Register for MN SWCS Annual Meeting, March 14

The Annual Conference and Meeting for the MN Chapter of the Soil and Water Conservation Society is March 14th, at the Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites St. Cloud. The featured speakers are Jim Eckberg, Plant Ecologist for the Xerces Society; and Dennis Garner, National Register Historian for the MN Historical Society. For more information see this flyer.

Save the date: Invasive Species Workshop July 22nd

MN SWCS members:

Please share the following with your colleagues.

The Minnesota Invasive Species Council (MISAC) and the MN Soil and Water Conservation Society (SWCS) Chapter invite you to attend the MN Traveling Invasive Species Workshop meeting at Elm Creek Park Reserve Chalet on Wednesday, July 22nd.

The traveling workshop is a one-day, field based workshop taking place in the West Metro and Three Rivers Park District. This year’s topics include early detection and identification of newcomer invasive plants, zebra mussel control, battling wild parsnip, using goats and fire to manage buckthorn and much more!

This will be a full day event beginning at 8:00 a.m. and ending by 4:00 pm. Registration fees cover the cost of lunch, water/ice, and transport between field sites. Registration details will follow at a later date. We’re looking forward to seeing you there!

For more information (and a printable flyer), please visit the MN SWCS Chapter website at: http://minnesotaswcs.org/

Minnesota SWCS Award Recipients

The Minnesota Chapter SWCS is pleased to congratulate the following recipients of chapter awards presented at our annual meeting on March 2nd.

Education Award
Steve Simons accepted the award on behalf of Central Minnesota Water Education Alliance.
The Central MN Water Education Alliance (CMWEA) is a coalition of central MN cities, counties and other organizations that provide education outreach to promote water quality stewardship.  The mission of CMWEA is to develop and implement educational programs that encourage individuals in Central MN to protect water resources by increasing their knowledge and making simple behavior changes.  By working in concert, the members of CMWEA are able to provide a consistent water quality educational message.

MN SWCS Scholarship Award
Patrick Hagen – 2014 University of MN, Crookston graduate.
Patrick took a job with Capistran Farms and Seed Company in Crookston while attending school.   This allowed him the opportunity to learn about the views the local farmers held along with their farming practices.  He plans to use this information along the education he received to help merge conservation of our natural lands with sustainable farming and production.   In his future he hopes to blend the fields of agriculture and natural resources instead of viewing them as separate.

Commendation
Kelly Oliver – Served on the executive committee for the MN Chapter.
Kelly was very active in the organization of summer tours and annual meetings.
Russell Kleinschmidt – Served as Chapter President.
Did a Great job of running meetings and leading the MN Chapter during his term.

(Post from Julie Reberg.)

MN SWCS Annual Meeting is March 2nd in Crookston

The 2015 Annual Meeting and Conference of the Minnesota Chapter of the Soil and Water Conservation Society is Monday March 2nd, 8:00 to 5:00, at the Bergland Laboratory and Ag Research Center, 2900 University Avenue, Crookston, MN.

The program features:

• Chris Philips "Pollinator habitat, bees, pesticides, and implications for land use."
• Matt Simmons "Patch-Burn Grazing on Glacial Ridge National Wildlife Refuge"
• Leon Osborne "Dealing with Weird Weather and Climate Change"
• Panel Discussion on "Land and Water Connections in Northwestern Minnesota: The Cumulative Effects of Land Use on Water Quality and Quantity" with Tim Cowdery, Hydrogeologist – USGS; Les Lemm – BWSR; Henry Van Offelen – Minnesota Department of Natural Resources; Chuck Fritz – International Watershed Institute and past Red Lake Watershed District Manager; Livestock farmer - Tim Szymanski

The full agenda is available at http://lamprey.crk.umn.edu/calendar/index.php?eID=10148

National SWCS awards deadline extended

Note that the national SWCS office extended its deadline for awards nominations to March 16th. Take the opportunity to honor the hardworking conservationists in Minnesota.
Here is a link to the flyer describing the awards:
http://www.swcs.org/documents/filelibrary/pdfs/2014_Awards_Flyer3_B1AEED9DA1D3B.pdf

Time to nominate for MNSWCS awards and scholarships

Minnesota SWCS members,

It is that time of year to honor your colleagues for their conservation work by nominating them for one of the Chapter awards or scholarships. Nominations are due March 1st, 2014.

In addition to the student scholarship, the six awards available are:
Outstanding Service – Awarded to an SWCS member that has ten years or more of service to any state chapter of the SWCS.
Commendation – Awarded to Minnesota Chapter SWCS members for their commendable service to the Minnesota SWCS.
Honor – Awarded to a SWCS member or non-member that has ten years or more of service to any state chapter of the SWCS.
Merit – Awarded to a SWCS member or non-member group, agency, business, product, etc. for accomplishments or contributions to the natural resource field.
News/Media – Awarded for the dedication and promotion of the natural resource issues in the news/media.
Education - Awarded to an individual, group, agency, etc. for their contribution to the conservation education of adults and/or youth.

Nomination forms are on the MN SWCS Chapter website
Or use the following links to go directly to the Student Scholarship Application Form, or the Awards Nomination Form.

Invasive Species Tour next Wednesday

Your Minnesota Chapter SWCS and the MN Invasive Species Advisory Council is hosting an invasive species workshop next Wednesday July 31st, starting in Windom MN. Speakers on the tour stops will address concerns about EAB, rough fish, and a broad range of upland plants. See the agenda for more information, and register ahead of time to ensure space on the bus.

MN SWCS Award Nomination forms available

Dear Minnesota SWCS members,

It is that time of year to honor your colleagues for their conservation work by nominating them for one of the Chapter awards or scholarships. Nominations are due March 31st.

In addition to the student scholarship, the six awards available are:
Outstanding Service – Awarded to an SWCS member that has ten years or more of service to any state chapter of the SWCS.
Commendation – Awarded to Minnesota Chapter SWCS members for their commendable service to the Minnesota SWCS.
Honor – Awarded to a SWCS member or non-member that has ten years or more of service to any state chapter of the SWCS.
Merit – Awarded to a SWCS member or non-member group, agency, business, product, etc. for accomplishments or contributions to the natural resource field.
News/Media – Awarded for the dedication and promotion of the natural resource issues in the news/media.
Education  - Awarded to an individual, group, agency, etc. for their contribution to the conservation education of adults and/or youth.

Nomination forms are available on the MN SWCS Chapter website

"Dig It!" soil exhibit event January 3rd

You might remember a few years ago when the Smithsonian Museum, with support from the Soil Science Society of America, created "Dig It!", an exhibit about the complex world of soil. Well, now, the exhibit is on display right here in Minnesota at the Bell Museum of Natural History on the Minneapolis campus of the University of Minnesota.


The exhibit will run through July, but don't put off your visit. Several events are planned around it including “Big Thursday” when subject matter experts are on hand to guide visitors through the exhibit. The next one is Thursday, January 3rd, 2013 at 5:30 p.m. when Caryl Radatz (NRCS State Soil Scientist) and her colleagues will lead the gallery conversation.

More information is at the Bell Museum website http://www.bellmuseum.umn.edu/ForAdults/Exhibits/DigIt/index.htm

And here's a pdf flyer you can use to promote it to your colleagues, friends, and family: http://minnesotaswcs.org/Activities/dig_deeper_2.pdf

CEU opportunity: MAPSS tour of Dakota County

The MN Association of Professional Soil Scientists (MAPSS ) presents their summer field tour Friday, July 27th, 2012 in Farmington, MN. The expert list of speakers will talk about Dakota County geology and soils, fracturing sands, and nutrient management issues. The tour is worth 6 CEUs. Agenda and registration form are at http://minnesotaswcs.org/Activities/MAPSS2012SummerTour.pdf

The Perfect Storm of Soil Events

MN SWCS members:
Check out the message below from the  Minnesota Association of Professional Soil Scientists (MAPSS) describing a never-to-be-repeated confluence of soil celebrations. Sign up for the email list at the end of the message to stay informed of associated events.

Dear Colleagues and Friends of Soils in Minnesota,


These are exciting times for soil in Minnesota, maybe the most exciting times any of us can remember. To help coordinate activities related to several soil related events happening in Minnesota, the Minnesota Association of Professional Soil Scientists (MAPSS) has formed a committee called the Perfect Storm Committee (PSC). Why did we call it the Perfect Storm Committee? See the list of events below, we can’t recall a time when more soil related activity was going on.

· 2011: The Soil Science Society of America 75th Anniversary;

· 2012: The 150th Anniversary of the USDA, the anticipated arrival of Dig-It, the Smithsonian Soils Exhibit to the Bell Museum in the fall and our successful effort to establish Lester as the Minnesota State Soil

· 2013: The 100th Anniversary of the Univ. of MN Department of Soil Water and Climate and the 40th Anniversary of MAPSS

To keep people informed about happenings associated with these events, MAPSS has created and is maintaining an informational e-mail list to be used to inform people about Minnesota soils and soil related events. This list will be maintained by MAPSS and will not be sold or given to others. If you or others you know would like to receive information from MAPSS about soil related events, please use the link below to sign up for our mail list. You can add one or as many different e-mails as you like to our list. Later on, you can use this same form to change your e-mail address or to remove yourself from our list at any time you like. Note, for members of the list, if you have soil related events you want to tell list members about, send your message to mapss@mnsoilscientist.org – we will review it and if appropriate, we will forward it to the list members.

Sign up for the MAPSS Informational Mail List here:
http://www.mnsoilscientist.org/main/mapssinfo.html
Thank you for your interest in Minnesota Soils!

Can we have intensive agriculture AND environmental performance?

MN SWCS members:

Check out Dr. Kenneth G. Cassman's lecture this Thursday on "Can We Guide Agriculture towards Sustainable Food Security?".  Then post your reactions below.
Here are the event details:
Dr. Kenneth G. Cassman,
Robert B. Daugherty Professor of Agronomy, and
Chair, Independent Science and Partnership Council of the CGIAR
University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE

Thursday April 19, 2012
2:00-4:30 PM
335 Borlaug Hall
University of Minnesota
St. Paul, MN

This event is free and open to the public. Please feel free to forward this to anyone who might be interested. There will be light refreshments following the seminar in the hall outside 335 Borlaug. Live web-streaming available at https://umconnect.umn.edu/emergingissues/

Abstract at: http://minnesotaswcs.org/Activities/Emerging%20Issues%20in%20Soil%20&%20Water%20Lecture%202012.pdf

Chapter President's message

Well, here we are with my first blog message as Chapter President.  I’ve been thinking for quite a while about what makes a person join any organization.  The likely first thought is that people join organizations that they feel a connection to, which represents much of the same values they do.  Ours is a professional organization, and it brings with it some differences from other types of organizations.  Being a conservation society we generally represent a non-partisan view.  The political winds of change move constantly and we have seen much of that over the past 30 years.  The understanding of conservation in our society has grown continuously, the more we learn, the more conservation becomes embedded as a societal value being passed on to succeeding generations.  Our organization represents a group of people concerned with conservation of natural resources, because the resources can’t speak for themselves, we must speak for them.  We provide a forum where discussions about natural resource conservation can take place in a positive, non-partisan way that hopefully leads to common sense solutions to the challenges we face in the world today.

I don’t necessarily believe the old saying: “if you aren’t part of the solution, you’re part of the problem”.  However, that old saying does have a point.  Apathy to issues likely allows them to persist rather than be dealt with.  For all of those who share a kinship with me in conservation, thank you for your commitment.  Perhaps you know someone who isn’t a member and just needs to be asked.  I would suggest that they would benefit greatly from joining our society, and we would also benefit greatly from their insight.  Very much a win-win proposition.  I hope to share my thoughts regularly over my two-year term as Chapter President.  As a reminder, the entire Executive Committee is available for the membership.  We have an outstanding leadership group for the chapter, so give us your feedback. 

Yours in conservation, Dave

Save the Date: March 29th Precision Conservation Conference and MN SWCS annual meeting

The MN SWCS annual meeting will be held March 29th, 2012 in conjunction with the Freshwater Society's day-long conference: “Precision Conservation: Technology Redefining Local Water Quality Practices.”  Precision conservation effectively and efficiently targets scarce resources to the spots on the landscape where they will do the most good. Learn about the latest technology -- much of it based on LiDAR scanning – that pinpoints “sweet spots” where runoff, erosion and pollution are disproportionately severe and the potential for improvement is disproportionately great. Speakers include NRCS Chief Dave White; Dr. David Mulla, University Soil Scientist and a pioneer in employing modern LiDAR-based technology in the service of conservation; Dr. Gerald Van Amburg, president of the Buffalo-Red River Watershed Board; and several other Minnesota expert conservationists sharing rural and urban examples. The event will be at Silverwood Park in St. Anthony, MN. Visit the Freshwater Society web site for a current agenda and registration information. The Chapter annual meeting will follow the conference.

Awards nominations and scholarship apps due soon

Nominations for Chapter Awards and Student Scholarships are due March 2, 2012. Take advantage of this opportunity to honor the great individuals and organizations contributing to conservation in Minnesota. Students may nominate themselves for scholarships.
Applications for national SWCS scholarships for students and professionals are due February 12th, 2012.
Forms for the chapter award nominations and the chapter student scholarships are available on the Chapter website.
Further information about the national scholarships is on the SWCS website.

SWCS Annual Meeting abstracts due Dec 15

MNSWCS members,

This is a reminder that December 15, 2011 is the deadline for the Call for Presentations and Symposium Sessions for the 67th Annual International Conference of the Soil and Water Conservation Society.

The Conference will be July 22-25, 2012 in Fort Worth, TX

For more information, to submit a presentation, or to review the Call, go to http://www.swcs.org/12ac

Dec 15 deadline for SWCS annual conference abstracts

The 67th Annual International Conference for the Soil and Water Conservation Society will be held in Ft. Worth, TX, on July 22-25, 2012.

Abstracts for presentations and proposals for symposia sessions will be accepted through December 15, 2011. Go to go to http://www.swcs.org/12ac for more information

The theme for the meeting is Choosing Conservation: Considering Ecology, Economics, and Ethics. As Dewayne Johnson pointed out, both Hugh Hammond Bennett and Aldo Leopold recognized that effective conservation decision-making takes many tools. A shovel, a pen, and a solid handshake were used skillfully by both men to help land managers and lawmakers make sustainable choices for working lands. Leopold was particularly vocal on the need to reunite economics with ecology and ethics. He recognized that each field of inquiry strengthens the study of natural resource conservation and its application on the back forty. Recent movements toward transdisciplinary research and systems approaches mirror Leopold’s thinking. The 125th anniversary year of Leopold’s birth provides us with an opportunity to take cues from Leopold and Bennett as we consider conservation choices today.

Water quality is the topic of the MN SWCS field tour

The Minnesota SWCS Chapter has a great water quality tour planned for September 14th, 2011 in Lamberton, MN. Hear about the latest in conservation drainage technology at the UM Southwest Research and Outreach Center. Then visit the Highwater Ethanol Plant to learn how they've achieved impressive water usage efficiencies.

The agenda and registration form is available at the Minnesota SWCS web site.

Invasive Species Training Opportunity

Learn to identify and manage common and emerging invasive pests at a daylong workshop August 18th, 2011 in Detroit Lakes, MN. The workshop is presented by the Minnesota Invasive Species Advisory Council (MISAC) and the
Minnesota Chapter of the Soil Water Conservation Society (SWCS). Check out the full agenda and registration information at the MN SWCS web site. Early registration discounts end August 12th.

Do biofuel initiatives account for soil and water conservation?

Biofuels are the topic of the Town Hall meeting at the annual SWCS conference next week. If you will not be in D.C., please share your thoughts on the question below by commenting here or talking to Dennis Fuchs.

Dennis will represent the Minnesota SWCS at the House of Delegates meeting, July 17th, at the annual SWCS meeting in Washington D.C. Following the House of Delegates meeting, all conference attendees are invited to the State of the Society Town Hall meeting to share their views with the SWCS Board of Directors on the following topic:

The United States has committed to an energy policy that includes an aggressive expansion of biofuel production. There are many biofuel feedstock options under consideration; crop residue, perennial grasses, wood byproducts, algae and others. In September, 2010, the SWCS hosted a workshop to develop regional roadmaps for sustainable advanced biofuel feedstock production. In your region, are the initiatives to develop and utilize biofuel feedstock demonstrating appropriate concern for soil conservation, water quality, and soil quality implications?

What do you think? Comment below.