GRANT COUNTY CONSERVATION DISTRICT

The District promotes conservation by publishing the availability of two pasture and hayland renovation machines. The no-till seeders were purchased by the conservation district to be used by farmers and landowners on a minimal fee-per-acre basis ($7.00 an acre or $40.00 whichever is greater.) The seeders are leased through Grant County Farm Supply and Grant County Farm Equipment for farmer convenience. The lime spreader is leased through the district for a daily fee of $30.00. The lime spreader was purchased to aid local producers in amending steep hillsides that commercial spreaders cannot reach.

Grant County Conservation District Board Members, Left to Right: Bill Courts, Vice Chair, Kenwood Soper, Chairman, John Dawalt & Bill Wilson award the 2007 Grant County Conservation District Non-Traditional Scholarship to Debra Hancock and Terri Barton, students at NKU Grant County Campus.

Chris Scott with the Kentucky Division of Forestry assisted the Grant County Conservation District with their 2007 Arbor Day tree deliveries to the 4 elementary schools within the county.

The Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Boone, Campbell, Grant and Kenton County Conservation Districts provide technical assistance in conservation planning of soil and water resources on agricultural lands, which can lead to and is required in order to receive financial assistance to implement conservation practices, through state and federal cost incentive programs.  Conservation technical assistance and conservation planning is the first step to identifying resource problems and opportunities. In order to participate and receive incentive program dollars, a landowner must be willing to implement conservation structures and management of soil and water resources according to USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service technical standards and guidelines.

You might ask what is the purpose of a conservation plan?  The purpose of conservation planning and implementation is to identify resource problems and limitations on agricultural, woodland, wildlife and urban and recreational land and formulate a solution or a plan of action to prevent or correct the identified or potential resource problems, as well as meeting your individual resource management goals and needs.

The programs offering cost incentives are based on identifying conservation resource problems and issues from the planning process.  Land use planning of Natural Resources is a must, with intent to correct the issues and protect natural resources specific to the conservation of soil and water resources.  These Programs include the Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP), Conservation Reserve Buffer Program (CRP), Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program (WHIP), and The Kentucky Soil Erosion and Water Quality Cost Share Program. These programs provide financial help to implement conservation strategies identified in the planning and evaluation process but only if you have developed a conservation plan first. 

However, Cost incentive programs are not for everyone, they only work for individuals and groups with a sincere intent to implement conservation stewardship on there lands to protect soil and water resources and etc.  It must be understood up front that if receiving incentive dollars through at state or federal program that the guidelines and technical designs and standards must be followed and that participation in these types of programs must be maintained for the extent of the program and structural practice policy.

If you are interested in conservation planning, or any of the incentive programs and services offered. Please do not hesitate to contact the local conservation district or the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

By

Ed Thompson, Jr.
NRCS District Conservationist.