NRCS Alaska News

October 14, 2005

In this Issue:

FY06 = $1.7 Billion For Voluntary Conservation Programs On Working Lands

Yukon Flats E-Commerce Project Now On-Line

Kuskokwim Watershed Summit Attracts Broad Participation

State Conservationist Visits Prince of Wales Island

Sturdy Compost Facility Under Construction in Kenai

Fox River Flats Gets Annual Fall Grazing Assessment

UAF Uses NRCS Handbook in New Reindeer Certificate Program

Earth Team Annual Report Shows Increase in Volunteer Activity

Personnel Actions

FY06 = $1.7 Billion For Voluntary Conservation Programs On Working Lands

Agriculture Deputy Secretary Chuck Conner today announced the release of nearly $1.7 billion in fiscal year 2006 funding for voluntary conservation farm bill programs on working lands.

Fiscal year 2006 allocations include $1.345 billion in financial assistance and $337 million for technical assistance for NRCS voluntary conservation programs.  States will receive additional money after Congress makes final funding decisions through the fiscal year 2006 appropriations process.

Key voluntary conservation programs and allocations include:

• Environmental Quality Incentives Program: $1,017,000,000.
• Ground and Surface Water Conservation: $51,000,000.
• Wetlands Reserve Program: $245,704,302.
• Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program: $73,500,000.
• Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program: $43,000,000.
• Conservation Security Program: $245,000,000.

Yukon Flats E-Commerce Project Now On-Line

The Yukon Flats RC&D program has partnered with sponsor Philadelphia University on the development of ArcticWays.com to sell Native arts and crafts via the internet.  Utilizing e-commerce to market and sell native arts & crafts has been in the Yukon Flats RC&D Plan for over a decade. ArcticWays.com is now on-line and allows artists to sell their goods to a much larger audience – the world!

Traditional artists are at the center of ArcticWays.com. More than 50 artists have signed up to participate in the program from the villages of Arctic Village, Venetie, Beaver, Fort Yukon, Stevens Village and Circle.  In addition to having their arts highlighted and for sale, participating artists will also have their own individual web page to tell their story. 

The Yukon Flats RC&D is able to provide a great number of free services to artists through the Council of Athabascan Tribal Governments Natural Resources department: artists’ crafts will be collected and warehoused for sale; digital photographs of each item will be taken and placed on the website; transactions will be managed and merchandise will be shipped to customers with professional packaging; and payments will be made to artists when their work is sold.

Kuskokwim Watershed Summit Attracts Broad Participation

The Kuskokwim River is unique in that it is still relatively intact from an ecological and cultural standpoint.  Many of the area’s residents came together in Bethel September 27 and 28 to ensure the protection of this resource for future generations.

The first Kuskokwim Watershed Summit attracted more than 100 people including elders, tribal leaders, citizens from all along the Kuskokwim River, and representatives from several state and federal agencies and tribal corporations.

Participants were treated to many varied sessions and presentations including hearing the concerns of a panel of elders; learning how other watershed councils have formed; and hearing how development and human activity have affected fisheries habitat in the Pacific Northwest. 

The Kuskokwim Watershed Summit was a very important first step in bringing all of the stakeholders together and discussing the issues, concerns, and future of the Kuskokwim River.  To protect the river, have abundant natural resources, and keep the river ecologically and culturally intact, there will need to be a unified voice – a voice that could come from this watershed group. 

State Conservationist Visits Prince of Wales Island

NRCS State Conservationist Bob Jones made a quick trip to Juneau back in late July to visit with Samia Savell and Paul Coffey and to discuss their respective programs.  An Alaskan only a few weeks, he promised that after he got his bearings he would make a return trip to Southeast.  Exactly two months later he made good on his promise.

Bob timed his return visit to coincide with the Annual Meeting of the Southeast Conference, the RC&D Council for Southeast Alaska.  After the meeting, travel to Prince of Wales Island (POW) was by ferry and float plane.  After an discussion of the most active RC&D projects in the area, we went to the site of the Craig Aquatic Center where a biomass-fired boiler will be installed to heat the community swimming pool and the Craig elementary and middle schools.  Wood-waste from local sawmills (sawdust, bark, and planer shavings) will be used to heat the buildings and will replace oil and propane.  At 2004 fuel prices, the project is expected to save the community about $60,000 per year in heating costs and will pay for itself in less than ten years. 

Next stop was at the Craig water treatment facility which will be the site of a Chinook Salmon Terminal Fishery project.  The City of Craig is building a hatchery facility to create a King Salmon run where none existed.  The expected return of king salmon will number from 5,000 to 7,000 fish per year and will contribute to the overall economic activity on the west coast of POW.

The last day of Bob’s stay was spent visiting an oyster nursery in the community of Naukati on the northwest coast of POW.  The day ended with a visit with Donna Williams of the Klawock Watershed Council at which watershed restoration projects were discussed, and a visit with Roseann Demmert of AVI who is interested in wildlife habitat enhancement projects as economic development opportunities on Native Corporation lands.

Sturdy Compost Facility Under Construction in Kenai

Construction for a compost facility is underway for Abby and Harry Ala.  Abby is a pragmatic homesteader who knows how to make things work in Alaska.  She successfully operates a stable and a commercial greenhouse.  Abby knows plants and horses.  On the subject of how to deal with manure, the point where her two passions intersect, she came to NRCS for assistance. 

This compost facility will help Abby and Harry better manage their nutrients and kill weed seeds that were finding their way into the compost product used in the greenhouse operation. 

The compost facility was designed by Aimee Rohner and Jane Standifer-Trenton using a concrete slab and block walls, which are unique for a compost facility, but have been engineered to last.  The contractor stated that he's only seen that much steel in a wall when building a prison! 

Fox River Flats Gets Annual Fall Grazing Assessment

Homer field office conservationists participated in the annual fall grazing assessment at the Fox River Flats located at the head of Kachemak Bay in late September.  This ongoing monitoring effort is a part of a Coordinated Resource Management Plan and Cooperative Agreement with the Fox River Cattlemen’s Association and many government agencies including the State of Alaska, Alaska Department of Fish and Game and NRCS. 

Each fall, NRCS collects data at five key locations across the flats.  The data includes cover, utilization levels, rangeland trend, notes on plant community changes, and photo documentation using permanent photo points.  All of the data collected is summarized in a report written by NRCS which is distributed to all of the interested parties. 

The Fox River Flats is a part of a 16,000-acre state grazing lease and has been grazed by cattle since the early 1900s.  The area is also classified as a critical habitat area and is used by many species of waterfowl in addition to larger mammals such as wolves, brown bear and moose.     

UAF Uses NRCS Handbook in New Reindeer Certificate Program

NRCS range conservationists met this past week with university professors, cooperative extension agents and reindeer herders to discuss the development and curriculum of a 30-hour certificate in reindeer husbandry and management to be offered through the University of Alaska in Fairbanks and at the Northwest Campus in Nome.  Rangeland management will be among the courses offered and will use the NRCS’s National Range and Pasture Handbook as a guide. 

NRCS Alaska Range Specialists have the opportunity to provide input into the class including lichen winter range utilization monitoring methods and other Alaska–specific monitoring procedures.  The certificate program will thoroughly prepare students for jobs in the reindeer industry, and the credits can be used toward the completion of associates and bachelor’s degrees. 

Earth Team Annual Report Shows Increase in Volunteer Activity

In FY05, NRCS logged 375 volunteer hours in the Earth Team program.  This is an increase from the mid-year report of 103 hours, and a substantial increase from the prior year in which very few volunteer hours were reported. 

But can do better – with just a little effort.  In listening to district presentations at the AACD meeting this morning, I discovered we are missing opportunities to count volunteer hours. By not working more closely with district staffs on community projects, we are also denying local volunteers with the benefits of Earth Team membership – namely the ability to use NRCS equipment (vehicles, computers, etc) and liability insurance that provides protection to volunteers while they’re working for conservation. 

Also remember that personnel from other state or federal agencies or from private business dispatched to work on NRCS projects can be counted as sponsored volunteers.

If you have questions about the Earth Team Program, how to get started in your office, how to partner with your district or RC&D Councils, or need ideas, please contact me.

Personnel Actions

Promotions

• Darrell Kautz, Natural Resources Specialist, National Geospatial Development Center, WV.  He reports December 26.