WHAT DO
CONSERVATION DISTRICTS DO?
Conservation districts are units of local
government designed to help citizens conserve their soil, water, and other
renewable natural resources.
The
main function of a conservation district is to conduct local activities to
promote conservation of natural resources.
The activities vary from district to district, but generally include
education or on-the-ground conservation projects. Conservation districts, however, have the
authority to pass land use ordinances if necessary to conserve local natural
resources. In addition, individuals
planning to work in or near a perennial stream or river must first receive a permit
from their local conservation district.
Natural
Streambed and Land Preservation Act
Conservation districts administer this act, also
known as "The 310 Law," for the state of
Water Quality
Conservation districts are the local contact for
the control of non-point source (NPS) pollution. Districts conduct projects
which demonstrate NPS pollution control practices, preferring voluntary, educational,
and incentive-based approaches over regulatory approaches. Additionally,
district boards work with state and federal regulatory agencies (for the most
part, the Montana Department of Environmental Quality and the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency) to identify problem areas and prioritize
treatment. Recently, the manner in which these problems are addressed has
become the development of Total Maximum Daily Loads for
impaired streams in
Watershed
Planning, Local Watershed Councils, and Coordinated Resource Management Efforts
They all mean the same thing--local folks getting together in a
collaborative, consensus-based process to tackle local and regional natural resource
management issues on a river basin or watershed basis. Conservation districts
often draw people and resources together to catalyze or assist in the
development of these efforts. A prime example of one of these groups is Montana Watershed, Inc. Also, see the
following sites for more information about watershed groups and activities in
Gallatin
Watershed Source Book
Greater
Montana Watershed
Coordination Council
Riparian
Management
Riparian and wetland areas are vitally important
parts of the landscape. Good management of these areas is critical to a healthy
environment. Conservation districts sponsor many stream restoration projects,
conduct landowner workshops, produce and distribute informational and
educational materials, and hold demonstrations and tours of innovative riparian
management techniques and projects.
Federal Conservation Programs
Conservation
districts work very closely with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service
(formerly the Soil Conservation Service) to provide local direction for the administration
of federal conservation programs. These programs, found in the conservation
provisions of the U.S. Farm
Bill, include the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), the Wetlands Reserve
Program (WRP), the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP), and the
Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP).
Also
see Farm
Bill 2002 Summary of NRCS Conservation Programs.
Conservation
Education
Districts work with schools to develop conservation
education curricula and outdoor classrooms by coordinating technical and
financial assistance and by providing teaching aids. Another important
educational activity is the sponsorship of kids' conservation field days.
Notable statewide annual camps include the Montana Natural Resources
Youth Camp and the Montana
Youth Range Camp, along with Montana Range Days.
The Montana Envirothon
is an annual natural resource competition for teams of high school students.
The winning team goes on to the Canon National Envirothon.
Urban Conservation
Districts pool technical expertise from a variety
of agencies and sources to provide services like soil surveys, water
inventories, and waste disposal information for planning commissioners,
municipal officials, builders, and others. With the rapid increase in
subdivided acreages, and the resource issues associated with these small tracts,
districts have recently taken on a new role; many districts now host workshops
and produce educational materials for new landowners, many of whom have no
prior experience with basic principles of land stewardship. In addition,
various conservation districts operate recycling programs, like waste oil
collection and annual Christmas tree recycling and mulching.
Saline Seep Reclamation
Membership from
conservation district supervisors in 33 counties make up the Montana Salinity
Control Association. This internationally recognized organization headquartered
in
Rangeland Resources
Approximately two-thirds of
Conservation districts in the western part of the
state participate in cooperative Best Management Practices education programs
and promote sustainable forest management as a means of maintaining stable
rural economies.
Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D)
Conservation district supervisors have
joined with private individuals and local, state, and federal government to
initiate community-led rural development efforts. Seven of these Resource Conservation & Development (RC&D) Areas now
operate in
Bitterroot RC&D
North
Water Reservation
Conservation districts are able to reserve water
for future beneficial use. Many conservation districts currently administer
water reservations throughout the state, while districts in the Little and Lower Missouri River basins are in the final
stages of their initial reservation process.
And That’s Not All
In addition, districts carry out projects involving
forest fire rehabilitation, conservation tree plantings, streambank
stabilization, agricultural energy conservation, noxious weed control, and
irrigation water management, like the Montana
Irrigation Management program, formerly known as AgriMet.
As might be expected with 58 conservation districts, the list goes on.