands Month

June - Dairy Month and National Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Month

June 1-7 - International Volunteers Week

June 5 - World Environment Day

June 12-14 - American Rivers Third National Urban Rivers Symposium and Awards, "The River as a Community Gathering Place," Arlington, VA. For conference information, call 202-234-3880 or e-mail balcomgrp@aol.com.

June 15-18 - National Association of RC&D Councils Conference, St. Paul, MN. Contact: Becky Lane, 202-546-8800 or write to: National Association of RC&D Councils, 509 Capital Court, NE, Suite 100, Washington, D.C. 20002.

June 24-26 - National Agricultural Resource Management Planning Conference, Omni Royal Orleans, New Orleans, LA. Call Lyn Kirschner at 765-494-1827 or send e-mail to: kirschner@ctic.purdue.edu.

July 17-19 - Land Improvement Contractors of America Summer Meeting, Providence, RI. Contact Wayne F. Maresch at 301-248-9313 or e-mail to: Wayne F86@aol.com.

July 22-25 - The 52nd Soil and Water Conservation Society Annual Conference; Interactions, Managing Ecosystems on a Watershed Basis; Toronto, Canada. Contact: Jennifer Pemble, 800-843-7645. Conference information can also be found at: http://www.swcs.org/AnnCon.htm.

August 3-6 - Fifth Conference on Agroforestry in North America, "Exploring the Opportunities for Agroforestry in Changing Rural Landscapes," Ithaca, NY. Contact Cornell University Conference Services 607-255-6290 or visit the Association for Temperate Agroforestry Web site at: www.missouri.edu/~afta/afta_home.html.

August 10-14 - American Society of Agricultural Engineers National Meeting, Minneapolis, MN.

September 1-6 - The 9th World Water Congress, International Water Resources Association, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Contact Aly M. Shady at 819-994-4098 or e-mail aly_shady@ACDI-CIDS.gc.ca.

QUOTE

"As we move into the next millennium, our Nation must strive for a state of harmony. We can no longer be satisfied with slowing erosion, water pollution, and other forms of land degradation. Harmony will demand that we set our sights higher--to improve the land upon which our destiny rests by restoring those places that are damaged, by enhancing those places whose condition is merely adequate, and by protecting those areas that remain pristine."

--Americas' Private Land, A Geography of Hope.

NRCS This Week is issued weekly by the Conservation Communications Staff, NRCS headquarters, Washington, D.C., and posted on the NRCS Home Page at http://www.nrcs.usda.gov. Please send correspondence and material via e-mail to: nancy.garlitz@usda.gov or mail to Editor, "NRCS This Week," NRCS, P.O. Box 2890, Washington, DC 20013 or FAX to Editor, "NRCS This Week," 202-690-1221.

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