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| Friday, October 12, 2001 Washington, DC. |
"People look at us out there as rowers, not as someone with a disability."
–- Isabel Bohn, member of the Philadelphia Rowing Program for the Disabled
ACCOLADES
NRCS Chief Reed Honored - The National Organization of Black County Officials, Inc., recently recognized Chief Reed at a function in Washington, D.C,. for Outstanding Leaders in Business and Government. Also honored were Marian Wright Edelman, President, Children's Defense Fund; The Honorable Stephen A. Perry, Administrator, U.S. General Services Agency; Ingrid Saunders-Jones, Vice-President, Corporate Affairs, The Coca Cola Company; Dionne Wallace, Corporate Relations Manager, State Farm Insurance Companies; The Honorable Harold Ford, Jr.; and The Honorable Shelia Jackson Lee, U.S. House of Representatives. Present from NRCS were Thomas Weber, Deputy Chief for Programs, Joan M. Comanor, Director, Resource Conservation and Community Development Division (RCCDD) and Larry S. Holmes, resource conservationist, also with RCCDD. Accepting the honors for Chief Reed was Rosann Durrah, resource conservationist, RCCDD. The National Organization of Black County Officials (NOBCO) is a private, non-partisan, and non-profit corporation representing a coalition of black elected and appointed officials from all 50 States. NOBCO provides project management and operation structure for black county officials to respond to issues affecting their constituencies and county government.
FOCUS ON THE FIELD
Students Get "Hands-on" With Soil -
Nearly 3,000 fourth and fifth graders from Santa Clara County, California, recently learned that one of the best ways to learn about soil is to stick your hands in it. During "Forest Conservation Days," sponsored by the Northern California Chapter of the Society of American Foresters, students got an opportunity to feel various soil textures, including sand, silt, granite, clay, and different types of rocks. NRCS resource soil scientist Jim Komar discussed the elements in soil and its place in the ecosystem, and described a soil profile. The students had fun making water and clay handprints and chalking up their hands and faces with diatomacous earth. During their walk along a nature trail in Sanborn/Skyline Park in Saratoga, students heard presentations by foresters, geologists, biologists, and archaeologists. Other NRCS conservationists including, Carol Mandel from the Ukiah office and Bruce Eisenman from Hollister, also gave soils presentations.
Your contact is Jolene Lau, NRCS Public Affairs Specialist, at 831-754-1595, or jolene.lau@ca.usda.gov.
All Work and No Play… - In order to celebrate Connecticut's farms, food, wine, and art, NRCS and The Working Lands Alliance held a "Glorious Food and Landscapes" event at the Jones Family Farm, where groups can visit a working farm to help pick the seasonal harvests. Over 500 visitors enjoyed the bounty of Connecticut's farms prepared by the State's finest chefs. They also could enjoy a hayride, hear live jazz, watch painting by Connecticut's Plein Air artists, learn minimalist cooking from New York Times food columnist Mark Bittman, or take part in various hands-on activities, including an apple pie baking contest. The Working Lands Alliance is made up of over 100 Connecticut organizations dedicated to helping preserve the State's working lands.
For more information contact Carol Donzella, NRCS Community Planner, at 203-922-9350.
NRCS Reaps Valuable Airtime - A radio station in Topeka played the recently released regional buffer public service announcements (PSAs) 4 to 6 times between the hours of 5:30 a.m. and 7 a.m. In addition, they were played between 11 a.m. and noon during a farm show. The station estimates the value of the donated airtime at $50,000. The PSAs were produced jointly by the NRCS Midwest and Northern Plains regions.
Your contact is Mary Shaffer, NRCS public affairs specialist, at 785-823-4571.
Wonders of Wetlands - Educators from across Nebraska came to learn more about the Rainwater Basin and the area's wetlands at the Rainwater Basin Joint Venture's "Wonders of Wetland Educator Workshop." Participants learned about Rainwater Basin wetlands from NRCS, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, and other conservationists by experiencing a Rainwater Basin wetland first hand at the Funk Waterfowl Production Area near Kearney. Participants learned about wetland plants, soils, micro-invertebrates, and water quality. Conservationists from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Platte River Whooping Crane Trust, and the University of Nebraska-Kearney were also on hand to give workshop attendees an up-close look at wetland characteristics.
Your contact is Steve Moran, Rainwater Basin Joint Venture Coordinator, at 308-395-8586.
NRCS Provides Technical Assistance in Central America - Hurricane Mitch, which struck Central America in October 1998, devastated farms and left farmers without the means to support themselves and families. Through special congressional funding, Manuel Ayala, Jr., NRCS Soil Conservationist at National Headquarters and a team of NRCS technical specialists from State offices have traveled to Central America over the past 3 years to assist these farmers in recovering from the effects of the hurricane. Carlos Suarez, NRCS soil conservationist from Indiana, and Ilde Chavez, NRCS engineer from Arizona, have been assisting farmers in Nicaragua. Other NRCS conservationists have served in Honduras, Dominican Republic, and El Salvador. Often traveling to remote areas by horse and mule, NRCS conservationists have assisted farmers with road and rangeland restoration, fruit tree reforestation, streambank stabilization, irrigation work, removal of debris and sediment from farmland, bee hive construction, capacity building, and may other types of assistance. Their efforts have spawned many productive partnerships with government and non-governmental agencies alike, as well as with private sector partners. The assistance program is scheduled to wrap up by this December.
Your contact is Manuel Ayala, Jr., NRCS Soil Conservationist, at 202-720-1883.
October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month - The theme of this year's National Disability Employment Awareness Month is "Win with Ability." In 1988, Congress expanded the observance to a month-long kick-off for year-round programs that highlight the abilities and skills of Americans with disabilities and changed its name to "National Disability Employment Awareness Month." Find out more at the U.S. Department of Labor's website at: http://www.dol.gov/dol/odep/public/programs/ndeam.htm.
U.S. and Russia to Cooperate to Combat Invasive Species - Scott Peterson, Director, NRCS National Plant Data Center (NPDC), recently participated in a workshop in Borok, Russia, where 100 U.S. and Russian scientists explored ways of exchanging information about invasive species, establishing joint research projects, and developing protocols for halting the spread of invasive species. Russian invasive species like leafy spurge, Russian thistle, zebra mussels, cheatgrass, spotted knapweed, Russian olive, and Russian tamarisk have found their way to the U.S. in recent years. The NPDC will cooperate with the Komarov Botanical Institute, St. Petersburg, to obtain information about weeds growing in the U.S. that originated in Russia, as well as other potential invasive plants. This information will eventually be integrated into the Plant Guides, available through PLANTS plants.usda.gov, to better assist landowners in combating the weed problem.
Your contact is Scott Peterson, Director, NRCS NPDC, at 225-775-6280.
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If you are not a NRCS employee, you can receive NRCSTW on an e-mail by contacting: listproc@nrcs.usda.gov (NHQ personnel should send their e-mail to: GW:"listproc@nrcs.usda.gov@i"). Do not use a subject line and put the following in the body of the message: subscribe NRCS-THIS-WEEK Firstname Lastname (example: subscribe NRCS-THIS-WEEK John Muir). To get help with other commands that are available at the "listproc@nrcs.usda.gov" address, send a message with no subject and the word HELP on a line by itself in the body of the message. "NRCS This Week" will continue to be posted on the NRCS Homepage.
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, and 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, Room 326W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call 202-720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
Addresses and telephone numbers for NRCS' Civil Rights Staff are: NRCS Civil Rights Program Compliance Division, 5601 Sunnyside Avenue, Mail Stop 5471, Beltsville, MD 20705-5471; phone: (301) 504-2287. NRCS Civil Rights Employment Division, 5601 Sunnyside Avenue, Mail Stop 5472, Beltsville, MD 20705-5472; phone: (301) 504-2181.
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