NACD going to Nashville in 2011

From the business meeting, to the NACD Executive Committee Service Project, to looking forward to the meeting in Nashville, Tennessee in 2011, Gene Schmidt, NACD President-Elect from Indiana talks with Brownfield’s Dave Russell at the conclusion of the NACD annual meeting in Orlando.

AUDIO: Gene Schmidt, NACD Pres. Elect 6:15 MP3)

Robinson: conservation still at historic high

The President of the National Association of Conservation Districts says members will make do with the federal funds available.

As conservation district staff and volunteers gathered in Orlando this week, President Obama proposed sweeping budget changes, including reducing what Congress has authorized for federal conservation programs.

NACD President Steve Robinson says the organization will keep the option open of going back to Congress to try to restore the numbers, but so far, any concerns that he has stop short of sounding like complaining.

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Becoming the powerhouse in conservation

For Jeff Eisenberg, the first day on the job as CEO of the NACD was Monday, February 1, which was also the first day of the association’s annual meeting in Orlando, Florida. But already Eisenberg says he’s been impressed, in fact Eisenberg tells Brownfield he believes NACD can be the powerhouse conservation organization in the country.

AUDIO: Jeff Eisenberg, NACD, CEO (5:00 MP3)

All sectors need to address nutrient issues

His message to conservationists in Orlando for the NACD annual meeting, “all sectors need to address nutrient issues.” For more, Brownfield’s Dave Russell talked with Tom Porta, President of the Association of State and Interstate Water Pollution Control Administrators.

AUDIO: Tom Porta, Pres. ASIWPCA (3:15 MP3)

Continuing to restore the Chesapeake Bay

Jeff Lape, Chesapeake Bay Program Director told those attending the NACD annual meeting in Orlando that work continues to restore and protect the Chesapeake Bay and the role that conservation districts can play in their efforts.

AUDIO: Jeff Lape, Chesapeake Bay Program Director (5:00 MP3)

NRCS Chief Dave White

Ask NRCS Chief Dave White how he’s doing and he’ll probably tell you he’s, “living the dream.” White brought his enthusiasm and passion for conservation to the NACD annual meeting in Orlando and in a converstation with Brownfield’s Dave Russell, Chief White talked about a number of things taking place around the country.

AUDIO: Dave White, NRCS Chief (5:30 MP3)

USDA economist lays out climate change concerns

A USDA economist says agriculture can and should play a part in the climate change discussion. Jan Lewandrowski, with the agency’s Climate Change Program Office, says the climate is changing, however he says the consequences aren’t all bad for agriculture.

“It’s a mixed bag,” Lewandrowski told Brownfield after addressing the National Association of Conservation Districts convention in Orlando Monday. It’s a mixed bag because, he says, the northern and eastern parts of the U.S. are in for longer growing seasons and adequate precipitation. However, he feels being part of climate change mitigation is the thing to do.

“[Mitigating climate change] stands to have a net positive impact on much of agriculture and, on balance, I think agriculture can help form the bridge to that future,” he said.

AUDIO: Jan Lewandrowski (8 min. MP3)

Although he believes something should be done about it, Lewandrowski concedes that not everyone is in the same camp about climate change.

“What we as a society and we as a global community are doing, I believe, is changing the earth’s climate, and ultimately there are a lot of very, very negative aspects of that, in my opinion,” said Lewandrowski. “Those who don’t share that opinion, I respect and they have to come to their own conclusion.”

Conservation cuts concern groups

Conservation is promoted and practiced with help from other organizations.  There is, however, a degree of concern among conservation interests about proposed Obama Administration budget cuts. 

At the same time that President Obama was proposing his budget, USDA Undersecretary Harris Sherman was telling the National Association of Conservation Districts annual convention that many federal programs will have to live with frozen or lower budgets.

NACD Secretary Treasurer Jack Majeres, a land owner from Dell Rapids, South Dakota, hopes that increased conservation funding of the 2008 Farm Bill will stand, but regardless of that, he says conservation districts have help.

“We have many partners out there across the country, other farm organizations, wildlife groups, what have you, that are partnering together with us to make sure that those dollars are continuing to flow to conserve our natural resources,” Majeres told Brownfield in an interview during a break in the convention.

AUDIO: Jack Majeres (5 min. MP3)

Later Monday, however, as more details of the budget emerged, it was learned that the President proposes to cut hundreds of millions of dollars from conservation programs provided in the 2008 Farm Bill. While funding for many conservation programs is higher than it was last year, President Obama’s proposed budget includes cuts in what Congress authorized for conservation this year, according to Natural Resources Conservation Service Chief  Dave White, who spoke Tuesday at the NACD convention. 

Regardless, the proposed cuts in authorization are drawing criticism from the group American Farmland Trust.

“The fact of the matter is, slashing these programs will do nothing significant to address our nation’s budget problems while it will dramatically reduce our ability to protect the resources,” says Jon Scholl, American Farmland Trust (AFT) President, in a news release. “We’re concerned that it is penny-wise now, and will be very pound foolish in the future.”

In the news release, Scholl pointed out that the proposal represents nearly a 20% cut to working-lands conservation programs, “yet agriculture is the most cost-effective solution to these very real environmental challenges,” he said.

Some of the key cuts concerning AFT include the Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program. The FRPP is a cost-share program that helps farmers keep their land in agriculture in perpetuity and is slated for $55 million in cuts over the next two years.

Another cut in funds authorized by Congress is proposed for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). Those funds help landowners install buffer strips between fields and streams and fence livestock out of waterways. The authorization is slated to be reduced by $380 million, or by 31% in 2011, although according to NRCS Chief White, actual funding for EQIP is slightly higher than a year ago.

The Conservation Security Program (CSP) is to be cut by hundreds of millions of dollars, depending on the final reimbursement rate per acre used, according to the AFT news release. CSP provides cost-share monies to farmers to assist in implementing on-farm stewardship practices on working farm and ranchland.

A massive restoration project in Florida

Those attending the NACD annual meeting in Orlando had an opportunity to learn about the Florida Everglades Restoration Project. Talk about massive, it’s a project that will take years, maybe 30 to 35 years and cost $10.9 billion dollars to complete. Brownfield’s Dave Russell talked with Stuart Appelbaum, Deputy for Restoration Program Management for the Army Corps of Engineers.

AUDIO: Stu Appelbaum, Army Corps of Engineers (3:00 MP3)

Taking ideas to Districts back home

For Ray McCormick of Indiana attending the NACD annual meeting in Orlando is a great opportunity to network with conservation minded people from across the country. It’s those relationships and the idea sharing that Ray is looking forward to taking back to Indiana to share with Districts.

AUDIO: Ray McCormick, Indiana (4:00 MP3)

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