Sunday, January 19, 2025
KANSAS – The Concordia NRCS Management Unit will be hosting a Local Work Group (LWG) meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 29.
The complimentary Taco Bar will begin at 12 p.m. at the Cloud County Co-op Distribution Center Meeting Room, located at 1401 East 6th ST Trafficway; Concordia, KS. The counties in the Concordia Natural Resources Conservation Service Management Unit (MU) are Cloud, Jewell, Mitchell and Republic.
The purpose of this meeting is to make recommendations relating to natural resource concerns. These local concerns will be forwarded to the NRCS State Conservationist, David Doctorian.
“LWGs are important because they provide recommendations on local and state natural resource priorities and criteria for U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) conservation activities and programs. It is critical that the ‘boots on the ground’ have a voice in the process,” said Dan Meyerhoff, Executive Director for the Kansas Association of Conservation Districts (KACD).
According to Meyerhoff, the LWG should be diverse and focus on agricultural interests and natural resource issues existing in the community. Membership should include agricultural producers representing the variety of crops, livestock and poultry raised within the local area. Also, representatives of agricultural and environmental organizations; and governmental agencies carrying out agricultural and natural resource conservation and activities are included. LWGs take into account the concerns of particular historically underserved groups and individuals, including but not limited to women, persons with disabilities, socially disadvantaged, and limited resource groups.
Some of the 2024 LWG Statewide Resource Concerns that were discussed at over 50 percent of the state-wide LWG meetings involving the five main topics include:
Need for increased adoption of soil health practices; Active erosion associated with structural practices that have exceeded their life span; Cedar tree invasion (and other invasive species); Lack of prescribed burning or barriers to prescribed burning; Declining ground water levels; Declining population of ground nesting game birds; Concern with growing numbers of absentee landowners
Potential topics for discussion at the Jan. 29 meeting include but are not limited to:
RESOURCE ASSESSMENT: What are the greatest natural resource concerns on your farm, or in your area? On a broader scale: what are the resource concerns seen across the landscape (think watershed or county)?
CLIMATE RESPONSE: Is there an awareness of weather-related disaster response programs? Does adequate knowledge of weather related response programs – and the processes involved – currently exist?
URBAN/SMALL FARM: Is there an awareness of small farms within the Management Unit (MU)? Are those farms aware of available conservation partnering opportunities?
OUTREACH: What type out outreach mediums (Facebook, newsletters, field days, etc.) have been successful? What barriers to outreach have been experienced?
PROGRAMS: What potential program implementation improvements are needed to address identified resource concerns? What are some successes of the current programs?
Please RSVP for the Wednesday, Jan. 29 meeting by Friday, Jan. 24 for the complimentary taco bar by contacting your local Conservation District!
To request more information about LWGs, contact the Conservation District or NRCS staff in any of the four counties involved in the Concordia NRCS Management Unit., at Cloud County 785-243-1509 ext 3, Jewell County 785-378-3731 ext 3; Mitchell County 785-738-5172 ext 3; Republic County 785-527-2725 ext 3
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