October 2012 - Monroe County Soil and Water Conservation District

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P AGE 2 V OLUME 36 I SSUE 3 2012 CONSERVATION FIELD DAYS EVENT A SUCCESS The Monroe County SWCD hosted its 24th Annual Conservation Field Days event at Ellison Park on September 19th & 20th. Eleven area schools attended the event with approximately 951 students. We appreciate the continued support we’ve received from both the Monroe County Parks Department and Wegmans Food and Pharmacy. With their help and sponsorship we are able to continue offering this valuable event to our area schools. This event brings together great presenters, interested students, and conservation minded teachers in a fun, outdoor environment, providing the opportunity to learn and become more aware of many environmental topics, such as water quality management, watershed awareness, land use planning, medical waste management, forestry, recycling, and much more. The District would like to thank all of our guest presenters: Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge, Monroe County Dept. of Environmental Services, Broccolo Tree and Lawn Care, Friends of Ganondagan, Green Village Consulting, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, the University of Rochester Medical Center, the Audubon Society, the Water Education Collaborative with the Rochester Museum and Science Center, and the NYS Public Service Commission. Those interested in instructing or having your local sixth grade class participate next year can contact Karen Ervay for information regarding the 2013 event at: karen.ervay@ny.nacdnet.net Monroe County Department of Environmental Services teaches students about the importance of recycling and its environmental benefits. The Water Education Collaborative and the Rochester Museum and Science Center teach students about watersheds using an interactive display model. NRCS-NY Announces Application Cutoff Dates for Conservation Programs New York farmers and landowners will have until November 16, 2012 to apply for 2013 NRCS conservation program funding. The programs falling within this deadline include the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Initiative (CBWI), the Agricultural Management Assistance Program (AMA), and the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP). Applications are competitive and ranked based on national, state, and locally identified resource priorities and their overall benefit to the environment. General information regarding NRCS New York Conservation Programs can be found at: http://www.ny.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/. If you are interested in applying for a conservation program please visit our web site for information on applying at: http://www.ny.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/general_information/how_to_apply.html. You may apply by visiting your local NRCS field office, which can be located using the web site: http://offices.sc.egov.usda.gov/locator/app?state=NY. If you have questions or need assistance filling out the application please contact Anwar Karim (District Conservationist, NRCS, Monroe County) at: 585-473-2120 x102 (office) or anwar.karim@ny.usda.gov
P AGE 3 V OLUME 36 I SSUE 3 District Names 2011 Conservationist of the Year The District named Andrew Sansone, Senior Industrial Waste Technician with the Monroe County Department of Environmental Services, as the 2011 Conservationist of the Year. Andrew has a Bachelors degree in Water Resources from SUNY Brockport and has worked for the County in the environmental field since 1997, conducting Household Hazardous Waste collections, water sampling, and public education and outreach. He has assisted the District with several programs and educational events such as Conservation Field Days, code enforcement officer training, Western New York Stormwater Management Training Series, and the Districts Tree and Shrub Program. Andy has been instrumental in the development and implementation of water quality improvement projects Kelly Emerick, Executive Director of MCSWCD (right) presenting Andrew Sansone (left) the award. and programs, specifically in relation to the stormwater management program. He has also consistently exhibited an enduring effort to promote natural resource conservation and improve water quality throughout Monroe County. Congratulations Andy! Board Member Recognized for Years of Service Guest speaker, NYS Assemblyman Stephen Hawley of the 139th district (left) presents Rollin Pickering (right), with a service pin and District jacket in recognition for his 20 years of service. Monroe County SWCD Board of Director’s member Rollin Pickering was recognized for his 20 years of devoted service to the Board at the 2012 “Soil to Spoon” Breakfast Banquet. As the Board of Director’s NYS Grange Representative, and current Chairman, Rollin has dedicated his time by performing internal financial audits of the District operations, attending regular monthly Board meetings, and assisting with the organization of the local Envirothon competition. In 1992, he suggested that the District branch out and extend environmental educational opportunities to include high school students, and host the first Monroe County Envirothon event. This local environmental education event has now touched thousands of high school student’s lives, and has enlightened each of them about the importance of natural resources conservation. This event continues to be offered in the spring of each year in Monroe County. His only regret as a MCSWCD Board Member is that he doesn’t have more “free” time to help out with the District’s programs and events. We thank you for you years of service Rollin, and to many more!! Agricultural BMP Spotlight: Prescribed Grazing Prescribed grazing is the controlled harvest of vegetation with animals, managed with the intent to achieve a specific objective. In a prescribed grazing system the pasture is generally divided up into a multiple paddock systems and the frequency of the herd’s rotations throughout the paddocks is based on the rate of growth and condition of the plants. The duration of the grazing season and intensity of grazing is based on plant health and expected productivity of the forage species to meet management objectives. A well managed prescribed grazing system can increase farm profitability by decreasing the input cost of feed, labor, equipment, and fuel. At the same time, a well managed grazing herd helps protect soil, water, air, plant, and animal resources by maintaining a dense vegetative cover on the soil, increasing soil organic matter, improving the distribution of nutrients on fields, as well as reducing the potential for runoff from concentrated animal waste storage areas. For more information on agricultural BMP’s please contact Tucker Kautz, MCSWCD Planning Technician, at: 585-473-2120 x108 or tucker.kautz@ny.nacdnet.net
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October 2012 - Monroe County Soil and Water Conservation District

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