About Idaho NRCS

2010 marks the 75th anniversary of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) originally established by Congress in 1935 as the Soil Conservation Service.  The agency's creation began a federal commitment to conserving natural resources on private lands.  Since then, NRCS has become a conservation leader for natural resources on private lands.

Hugh Hammond Bennett, a soil surveyor with the US Department of Agriculture, realized that soil erosion could impair the nation's ability to produce food.  He drew attention to the toll erosion took on farmland and pushed for a national soil erosion program.  This attention helped authorize funds in 1930 for several soil erosion experiment stations that would demonstrate soil conservation practices.

When the Soil Erosion Service was established in 1933 amid the Dust Bowl era, Bennett was its director.  The agency worked with farmers to employ soil conserving practices on their farms.

In 1935, Congress permanently established the agency, renames the Soil Conservation Service, and moved it under the Department of Agriculture.

In the words of the first NRCS Chief, Hugh Hammond Bennett - "If we take care of the land, it will take care of us."

Video: "Without NRCS, the Quality of Life We Enjoy Today Would Not be Possible"

In a special video for the 75th anniversary of NRCS, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack pays tribute to NRCS' legacy of conserving and protecting America's privately-owned lands and salutes soil and water conservation districts (3 min. 22 sec.)

The Soil Conservation Service in Idaho 1935 - 1985: "The Way it Was"  (PDF; 4.49 MB)

NRCS puts 75 years of experience to work in assisting owners of Idaho's private land with conserving their soil, water and other natural resources.  Local, state and federal agencies and policymakers also rely on our expertise.  We deliver technical assistance based on sound science and suited to a customer's specific needs.

Most of our work is done with local partners, including 51 conservation districts that serve every county in the state, the Shoshone-Bannock Natural Resources Conservation District, the State Soil Conservation Commission, and nine Resource Conservation and Development Areas that cover Idaho's 44 counties.  Participation in our programs is voluntary.

Our Mission
Helping People Help the Land

Our Vision
Productive Lands Healthy Environment

 

Last Modified: 10/16/2012