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Conservation Clips is a weekly collection of articles distributed by NACD that provides our members and partners with the latest news in what's driving conservation. These articles are not indicative of NACD policy and are the opinions of their authors, unless otherwise noted. If you have a relevant submission or need assistance with accessing articles, please contact the NACD Communications Team.



Illinois leadership with National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) talked with RFD Radio's Rita Frazer Sunday from NACD's 75th annual meeting in Chicago.
 
Oklahoma Farm Report: NACD Celebrates 75th Anniversary With Vilsack, Duckworth
07/26/21

The National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) celebrated its 75th anniversary in Chicago, Illinois, where the association was founded in 1946.
 

The National Association of Conservation Districts and the Association of Illinois Soil and Water Conservation Districts announced the winners of the 2020 Saving Tomorrow’s Agriculture Resources (STAR) awards. 
 
Kenosha News: National Association of Conservation Districts delegation tours Racine County
By Rachel Kubik
07/28/21

The leadership contingent from the National Association of Conservation Districts visited Racine County last week and met with county leaders to learn about innovative local environmental projects, both past and present.
 
07/26/21

The National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) and the Association of Illinois Soil and Water Conservation Districts (AISWCD) announced the winners of the 2020 STAR awards during NACD’s Summer Meeting.
 
Minnesota Farm Guide: Food for thought at Farmfest Forums!
By Andrew Johnson
07/23/21

The Farmfest forum for the afternoon of Tuesday, Aug. 3, at 1:15 p.m. is titled: “Agriculture’s Role in Carbon Sequestration.” Panel members will include Tim Palmer, Iowa farmer and Immediate Past-President of the National Association of Conservation Districts.
 
 
National Conservation Foundation (NCF) Chair Brent Van Dyke announced the opening of the application period for the 2022 cohort of the Next Generation Leadership Institute (NGLI).
 
 
Dave Giordano, Tim Palmer, Roger Wenning, Jonathan Delagrave, Monte Osterman and Ryan Britt on Friday viewed the Regenerative Stormwater Conveyance system being constructed at Highway 31 (Green Bay Road) and Highway KR.
 
Oklahoma Farm Report: NACD Announces $2.1 Million In 2021 Technical Assistance Grants
07/28/21
 
The National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) announced the award of $2.1 million in new technical assistance (TA) grants to nearly 60 conservation districts in 23 states and territories.
 

Importantly, the study also finds farmers care far more about soil health than scientists and conservation professionals think.
 
A Pennsylvania project to restore riparian buffers is an agroforestry win-win for ecological outcomes and community well-being and livelihoods.
 
07/29/21
 
(Subscriber Only) The House on Thursday voted 219-208 to pass a package of seven fiscal 2022 spending bills that would provide significant increases for climate measures and agricultural research while also beefing up agencies that enforce environmental and labor regulations. 
 
 
The Colorado River's Lake Powell and Lake Mead reservoirs haven't been this low since they were first filled up.
 

Iowa State University's prairie strip project started 17 years ago, with the goal of using prairies to help reduce environmental damage. The idea was to use a little bit of under-performing farmland for some large benefits. 
 
By Jenette Ashtekar
07/29/21
 
(Subscriber Only) (Opinion) Regenerative practices—such as cover crops, no-till and reduced nutrient application—have the potential to reduce the GHG footprint of farming and mitigate climate change through the sequestration of atmospheric carbon. They also provide an additional revenue stream to growers, compensating and incentivizing them for adapting best practices.
 
The FERN: House panel approves $8.5 billion disaster bill for agriculture
By Chuck Abbott
07/27/21

Responding to calamities that range from drought in the West to floods in the Southeast, the House Agriculture Committee approved an $8.5 billion disaster relief bill on Tuesday to cover farm and ranch losses in 2020 and this year. 
 
WXPR: Anti-Erosion Guide Coming Soon for Lakefront Property Owners
By Ben Meyer
07/28/21

Later this summer, conservationists in Wisconsin will introduce a new tool to help lakefront property owners prevent erosion on their shorelines.
 
Forbes: Biochar From Cow Manure Could Be Key To Sustainable Agriculture
By Amin Mirkouei
07/23/21

Biochar from animal manure has been suggested in over 600 studies in the past two decades as a sustainable agriculture practice to improve soil quality and address environmental issues, such as oversupply nutrients (eutrophication) into water bodies. 
 
By Amanda Monthei, Zoeann Murphy, Lo Bénichou, Shikha Subramaniam and Dylan Moriarty
07/29/21

(Subscriber Only) Prescribed fires may reduce scorched earth, experts agree, and regenerate healthy forests made weak by drought, climate change and bad policy. They build a buffer to protect communities and create clear space for firefighters to do their work.


 
Hundreds of miles above the Corn Belt, NASA satellites provide critical views of the region. They’re helping scientists study soil loss over time and develop tools to support farmers as they adopt and manage conservation techniques.
 
Bloomberg: The Western Drought Is a Crisis for Migrating Birds, Too
By Laura Bliss
07/26/21

For years, California rice farmers have aided bird migration by flooding their fields in the off season. But this year, they barely have enough water to grow their crops.
 
 
As California endures an increasingly brutal second year of drought, state water regulators are considering an emergency order that would bar thousands of Central Valley farmers from using stream and river water to irrigate their crops.
 
 
This week, 44 FFA members gather in Indianapolis to discuss how agriculture will play a pivotal role in their future.
 
 
The Civilian Conservation Corps could get a second life under a new proposal from U.S. Sen. Bob Casey. The Pennsylvania Democrat recently introduced a bill to create a “revitalized” corps that would address current challenges like climate change, economic instability, and racial injustice.
 
Fast Company: The Bootleg fire is burning through trees that are being used as carbon offsets
By Adele Peters
07/28/21

The fire’s path so far has included part of Klamath East, a project that protects trees to sell carbon credits to companies like Microsoft to offset emissions. Roughly a quarter of those trees have now gone up in smoke, releasing the carbon they stored.
 
Deseret News: Utah’s drought and low reservoirs add up to more intense algal blooms
By Amy Joi O'Donoguhe
07/24/21

Utah’s drought is driving reservoir levels down and contributing to the spread of harmful algal blooms as the state continues to swelter under the heat — and the prime season for bloom formations remains ahead.
 
Ohio's Country Journal: Soil microbes and hybrid vigor
07/23/21

Researchers at North Carolina State University and the University of Kansas have shown that soil microbes — microscopic organisms like viruses, bacteria and fungi found throughout nature — play a role in the phenomenon of heterosis or “hybrid vigor,” the superior performance of crossed plant lines, or hybrids, over inbred plant lines.
 
The New York Times: A look at what the bipartisan infrastructure deal would do
By Madeleine Ngo
July 28, 2021

After weeks of debate and discussion, the White House and a bipartisan group of senators said on Wednesday that they had reached agreement on an infrastructure bill.
 
GIZMODO: Utah's Great Salt Lake Is Officially at Its Lowest Point in Recorded History
By Tom McKay
07/27/21

Water levels in Utah’s Great Salt Lake have officially dwindled to their lowest ever recorded. It’s an effect of the megadrought that has impacted water supplies across the West.

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