NACD Responds to
President Trump’s FY19 Budget

Following the release of President Trump’s proposed Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 budget yesterday, NACD responded to the slashing of conservation program funding with a statement by President Brent Van Dyke.

“Once again, this administration is calling on American producers to do more with less,” Van Dyke said. “The president’s budget proposes cuts to almost every area of USDA’s discretionary and mandatory budgets, including nearly $15 billion in cuts to farm bill conservation programs and over a 20 percent reduction to Conservation Operations.”

The budget includes a legislative proposal to eliminate the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) and funding for the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). In addition to eliminating these USDA programs, the budget requests to completely eliminate the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s Section 319 nonpoint source grant program, which helps address nonpoint pollution from agricultural as well as non-agricultural sources. The budget also proposes cutting state and private forestry funding by over 40 percent.

To read NACD’s full statement, click here.



Resource Conservation District of Greater San Diego County, California

Thanks to funding from the 2016 NACD Urban Agriculture Conservation Grant Initiative, the Resource Conservation District (RCD) of Greater San Diego County in California was able to expand their Tijuana River Valley Community Garden.

Through planning and coordination with San Diego Parks, the community garden expansion included 72 new garden plots, bringing the total to 210 30 x 30 plots, plus seven quarter-acre plots to support urban agriculture on a larger scale.


The project also realized a long-term goal – planting a native hedgerow to create habitat for pollinators. The 165 plants were selected for their suitability in the garden’s microclimate and cascading bloom times to provide a year-round nectar source.

The district secured additional funds to support this project, including a large grant from the County Board of Supervisors for needed infrastructure and a mini-grant from the California Association of Resource Conservation Districts to offer conservation-themed trainings for gardeners.

In addition, the RCD conducted workshops about practices that conserve natural resources and help make the best use of plots and produce. Topics included garden design, irrigation, composting, edible garden weeds, cover cropping and soil building practices.

To learn more about the project, click here.


Showcasing Conservation at the Commodity Classic

This Feb. 28 – March 1, NACD Second Vice President Michael Crowder and CEO Jeremy Peters will exhibit on behalf of NACD at the 2018 Commodity Classic in Anaheim, Calif. – the largest farmer-led, farmer-focused tradeshow and convention in the nation.

NACD’s message to attendees is that you can farm with a conservation focus and still be profitable. This year, Crowder and Peters will showcase the four NACD and Datu case studies of on-the-farm soil health practices, which proves this message to be true.

For more information on these case studies, visit our website and download the reports or stop by booth #974 at the Commodity Classic and visit with Crowder and Peters!


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