Southern Pine Beetle

Apply Now for FL Southern Pine Beetle Assistance Program

Dan Florida, Forestry

The Florida Forest Service is now accepting applications for the 2024 Southern Pine Beetle Assistance and Prevention Program for non-industrial, private forest landowners. The program runs through July 26 and includes 44 northern Florida counties – the southern pine beetle’s known range. Previous outbreaks have destroyed thousands of acres of timber. Florida’s last major southern pine beetle outbreak caused an …

Requesting Input for Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry Mitigation List

Dan Climate Change, Forestry, USDA-NRCS

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Climate Office is seeking input on its Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry Mitigation Activities List. Each year, the Climate Office reviews NRCS conservation activities (practices and enhancements) to recommend additions, removals, or to provide further detail for listed activities. The list guides eligibility for funds from the Inflation Reduction Act. While NRCS collects feedback throughout the …

Producers Can Use Farm Loan Programs for Climate-Smart Opportunities

Dan Agri-Business, Climate Change, Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), Economy, Forestry, USDA-FSA, USDA-NRCS

The USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) reminds agricultural producers that farm loan programs can be used to support a variety of climate-smart agriculture practices. Many that can build on practices that farmers and ranchers already use, like cover cropping, nutrient management and conservation tillage.  Climate-smart agricultural practices generate significant environmental benefits by capturing and sequestering carbon, improving water …

USDA-NRCS Accepting RCPP Project Proposals

Dan Conservation, Environment, Forestry, Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP), USDA-NRCS

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) wants to remind landowners it is now accepting project proposals through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). This will help farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners adopt and expand conservation strategies to enhance natural resources while tackling the climate crisis.  This $1.5 billion investment, being made available through the Farm Bill and the Inflation Reduction Act, is enabling …

Southeast a Leader in Prescribed Fire

Dan Environment, Forestry

The University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Fire Network uses prescribed burns to fight fire with fire. Fire Network Director Lenya N. Quinn-Davidson says the southeast is a leader in prescribed burns. “The Southeastern US has been the place where that cultural connection to prescribe fire was never lost in the same way that it was in the Western …

Florida Landowners Encouraged to Apply for RCPP

Dan Florida, Forestry, Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP), USDA-NRCS

Florida landowners interested in aligning their land uses with conservation values and practices have an opportunity to apply for Entity Held Conservation Easementsopportunities in partnership with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service in Florida (NRCS) and Tall Timbers Research, Inc. through April 5, 2024. Landowners who applied for the recent Florida Department of Consumer Services Rural and Family Lands Protection Program cycle are encouraged to apply for …

NACD Calls to Increase Funding for Conservation Priorities

Dan Conservation, Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), Environment, Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), Forestry, National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD), Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP), USDA-NRCS

This past Saturday, President Biden signed Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 appropriations legislation into law that provides funding for several federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. Department of the Interior. And while the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) appreciates that the enactment of final federal spending legislation prevents a government shutdown and …

Catastrophic Losses Ahead After Texas Wildfires

Dan Agri-Business, Economy, Forestry, This Land of Ours

Catastrophic losses from the Texas wildfires. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Texas Ag Commissioner Sid Miller announced his agency’s commitment to providing support to the state’s producers as they deal with the aftermath of devastating wildfires in the Texas Panhandle. The Smokehouse Creek Fire has burned through almost 1,700 square miles of land, making it the largest …