O ver the last decade or so, NRCS work has gone beyond our traditional role of working with landowners to preserving soil, air and water quality. We now find ourselves taking on the additional missions of promoting energy conservation and help- ing our clients and partners develop alternative energy sources. To promote energy conservation, NRCS offers help and incentives through a number of programs including the Conservation Security Program and web-based tools. This year’s CSP promotes conserva- tion practices and also has an energy component that rewards farm- ers for converting to renewable energy fuels such as soy-diesel and ethanol. The new online "energy estimator" tools help producers make energy-efficient conservation practice decisions. They range from a simple "three-click" estimator to more detailed tools that may require service center assistance. Electrical power, produced by biomass products and wind energy, is a hot topic since President Bush mentioned them in his State of the Union Address. A number of Iowa NRCS affiliated Resource Conservation and Development councils are already working on alternative energy sources. For example, Southern Iowa and Prairie Partners RC&Ds are developing wind energy alternatives. Iowa Lakes and Northeast Iowa RC&Ds are promoting solar energy use. Prairie Winds RC&D is assisting develop a biovillage demonstrating renewable fuels, green architecture and sustainable development at exit 182 on Interstate 35. One RC&D is recognized as a national leader for its involvement in alternative fuels. After the State of the Union Address, ABC-TV’s World News Tonight went to Chariton Valley RC&D to feature switchgrass as a locally-grown and harvested renewable fuel resource. This council has worked on switchgrass as an alternative fuel source for more than a decade. I have always felt that conservation work has been both challeng- ing and rewarding. This additional conservation mission of energy conservation and development provides new ways to “Help People Help the Land.” USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, 210 Walnut St., Room 693, Des Moines, IA 50309 Spring 2006 What’s inside..... Soil Scientists Help Homeland Security .............................................Page 2 New Employees Trained...............Page 2 Area 2 Gets New AST-FO.............Page 3 Black History Month Observed..Page 4 Mark Jensen Receives National Engineering Award........................Page 5 Personnel Actions...........................Page 6 From the Office of Iowa State Conservationist Rick Van Klaveren "Iowa Natural Resources Conservation Service: Excellence in helping people conserve and improve our natural resources, communities, and environment." Iowa Current Developments Iowa Current Developments
Transcript
Over the last decade or so, NRCS work has gone beyond ourtraditional role of working with landowners to preservingsoil, air and water quality. We now find ourselves taking on
the additional missions of promoting energy conservation and help-ing our clients and partners develop alternative energy sources.
To promote energy conservation, NRCS offers help and incentivesthrough a number of programs including the Conservation SecurityProgram and web-based tools. This year’s CSP promotes conserva-tion practices and also has an energy component that rewards farm-ers for converting to renewable energy fuels such as soy-diesel andethanol.
The new online "energy estimator" tools help producers makeenergy-efficient conservation practice decisions. They range from asimple "three-click" estimator to more detailed tools that may requireservice center assistance.
Electrical power, produced by biomass products and wind energy,is a hot topic since President Bush mentioned them in his State of theUnion Address. A number of Iowa NRCS affiliated ResourceConservation and Development councils are already working onalternative energy sources. For example, Southern Iowa and PrairiePartners RC&Ds are developing wind energy alternatives. IowaLakes and Northeast Iowa RC&Ds are promoting solar energy use.Prairie Winds RC&D is assisting develop a biovillage demonstratingrenewable fuels, green architecture and sustainable development atexit 182 on Interstate 35.
One RC&D is recognized as a national leader for its involvementin alternative fuels. After the State of the Union Address, ABC-TV’sWorld News Tonight went to Chariton Valley RC&D to featureswitchgrass as a locally-grown and harvested renewable fuelresource. This council has worked on switchgrass as an alternativefuel source for more than a decade.
I have always felt that conservation work has been both challeng-ing and rewarding. This additional conservation mission of energyconservation and development provides new ways to “Help PeopleHelp the Land.”
USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, 210 Walnut St., Room 693, Des Moines, IA 50309 Spring 2006
What’s inside.....
Soil Scientists Help Homeland Security.............................................Page 2New Employees Trained...............Page 2Area 2 Gets New AST-FO.............Page 3Black History Month Observed..Page 4Mark Jensen Receives NationalEngineering Award........................Page 5 Personnel Actions...........................Page 6
From the Office of Iowa State Conservationist
Rick Van Klaveren
"Iowa Natural Resources Conservation Service:Excellence in helping people
conserve and improve our natural resources, communities, and environment."
Iowa Current Developments
Iowa Current Developments
Iowa Current Developments
Soil Scientists AssistHomeland Security
Soil scientists are at the forefrontof national disaster planning. Thisunlikely group is helping the nationbe better prepared in the event itbecomes necessary to dispose oflarge numbers of animals killed as aresult of natural disaster, disease orterrorist attack.
Given the task by HomelandSecurity through a national head-quarters bulletin, NRCS soil scien-tists are examining soil survey datafor land areas where large numbersof animals can safely be buriedwithout danger to the environmentor human population.
State Soil Scientist Mike Suciksays all 17 of Iowa’s NRCS soil sci-entists are involved in the project.He adds, “I expect it will requireone or two staff-years of time tocomplete.”
Five of the Iowa soil scientists workingon the Homeland Security Project areRichard Lensch, Dan Pulido, RyanDermody, Doug Oelmann and LelandCamp.
Twenty-five new NRCS employeesattended “Orientation for NewEmployees” training Feb. 6-10 inNebraska City, Neb. The all-Iowa classgave students an overview of theagency’s history, mission and cus-tomers. They learned the conservationplanning process and examined a num-ber of conservation practices.
Attending were: (Row One) InstructorJames Johnson, Betty Romero, ValorieJohnson, Tangela Luhmann and Steve
Brinkman. (Row Two) RubyanaGrimmius, Meghan Walter, JulieMcMichael, Christina Cibula, PeggyWohlgemuth, Peggy Rash Daniels,Joanne Bruce, Melissa Johnson andMary Roberts. (Row Three) JoshuaSieren, Jacob Groth, Jack Bucklin,Andrew Focht, Jesse Wegner, LynnKluver, Randal Welshhons, and ConnieZittritsch. (Row Four) David Gundlach,Hani Nguyen, David Carter andInstructor Jim Lansford.
New Employees Attend Orientation Training
Steve Brinkman, Nutrient ManagementSpecialist, looks through a dumpy level aspart of the hands on training at newemployee orientation. The dumpy level isone of five pieces of surveying equipmentthey examined.
Tangela Luhmann, a Soil ConservationTechnician from Clarion, and RubyanaGrimmius, a Soil Conservationist fromAdel, look on as Resource SoilScientist Rick Bednarek demonstratesthe use of a soil quality test kit.
Helping People Help the Land Spring 2006 Page 2
neering firm before joining NRCS. In Wisconsin, her assignments
included Wisconsin Rapids, Portageand Shawano. She became a districtconservationist and served in bothMerrill and Dodgeville.
Married for ten years to her hus-band, Chi, Woodrich is an avidNASCAR fan and also enjoys garden-ing, softball, volleyball, camping andspending time with family andfriends. Chi is an auctioneer andsalesman.
The couple are looking forward tomoving to Iowa.
A district conservationist fromWisconsin has been named as
Assistant StateConservationist(Field Office) forArea 2. Woodrichstarts her newassignment April 3.She is originallyfrom Wausau,
Wisconsin, where she grew up on aChristmas tree farm.
Woodrich holds a soil sciencedegree from the University ofWisconsin-Stevens Point andworked for an environmental engi-
Soil Conservationist Mike Praskaloves to fish. He enjoys fishing somuch that 2006 is the second consec-utive year that Mike and his friendshave invited the people of Mitchell
and Howard coun-ties to join them onthe ice and competefor trophies andother prizes.
Praska heads upthe Elma Sports-men’s Club commit-tee that hosts the
annual Ice Fishing Tournament heldeach February on Lake Hendricks inRiceville.
The community strongly sup-ports the ice fishing tournament.Businesses have donated manyprizes and, each year, at least 100participants have braved coldweather to try their luck.
Praska says their goal is to keepthe spirit of ice fishing alive innorthern Iowa. He adds, “It’s justsomething to do that’s a little differ-ent and we are looking forward tonext year.”
Helping People Help the Land Spring 2006 Page 3
Iowa Current Developments
Area 2 staff meet Karen Woodrich(center), their incoming state conser-vationist for field operations (AFO).The staff met Woodrich on a recenttrip to the Fort Dodge area office.Pictured front row kneeling are: DougBaker, Area Engineer; Denis Schulte,Acting AFO; and Josh Gansen, DNRPrivate Lands Biologist. Middle Row:Dave Rohlf, Ag Engineer; Dan Selky,
Wetland Specialist; Woodrich; TeresaSue Snyder Thomas, Area ResourceConservationist; and Becky Scott,Administrative Management Assistant.Back row: Civil EngineeringTechnicians Larry Trauger, DennyBarrick, and Steve Clink; RondaHathcock, Ag Engineer; and StephanieHill, Program Specialist.
Iowa Engineers Involvedin Hurricane Relief Work
Two Iowa engineers are makingplans to travel to New Orleans tohelp with Emergency WatershedProtection work. Meghan Walter ofthe Williamsburg Iowa RiverCorridor Project Office and RondaHathcock of Fort Dodge, will spendup to one month assisting NRCSLouisiana with hurricane relatedprojects.
Meghan WalterFort Dodge
Ronda HathcockWilliamsburg
State Conservationist for Field Operations Area 2 Named Let’s Go Fishing
Mike Praska
Karen Woodrich
Black History MonthObserved
Thirty people listened to JamesFreeman, a member of the one of themost famous doo-wop groups of the1950s, “The Five Satins,” speak to staffmembers at the state office. Freemanwas a member of The Five Satinswhen they recorded the original hitversion of “In the Still of the Night,"which is still popular today. He dis-cussed his musical life with NRCS
staff members as part of a BlackHistory Month pro-gram held February15. Freeman,now a pest controlbusiness owner inNorwalk, is a notedcivic leader and hasbeen featured on theIowa PublicTelevisionProgram, “Living in Iowa.”
Helping People Help the Land Spring 2006 Page 4
Iowa Current Developments
There are two new displays available for use by field offices:a table top Downing board Environmental Quality IncentiveProgram (EQIP) display pictured on the left and an 8 by 10foot NRCS image pop-up shown on the right. The EQIP dis-play has extra side panels that allow districts to
tailor their message to practices used in their county and isavailable to check out from each area office. The NRCSimage display is available to check out from the state office.For more information go to the Iowa NRCS website(www.ia.nrcs.usda.gov) or call your area office.
The Federal Women’s Program is celebratingNational Women’s History Month. The purpose
of studying women's history is not to idealizewomen, but rather share the stories ofwomen's achievements and present anexpanded view of the complexity and contra-diction of living a full and purposeful life.The knowledge of women's history provides a
more expansive vision of what a woman cando. This perspective can encourage girls and
women to think larger and bolder and can giveboys and men a fuller understanding of the female
experience.
`tÜv{is NationalWomen’s
History Month
Linda Appelgate, IowaHeartland RC&D Coordinator ,examines the porous asphalt park-ing lot her council helped install ata continuing care retirement com-munity in Des Moines last fall.
Built as an urban “best manage-ment practice,” the porous asphaltallows rain to move through theasphalt and into an infiltration stor-age bed of uniformly graded lime-stone. From there, the storm waterinfiltrates slowly into the ground-water below. This action preventssending stormwater, with all of itspollutants, straight into a stormdrain and into lake or stream.
Greg Townley, Poweshiek CountyDistrict Conservationist, is on activeduty in Iraq as a member of the ArmyReserve. Called up to active duty lastyear, Major Townley is serving as aliaison officer with a Marine logisticalunit just west of Baghdad.
Townley provides a link betweenthe two services so they understandeach other.
As a logistician, Townley isinvolved in getting needed supplies tothe troops asquickly and effi-ciently as possi-ble.
Townleyreports that liv-ing conditionsare really goodas far as he isconcerned. Hehas moved froma plywoodstructure with five other officers to abuilding that has a shower in it.
He expects to return to Iowa andNRCS in October 2006.
Bruce Trautman, Area FiveAssistant State Conservationist forField Operations, is arranging aNRCS/Soil and Water ConservationSociety Spring CleanUp, Fix Up andBBQ Day on the Townley farm forApril 15 starting at 9 a.m. The fix upday will help Greg, his wife Janet andtheir children complete home andfarm repairs left undone while Greg isdeployed.
There is a possibility that Greg’swife, Janet, also an Army Reservist,will be called to active duty in Mayand deployed away from Iowa.
If you would like to help, pleasecontact Suzette Betts at 641-472-8411 oremail her at [email protected].
The Townley farm is located at:7430 South 68th Avenue West, PrairieCity, IA 50228.
The OttumwaGenerating Station isnow mixing switchgrasswith coal as part of arenewable fuels effortthat has focused nationalattention on this project.The current two monthtest burn will use 25,000tons of switchgrass toreplace coal for electricalgeneration.
This test burn is onemore step in a decadeslong Chariton ValleyRC&D effort to use bio-mass to generate electricity.
Helping People Help the Land Spring 2006 Page 5
Iowa Current Developments
IWINR AnnualConference Held
Three Iowa NRCS employees,Christine Chafa, Storm Lake, KellyHeather, Carroll, and Cindy Gatlin,Winterset, attended the 18thAnnual Iowa Women In NaturalResources Conference heldFebruary 9-10, 2006 at theSpringbrook Education Center inGuthrie Center. The theme wasNatural Resources: Past, Presentand Future.
Women of all ages and from allwalks of life who are interested inNatural Resources attended theconference.
Mark Jensen NRCSNational Engineer
of the Year
Mark Jensen, State ConservationEngineer, was recognized as NRCSNational Engineer of the Year in aNational Society of ProfessionalEngineers luncheon in Washington,DC. Jensen’s award was presentedby Dave Thackeray, Director ofConservation Engineering DivisionNRCS National Office, and LarryClark, Deputy Chief for Science andTechnology.
Greg Townley
Townley Update
Judith Brayton, Administrative Assistant, and DoraGuffey, Coordinator of the Chariton Valley RC&D, standnext to a pile of switchgrass. Brayton is a retiredSCS/NRCS employee who now works for the CharitonValley RC&D.
Adams,Douglas J Soil Consv Techncn 06 Promotion 12/25/05 Area 2 FO HUMBOLDT Birks,Cristine A Soil Consv Techncn 07 Promotion 1/22/06 Area 2 FO NEVADABrommel,David P Soil Consvst 12 Reassignment 1/8/06 Technical Services StaffCorey,Patrick W Soil Consvst 05 Conv to Career-Cond Appt 1/8/06 Area 4 FO MT AYR Dubendorf,Jennifer Natrl Resource Speclst 11 Promotion 12/25/05 GIS STAFFGubbels,Julia A Soil Consv Techncn 07 Promotion 12/25/05 Area 1 FO CHEROKEE Harris Hull,Kristina Soil Consvst 11 Promotion 1/8/06 Area 5 AO FAIRFIELD Heather,Kelly A Soil Consvst 07 Conv to Career-Cond Appt 1/8/06 Area 1 FO CARROLHempy,Craig G Soil Consvst 11 Promotion 12/25/05 Area 5 FO MALCOM Hill,Stephanie R Soil Consvst 11 Promotion 1/8/06 Area 2 AO FORT DODGE Hoefler,Julie R Soil Consv Techncn 06 Promotion 1/22/06 Area 3 FO EPWORTHHogge,Christopher Soil Consvst 11 Promotion 12/25/05 Area 1 FO STORM LAKE Lange,Alan D Soil Consv Techncn 06 Promotion 2/5/06 Area 2 FO BOONE Miller,Clinton A Soil Consvst 09 Reassignment 2/5/06 Area 3 FO TOLEDO Miller,Lucas J Soil Consv Techncn 07 Promotion 12/25/05 Area 2 FO GARNER Moltzen,Roberta A Forstr 12 Reassignment 1/8/06 ECOLOGICAL SCIENCES STAFFMurphy,Christina Civil Engr 11 Promotion 12/25/05 Natural Resource Plng Staff, NICHOLSON,Renae Soil Consvst 11 Name Chg from Ford 12/25/05 Area 4 FO HARLAN Niedermayer,Lisa Soil Consvst 07 Reassignment 1/22/06 Area 4 FO WINTERSETConnor,Thomas J Res Consvst 12 Change in Title 1/4/06 Technical Services StaffRoberts,Mary A Soil Consv Techncn 05 Promotion 12/25/05 Area 1 FO STORM LAKERuopp,Douglas C Soil Consv Techncn 05 Promotion 12/25/05 Area 2 FO NEWTON Schlader,Stacy L Soil Consvst 05 Reassignment 2/5/06 Area 5 FO ALBIASmith,Joe Soil Consvst 09 Promotion 1/8/06 Area 1 AO SIOUX CITYSteele,Jason E Soil Consvst 11 Promotion 12/25/05 Area 5 SSO WASHINGTONStraka,Alexis A Agrl Engr 07 Conv to Career Intern 1/22/06 Area 1 AO SIOUX CITY ENGINEERWatson, Donald Soil Scntst 07 Career Intern Appt 1/8/06 Area 1SSO STORM LAKE Wegner,Jesse B Soil Consvst 07 Conv to Career-Cond Appt 12/25/05 Area 2 FO BOONE Welshhons,Randal Soil Consv Techncn 05 Promotion 1/22/06 Area 5 FO KNOXVILLE
Helping People Help the Land Spring 2006 Page 6
Twenty-one new supervisors recently completed three days of training in February titled: “Supervising in Iowa 101.” Thecourse taught new district conservationists, resource soil scientists and others a wide range of subjects from financial man-agement and administrative services to how to develop professional working relationships and handle human resourceissues. Attending were: Row 1--Jaia Fischer, Katundra Shears, Shiloh Bradley, Teresa Reed and Michelle Bales. Row 2--Shaeffer Ridgeway, Jeff Matthias, Lori Harris, Marvin Freed, Brenda Tenold-Moretz, Lori Derringer and Dan Pulido. Row3--Richard Lensch, Nick Morrell, Brian Hillers, Chris Hogge, Craig Hempy, Larry Jones, Ryan Dermody, Leland Camp andT. J. Mathis.
