Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutGrant Request - Desc Soil-Water ConservDeschutes County Board of County Commissioners Discretionary Grant Program Board Meeting Date: June 24, 2013 Organization: Deschutes Soil and Water Conservation District Organization Description: Established in 1954, the District provides assistance to private landowners in Deschutes County to help conserve and enhance natural resources. Project Name: Noxious Weed Education Program Project Description: In coordination with the Deschutes County Weed Program, educate landowners on the impact of noxious weeds and the threats caused by their spread, including conducting outreach, presentations, weed pull events, and involvement on the County Weed Board. Project Period: Fiscal year 2013-14 Amount of Request: $5,000 Previous Grants: Deschutes Soil and Water District 1/30/2012 $;:'' 2,400.00 Outreach Assistance Approved: Declined: DESCHUTES SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION DISTRICT 625 SE Salmon Avenue, Suite 7, Redmond, OR 97756 Phone (541) 923-2204 * Fax (541) 923-4701 May 29, 2013 Deschutes County Board of Commissioners 1300 NW Wall Street Bend, OR 97701-1960 RE: DISCRETIONARY GRANT PROGRAM APPLICATION Dear Commissioner Unger, 1. The Deschutes Soil and Water Conservation District (DSWCD) provides assistance to private landowners in Deschutes County to conserve and enhance natural resources. The District has been providing services to this community since its formation in 1954. 2. The DSWCD seeks support from the discretionary grant program to educate landowners on the impact of noxious weeds and the threats that spreading weeds bring to: • Land values and agricultural productivity • Wild land fire protection • Water quality and watershed protection • Scenic values • Wildlife protection and diversity. The project will enhance and support existing community weed education efforts by an expanded presence in DSWCD education and outreach efforts; greater coordination of landowner education presentations and community weed pull events sponsored by both the SWCD and Deschutes County (including greater exposure and staffing of the County "Weed Wagon" activities); and secure DSWCD staff attendance and support to the County Weed Board. 3. The DSWCD will utilize Discretionary grant funding throughout the 2013/2014 fiscal year. 4. This project promotes the general economic health of Deschutes County by contributing to the environmental health of our community and protecting those natural resource values listed in the bullet points above. In addition to the assistance to the County's vegetation management efforts that these funds provide, the DSWCD will also be able to assist with outreach and workshops covering: • Nutrient (manure) management on Agricultural lands in South Deschutes County. • Watershed and riparian enhancement on private agricultural lands. • Implementation of the Upper Deschutes Agricultural Water Quality Management Area._ Plan. �r 'i ; [ 5. Specific communities benefitting from this project include private landowners, farms and - ' ' ranches, irrigation water users, and homeowners in the Wild land (fire) Urban Interface, WUI. 102013 L._ 1 6. The DSWCD requests $5,000 from the commissioners' fund for fiscal 2013/2014. The requested funds will provide for staff time, travel, and advertising not covered by the DSWCD's $50,000 Watershed Technical Assistance grant administered by the Oregon Department of Agriculture. Discretionary grant funding will be enhanced and leveraged however, by the landowner education, technical assistance, and outreach tasks listed in the Watershed Technical Assistance grant. A copy of the DSWCD's Scope of Work is attached. With the receipt of these funds, the DSWCD will also be able to improve its fundraising capacity in seeking community, corporate, and grant support for its efforts. Thank you for your consideration of this request. Please contact me if you have any additional questions or concerns. We look forward to greater value of services to our constituents through greater coordination with Deschutes County. Rex Barber, Jr. Board Chair, Deschutes Soil and Water Conservation District enc. DSWCD Scope of Work for ODA 2011-2012 Project Completion Report from 2012 Deschutes County Grant LRCA Work Plan 2 Board Approved SOW 2012-2013 1 MILEAGE- (5454 miles @ 0.55) to assist with the implementation of the SoW 3,000.00 2 INDIRECT COSTS- to complete the 2011-2012 Scope of Work: reports required by ODA, RLH distribution and promotion, manage SmART materials, Board meeting prep and attendance, liaison to grant writer, postage, printer supplies... 4,500.00 3 TRAINING- Directly related to WQ issues in Deschutes County and will be approved by Regional Water Quality Specialist to include registration fees. 1,000.00 4 EDUCATIONAL BOOTHS- 8 Booths to provide specific information related to WQ resources available to landowners in Deschutes County. Time & incidental fees. Upper Deschutes River Coalition, LOAFA, Farm Fair, etc. 2,500.00 5 SOUTH COUNTY ASSESSMENT- Develop protocol to assess land conditions in South County that can affect WQ: inadequate riparian vegetation along Deschutes River and nitrate/groundwater issues in drylots. Staff time and Contracted grant writer. 3,000.00 6 SMALL GRANTS- Write/submit 4 Small grants related to WQ Ex; fencing, manure management, tailwater reduction, etc. 2,000.00 LARGE GRANT- One or more large grants with focus on but not limited to the South County area addressing WQ issues such as riparian and/or manure 4,000.00 ' 8 PUBLICATIONS- Create BMP (Best Management Practice) handout for landowners in South County that address Manure/Drylot concerns related to groundwater quality. Includes staff time for research, meeting w/Ellen Hammond and agencies to create specific document. Does not include printing. 1,400.00 9 EXTENDED LANDOWNER CONTACTS/SITE VISITS- emails, phone calls, and/or research leading to WQ improvements. 50 Site Visits to include 6-12 hours of inspections of property for educational outreach and resource recommendations, to improve property & address WQ concerns on site. 12 000.00 ' 10 LANDOWNER CONTACTS- 100 email, telephone calls, mailings, information, and research multiple contacts w/landowners 6,600.00 11 MANURE EXCHANGE PROGRAM- Contact 200 landowners by submitting electronic letters, advertise program, review and respond to emails, phone calls, and maintain files. Create a "South County" specific Manure Exchange program. 3,000.00 12 TIP OF THE MONTH- WQ publication in electronic and paper form (to be printed in house) write, publish, and distribute a water quality educational piece to inform public on basic precautionary steps to reduce the potential WQ issues in County. 500.00 13 WEBSITE- Prorated maintenance and upgrading of website on WQ Events, WQ Concerns etc. 1,000.00 14 LOAFA - Assist OSU Extension & LOAFA planning group to plan and implent event to be held in March 2013. (Outside of SmART meeting) 1,000.00 ' 15 PARTNERSHIP MEETINGS- WATER MANAGERS/IWM/SMART MEETINGS- Participation, facilitation, assistance with creating new and existing programs, PR, meeting prep and attendance, request from the committee, and creation and implementation of Smart Calendar. 1,000.00 16 LARGE WORKSHOPS/ROUNDTABLE/TOWNHALL MEETINGS- 1 large workshop in South County (Lapine). 1 Landowner Workshop with OSU, OOFW, ODA, Watershed Council, Weed Mgmt to present WQ issues in Deschutes County, with educational materials provided: riparian vegetation, water quality, juniper and weed control, watershed health, etc. Funds will be used for personnel, planning, advertising, snacks, and supplies. 2 Townhall meetings focused on water quality concerns in Deschutes County (For instance Manure Management, Tailwater, Irrigation Efficiency, Groundwater, etc.) Includes advertising efforts, PR, organization, presentations, facilitation, mediation of discussion, Q & A, and all other duties associated with event. 3,500.00 50,000.00 LAPINE RESOURCE CONSERVATIONAREA: Action Plan Upper Deschutes Basin AgWQ Management Area Deschutes SWCD —July 2013 -June 2016 I. INTRODUCTION A. Description of Watershed The SWCD has designated the La Pine Resource Conservation Area (LRCA) in the south county. The LRCA includes 16,000 private properties within 436 square miles. Of these, 1,900 are two acres or larger, encompassing approximately 47,000 acres.It also includes 43.5 miles of the Deschutes River and 47.4 miles of the Little Deschutes River. B. Basis for Selection of Focus Area Southern Deschutes County is assumed to have two agricultural water quality (AgWQ) issues: 1) inadequate riparian (streamside) vegetation along the Deschutes River and its tributaries, and 2) E. coli and nitrates from livestock manure polluting groundwater around La Pine or contained in runoff that flows directly into streams. La Pine is known to have elevated nitrates in groundwater due to inadequate septic systems and a high water table. 1 I111 W.... Conservation partners, especially Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA), Upper Deschutes River Coalition, Deschutes River Conservancy, Deschutes County, and Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, are very interested in improving streamside conditions and water quality in the south county. To date the DSWCD has conducted only limited work in the south county, but both the DSWCD Board and the ODA Regional Water Quality Specialist believe it is time to start focusing on AgWQ in that area. Recent workshops confirmed that local landowners are interested in receiving land management information. A recent ODA complaint investigation resulting in a Civil Penalty is an example of the type of manure issues present in the area. ODA has investigated a second complaint related to improper manure management and a complaint related to livestock damage along the Little Deschutes. The conservation partners indicated above, along with other local, state and federal agencies, have conducted resource assessments and planning activities within the LRCA. In all, more than 40 such studies and plans have been identified through a compendium project. None have examined the two agriculture water quality issues we have identified and will focus on in this project. C. Water Quality Parameters of Concern 1. Riparian conditions on non-federal lands along the Deschutes River and its major tributaries. Riparian condition is a surrogate for temperature and turbidity. 2. E. coli and nitrates in groundwater. D. Description of Assessment Method(s) 1. Riparian conditions: • Float the rivers to inventorystreambanks based on the following table LaPine RCA 2013-2016 Upper Deschutes Basin Deschutes SWCD Page2 Class I Class II Class III Class IV Vegetation likely Ag activities not Ag activities likely Indadequate sufficient to impairing riparian not allowing vegetation, but moderate solar growth, but vegetation vegetation to due to non-ag heating, stabilize likely insufficient to moderate solar activities. streambanks, and moderate solar heating, stabilize < 25% filter out heating, stabilize streambanks, or Ponding pollutants streambanks, or filter filter out pollutants consistent with out pollutants consistent with site site capability. consistent with site capability. capability. • Place this information in a GIS database. 2. Manure conditions (conditions difficult to view on aerial photographs) • Select a 1 -square mile section for a windshield survey • Drive along designated roads and collect the following information for each parcel. This table is very tentative. • Extrapolate to the larger geographic area to estimate the number of animals and calculate the amount of nitrogen available for leaching to groundwater 11. MEASURABLE OBJECTIVE(S) 1. Riparian conditions • What are riparian vegetation conditions on private lands thong the Deschutes River and its tributaries in the LRCA? • What areas are in poor condition? • What poor conditions are related to agricultural activities? 2. Livestock manure conditions (to be determined). Potential questions are: • How many livestock are on drylots in the La Pine area? • Where are they concentrated? • What is the % vegetation cover (for nutrient uptake)? • What volume of manure is stored out in the open? • How much nitrogen is likely leaching to groundwater? Class I Class II Class III Other 1. # livestock/acre 0 cows/horses in open >1 cow/horses stalled 1-2 sheep/goats/... 2. Manure Piles None or covered Uncovered piles No piles 3. Manure Volume < 5cy 4. Vegetation % cover in `pasture' or `drylot' >75%; not weeds 25-75%; >75% but weeds < 25% Irrigated? 5. Runoff/ponding None Ponding Runoff Other • Extrapolate to the larger geographic area to estimate the number of animals and calculate the amount of nitrogen available for leaching to groundwater 11. MEASURABLE OBJECTIVE(S) 1. Riparian conditions • What are riparian vegetation conditions on private lands thong the Deschutes River and its tributaries in the LRCA? • What areas are in poor condition? • What poor conditions are related to agricultural activities? 2. Livestock manure conditions (to be determined). Potential questions are: • How many livestock are on drylots in the La Pine area? • Where are they concentrated? • What is the % vegetation cover (for nutrient uptake)? • What volume of manure is stored out in the open? • How much nitrogen is likely leaching to groundwater? LaPine RCA 2013-2016 Upper Deschutes Basin Deschutes SWCD Page3 III. IMPLEMENTATION ACTIVITIES AND TIMELINE These actions are incorporated into the SWCD's Scope of Work with ODA or are being done under agreements among the Watershed Council, SWCD, and funding entities. Riparian Conditions Q # 1 Quarter Ending Riparian Activity Results Notes Sept. 2013 Contact landowners identified as agricultural that have been identified as class III. Develop manure management brochure for South County 2 Dec. 2013 Contact targeted landowners & tabulate responses Present composting workshop in South County Present results at Biennial Review Determine landowners in S County with livestock & build e-mail list _ 3 Mar. 2014 Site visits to cooperative landowners Develop 3-10 conservation plans 4 June 2014 Workshop for streamside vegetation promoting healthy riparian areas Site visits to 2-5 additional landowners Develop 1-4 additional conservation plans/grant requests 5 Sept. 2014 Implement projects 6 Dec. 2014 Implement projects 7 Mar. 2015 Implement projects 8 June 2015 Mid -assessment; provide quantitative results to ODA (after) Dec. 2015 Present results at Biennial Review Manure Conditions Q # Quarter Ending Manure Activity Results Notes 1 Sept. 2013 Develop manure management brochure for South County 2 Dec. 2013 Present composting workshop in South County Determine landowners in S County with livestock & build e-mail list LaPine RCA 2013-2016 Upper Deschutes Basin Deschutes SWCD Page5 Manure Conditions Table 3. Percent of drylots in different classifications over time. Year 2012 2015 Class 1 Class 2 Class 3 B. Two -Year Implementation Summary Riparian Conditions Instructions:Please provide a summary of the implementation activities completed in the SOW report. Please report additional data not included in the SOW report as provided in the example below. Example: Number of landowners contacted by mail:20 Number of landowners contacted by phone:10 Number of landowners with projects installed: 8 Stream miles with exclusion fencing:4 miles Stream miles with riparian fencing for flash -grazing (minimum buffer width of 100 feet): 3 miles Stream miles with plantings of native species: 1.6 miles Acres of uplands reseeded: 148 acres Off -stream water: 4 spring developments Number of grants received: 4 grant proposals and an estimated cost of $389, 000 Other notes:An additional two landowners did not wish to work with us and their 3stream miles are still class III. Manure Conditions Example: Number of landowners contacted by mail: 120 Number of landowners contacted by e-mail: 300 Number of landowners contacted by phone: 10 Number of landowners attending workshops: 80 Number of brochures produced: 2 Number of Workshops presented: 4 Number of grants received: 2 grant proposals and an estimated cost of $389,000 Other notes: An additional two landowners did not wish to work with us.