10/11/07 Protecting Natural Resources

Helping to Protect Natural Resources. I'm Greg Martin with today's Line On Agriculture. Recent funding by the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board is helping the state's soil and water conservation districts make a difference in protecting natural resources. Money has been awarded for worthy projects that allow farmers, ranchers, and other landowners to move forward with conservation efforts. OWEB has funded several soil and water conservation districts for on-the-ground projects, according to Larry Ojua of the Oregon Department of Agriculture: OJUA: There were 38 grants that were awarded to 18 districts. So some districts, obviously, got more than one grant. Those 38 grants totaled in excess of $2.2 million just for this round. OWEB funds are a significant state investment in watershed health, which includes fish and wildlife habitat as well as ODA's Water Quality Program. Several district projects deal with ways to improve water quality. OJUA: Well, certainly soil erosion control has been a longstanding issue the districts have worked with landowners on. Obviously, if you control soil erosion, you help protect water quality because the sediment is not moving off the property. Projects funded in the most recent grant cycle range from fencing to keep livestock away from streams to noxious weed control, from making more efficient use of water for irrigation to providing better fish passage. Combined with other sources of funding for soil and water conservation districts, the OWEB grants are helping Oregon landowners do good work in managing natural resources. Ojua says in the last ten years, Oregon has seen good local support for projects through the establishment of a permanent tax rate for some of the state's 45 soil and water conservation districts: OJUA: That's when the voters vote to assess themselves a property tax to support their local conservation district. We now have 10 districts in the state that have their own local tax rate. Ojua has a take home message for landowners who might benefit from the various sources of funding that go to soil and water conservation districts, including money from OWEB grants: OJUA: There is money and assistance out there to do the types of things Oregonians want to see happen in terms of protecting the environment, in terms of protecting water quality, in terms of promoting good watershed management. That's today's Line On Agriculture. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.