National Association of Conservation Districts

National Association of Conservation Districts

NACD's mission is to serve conservation districts by providing national leadership and a unified voice for natural resource conservation.

Tuesday Annual Meeting Newsletter

NACD 2012 Annual Meeting
January 31, 2012 | Las Vegas, NV

  1. Tuesday General Session
  2. NACD Live Auction
  3. AgriTalk Broadcasts Live from Annual Meeting
  4. Thank You to our Sponsors

1. Tuesday General Session

John Larson Annual MeetingConservation districts and other partners will play major roles in landscape-scale conservation efforts, federal partners said at the Tuesday General Session of NACD’s Annual Meeting.

Similar themes were sounded by NRCS Chief Dave White, U.S. Forest Service Deputy Chief Jim Hubbard and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe. Conservation spending is being increasingly tied to measurable outcomes, and that requires focusing resources in a coordinated, large-scale effort.

White cited the 11-state Sage Grouse Initiative as an example of an effort that enhances wildlife habitat for endangered species. He drew applause when he said these efforts also preserve what he termed another endangered species – western ranchers. He highlighted efforts across the country to “solve issues without hurting production.”

The Fish & Wildlife Service is engaged in a number of Landscape Conservation Partnerships that address wildlife concerns while conserving working landscapes and rural areas. “We’re conserving wildlife by conserving a way of life,” Ashe said.

So-called place-based efforts to protect forests will need to stretch across regions, Hubbard said. “You can expect more of that regardless of the (presidential) administration.”

Attendees also heard from weather experts on extreme weather events and got a primer on how to handle media interviews from Tom Steever, president of the National Association of Farm Broadcasters. Pictured: Clay Pope of Oklahoma engages in a mock interview with Steever.



2. NACD Live Auction

John Larson Annual Meeting

Annual Meeting attendees showed their conservation spirit at this year's NACD Live Auction. Auctioneer Johnny Regular, assisted by Ralph Brokaw of Wyoming, lead conservationists in an exciting night of bidding.

The auction, held Monday night, raised more than $50,000 – a new record for the Association.

Big-ticket items included: four 30-gallon containers of Roundup PowerMax donated by Monsanto, four 30-gallon containers of Liberty Link donated by Bayer Crop Science, 100 hours of use on a new Magnum Series tractor donated by Case IH, and use of a 2510H nutrient applicator on 1,000 acres, courtesy of John Deere.

Thank you to all who bid on items at this year's auction!



3. AgriTalk Broadcasts Live from Annual Meeting

AgriTalk, “The Voice of Rural America,” did a live radio broadcast Tuesday morning from the Annual Meeting. During the hour-long broadcast, host Mike Adams conducted interviews with NACD President Gene Schmidt, First Vice President Earl Garber and CEO John Larson. Also participating in interviews were USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Chief Dave White and Rick Cole, Director of Weed Resistance for Monsanto. If you were unable to catch the live broadcast, or would like to listen again, the podcast is available on the AgriTalk website, at www.agritalk.com. The broadcast was sponsored by Monsanto.

Also covering the meeting this week were Pat Haggerty, correspondent for RFD-TV's "This Week in Agribusiness" and Tom Steever, Brownfield reporter and President of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting. Stay tuned for stories and video coming soon on our website and facebook page.



4. Thank You to our Sponsors

NACD thanks all the sponsors of the 2012 NACD Annual Meeting: