MDC to receive $2.4 million from USDA for wetlands on private land

Wetland restoration techniques have improved drastically over the past 25 years. This photo of a wetland restoration in Carroll County shows the new restoration approach using shallow, landscape-based wetlands on the right next to the old-style, deeper, straight-lined wetlands on the left.

Conservation Department and Ducks Unlimited will add $700,000 for Missouri landowners.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo -- This October, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) will receive $2.4 million for projects that protect, restore, and enhance wetlands in Missouri. The projects will be funded under the Wetland Reserve Enhancement Program (WREP) administered by the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Missouri is one of only six states to receive WREP funding this year.

The WREP provides financial assistance to landowners interested in restoring the hydrology and improving wildlife habitat on their Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) easements. MDC, in cooperation with Ducks Unlimited, will provide an additional $700,000 in matching funds -- bringing the total investment in wetland restoration to $3.1 million over the next three years.

"This is a fine example of how we will accomplish much more by working in partnership than any of us would be able to accomplish individually," NRCS State Conservationist J.R. Flores said. "The newer wetlands provide a wide range of benefits to wildlife and the land. NRCS is pleased to be working with landowners and our partners to get more of these wetlands on the land."

According to MDC, wetland restorations completed in the early 1990s were primarily designed to provide uniform water levels within a single-ring levee.

"Wetland restoration techniques have improved drastically over the past 25 years," said MDC Private Land Services Division Chief Bill White. "WREP provides a great opportunity to enhance these older sites and restore them in a way that better mimics natural wetland systems. Wetlands that provide diverse water levels and vegetation provide wildlife habitat for a larger suite of waterbirds including ducks, geese, and shore birds."

MDC and NRCS have a successful history of restoring wetlands through the WREP. In past years, WREP has helped restore thousands of acres of existing wetlands in a number of north Missouri counties. The current WREP is expanded so landowners with WRP easements located within 30 counties across the state will now be eligible to apply for funding to enhance their wetlands. The eligible counties are: Bates, Boone, Buchanan, Butler, Cape Girardeau, Carroll, Chariton, Cooper, Dunklin, Henry, Holt, Howard, Johnson, Knox, Lafayette, Lincoln, Linn, Livingston, Mississippi, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Pike, Platte, St. Charles, St. Louis, Saline, Scott, Shelby, Stoddard, and Vernon.

NRCS, MDC, and Ducks Unlimited will work together to provide assistance to private landowners to restore and enhance at least 10,000 acres of wetland habitat on existing WRP easements.

"The successful partnership between NRCS, MDC, and our private conservation organizations ensure Missouri landowners receive the best opportunities available to improve the wildlife habitat and natural resources on their properties," said White.

Missouri landowners may apply for the new WREP this winter.

For additional information, contact your local NRCS office or MDC Private Lands Conservationist. To find local MDC contacts, go to mdc.mo.gov under LOCAL CONTACT.

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MDC offers National Hunting and Fishing Day events around Missouri

Guided boat rides are a popular attraction during A Day on the Confluence at Columbia Bottom Conservation Area in celebration of National Hunting and Fishing Day.

Celebrate love of hunting, fishing, and the great outdoors during special activities.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Conservation makes Missouri a great place to hunt and fish for more than half-a-million hunters and 1.1 million anglers. The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) encourages Missourians from all around the Show-Me State to join Americans nationwide in celebration of National Hunting and Fishing Day, Sept. 26.

National Hunting and Fishing Day was created by Congress in 1972 to commemorate past, present, and future conservation successes and to honor those sportsmen and sportswomen who began the modern conservation movement. National Hunting and Fishing Day is designated as the fourth Saturday in September. Today National Hunting and Fishing Day is a chance for people to come together to celebrate everything they love about hunting, fishing, and the great outdoors.

MDC is partnering with other conservation organizations to host the following events on and around National Hunting and Fishing Day:

• In the St. Louis area, enjoy “A Day at the Confluence” from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. onSept. 26 at MDC’s Columbia Bottom Conservation Area. Activities will include archery, boat rides, and Asian-carp cooking demonstrations. For more information, call Columbia Bottom at 314-877-6014.
• In the Kansas City area, attend Family Outdoors Day from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. onSept. 26 at MDC’s James A. Reed Memorial Wildlife Area in Lee’s Summit. The cooperative event with Ducks Unlimited will focus on waterfowl-related sporting activities and wetland education. DU will offer free memberships in its youth Greenwing program. For more information, call the Reed Area at 816-622-0900.
• Also in the Kansas City area, MDC’s Lake City Shooting Range in Buckner will offer free shooting opportunities on Sept. 26 from noon to 4:30 p.m. For more information, call the Range at 816-249-3194
• Branson-area residents and visitors are invited to join MDC and Bass Pro Shops at Table Rock Lake for a weekend of outdoor sporting activities from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.on Sept. 12 and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sept. 13. The celebration will feature a pre-1840s mountain-man rendezvous and Native American cultural village. Outdoor recreational activities will include archery, air rifling, atlatl throwing, sling shooting, kayaking, paddle boarding, canoeing, and fishing. Visitors can also learn about blacksmithing, weaving, knife-throwing, candle-making, and Dutch-oven cooking. For more information, visit Bass Pro online at conservation.basspro.com/Page/Outdoor-Days-Table-Rock-Lake.aspx.
• Also in southwest Missouri, join MDC for Family Shoots Free Day from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Sept. 26 at the Department’s Andy Dalton Shooting Range and Outdoor Education Center in Bois D’Arc. Range staff will assist and provide instruction, but visitors will need to bring their own firearms and ammunition. Range fees will be waived for the day. For more information, call the Range at 417-742-4361.
• In Columbia, the University of Missouri South Farm Showcase from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sept. 26 will feature a trained-hawk demonstration, turtle and snake exhibit, Asian-carp preparation and sampling, fishing activities, and information about Missouri mammals. For more information, visit MU on line at southfarm.cafnr.org/.
• Cast a line or hit a bull’s-eye at the Cape Girardeau Nature Center from 1 to 3 p.m.on Sept. 26. No registration is required, but opportunities are on a first-come-first-served basis. Staff and volunteers will provide help and all equipment for fishing and archery will be provided. For more information, call the Nature Center at 573-290-5218.
• Twin Pines Conservation Education Center in Winona will host a Family Fish Day from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sept. 26. Wet a line in the Center’s Mule Camp Pond and enjoy a variety of fish-related activities including making fish-print T-shirts, pond study, casting games, and more. Prizes and free food will be provided. No registration or fishing permits are required. For more information, call Twin Pines at573-325-1381.
• Celebrate in Moberly from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sept. 26 at Rothwell Park. Activities will include an archery (MoNASP) tournament, BB gun shooting, fishing pole casting and instruction, a streams table, MDC exhibits, local hunting and fishing business booths, and prize raffles. Get information about outdoor activities at local publicly owned areas. Concessions will be available and provided by the Randolph County 4-H Club For more information, call the MDC Northeast Regional Office at 660-785-2424.
• Hunting enthusiasts 11 years of age and older can polish their skills Sept. 18-20 in Bourbon with MDC’s Family Hunting Skills Weekend. It will feature courses in archery, shotgun, air rifle, trapping, and basic hunting at Camp Mihaska Retreat and Conference Center. For more information, contact MDC Education Outreach Coordinator Eric Edwards at Eric.Edwards@mdc.mo.gov or 573-522-4115 ext. 3295.

According to research from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, one out of four Missourians hunts and/or fishes. For more information on hunting, fishing, and other ways to discover nature in the Show-Me State, visit mdc.mo.gov.

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MDC and USDA offer funds to improve wildlife habitat and water quality on private pasture and forest lands in Missouri

Qualifying landowners must sign up for the program at their local NRCS office by June 5.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and the United State Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) have partnered to provide $739,000 to private landowners for improvement to wildlife habitat and water quality on forest and pasture lands in Missouri. The funding is part of the new NRCS Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). 

Qualifying landowners must sign up for the program at their local NRCS office by June 5 to be eligible for this year’s funding. 

This funding marks the first year in an anticipated five-year project that will provide more than $3.6 million directly to private landowners for conservation.

“The Missouri Department of Conservation has a long history of working with NRCS to successfully implement USDA conservation programs,” said MDC Private Land Services Division Chief Bill White. “This new RCPP funding provides Missouri landowners with a great opportunity to improve water quality, soil quality, and wildlife habitat.”  

Funding is available through two separate RCPP projects: the Grassland Bird and Grazing Land Enhancement Initiative and the Restoring Glade and Woodland Communities for Threatened Species. 

Funding is available to private landowners interested in improving the quality of soil, water, and wildlife habitat on working grazing lands. The goal of the grazing land enhancement program is to make conservation practices available to producers that help meet both livestock production objectives and provide wildlife habitat on the same operation. Lands located within the following counties are eligible: Adair, Andrew, Atchison, Barton, Bates, Benton, Caldwell, Carroll, Cass, Cedar, Christian, Dade, Daviess, DeKalb, Douglas, Franklin, Gasconade, Gentry, Greene, Grundy, Harrison, Henry, Holt,  Howell, Jasper, Johnson, Lawrence, Livingston, Mercer, Montgomery, Nodaway, Ozark, Pettis, St. Clair, Sullivan, Texas, Vernon, Warren, Worth, and Wright.

Funding is also available to reimburse landowners to restore or manage glades and woodlands in Carter, Iron, Madison, Perry, Reynolds, Ripley, St. Francois, Ste. Genevieve, Shannon, and Wayne counties. 

There is also opportunity to treat cropland in Perry County to enhance wildlife habitat and water quality.

For more information, contact MDC Private Land Programs Supervisor Lisa Potter atLisa.Potter@mdc.mo.gov.

MDC to match $1.3 million in federal dollars to help Missouri landowners with key habitat conservation

MDC anticipates matching USDA grant monies over next five years to help Missouri landowners improve wildlife habitat on grasslands, glades and woodlands.

J. R. Flores, Missouri State Conservationist
for the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the
 U.S. Department of Agriculture (left) and
Director of the Missouri Department of Conservation
Bob Ziehmer (right) sign contracts that will provide
more than one million dollars in federal funds to
MDC for habitat conservation by Missouri private landowners.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) recently announced that it will receive $1.3 million in federal grant monies from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to help private landowners in Missouri improve grasslands, glades, and woodlands on their properties for both wildlife habitat and agriculture production. As the Conservation Commission approves annual expenditure plans, MDC plans to match the federal grant monies over the next five years through its existing Private Lands Services program.

The $1.3 million in federal dollars was provided through the USDA’s Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). The purpose of the RCPP is to further the conservation, restoration, and sustainable use of soil, water, wildlife, and related natural resources by providing cost-share and incentives to private landowners.

“The Missouri Department of Conservation has a proven track record of successfully implementing USDA conservation programs and we have brought millions in federal cost-share dollars to Missouri landowners,” said MDC Private Land Services Division Chief Bill White. “Our partnership with the USDA is a national model.”

MDC’s Private Land Services staff provides expert advice and assistance to more than 29,000 private landowners in Missouri each year to help integrate forest, fish and wildlife management with agriculture production to help landowners reach their land management goals. These services often include financial assistance through cost-share grant mo

nies from the Department and other sources.

White explained that the cost-share grant monies will be dedicated to enhancing grasslands in northern and western Missouri for both livestock grazing and wildlife, such as quail, and will include MDC Quail Focus Areas and grassland Conservation Opportunity Areas. The funds will also be focused on restoring glade and woodland habitats in the Ozarks of southeastern Missouri through cost-share funds and incentives for forest landowners.

“Quality of the land for both livestock and wildlife is one of our main concerns, and programs such as these that help us reach our goals are greatly appreciated,” said Dennis Puppe, president of the Harrison County Cattleman’s Association.

“We endorse the RCPP for glades and woodlands in southeast Missouri and offer to assist the Department of Conservation with regional outreach and education to promote healthy and sustainable woodlands,” said Jim Summers, executive director of the Missouri Forest and Woodland Association.

For more information on the Department’s Private Lands Services and cost-share-grant-funding opportunities, contact an MDC Regional Office or local MDC Private Land Conservationist. Find both online at www.mdc.mo.gov under LOCAL CONTACTS.

DNR provides funding for Black Creek Watershed management plan

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has awarded $30,000 to the Northeast Missouri Resource Conservation and Development Council Inc. to develop a watershed management plan for the Black Creek Watershed.

The overall goal of the watershed management plan is to take a holistic approach to improving water quality by reducing pollutant runoff entering the Black Creek Watershed. The plan will describe various strategies and objectives to achieve the overall goal.

The Black Creek Watershed is a tributary to the North Fork Salt River and is part of the Mark Twain Lake Watershed in Shelby County. Mark Twain Lake is a drinking water source for the Clarence Cannon Consolidated Water District, providing 3 million gallons of drinking water daily to approximately 42,000 customers.

Black Creek is listed on the state’s proposed list of impaired waters, for unknown pollutants. The primary water quality concerns in the watershed are soil erosion, nutrients, pesticides and pathogens. Because of the proposed impaired waters listing, the Northeast Missouri Resource Conservation and Development Council will coordinate a stakeholder-driven watershed management plan for the Black Creek Watershed, addressing the critical elements of a watershed management plan identified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Contributing partners in this collaborative effort include, but are not limited to: landowners, University of Missouri Extension, Shelby County Soil and Water Conservation District, Natural Resources Conservation Service and other local and state entities. The project is expected to be completed by Feb. 28, 2014.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 7, has provided partial funding for this project under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act. The Department of Natural Resources’ Water Protection Program will administer the grant funds. The department is committed to working closely with communities and businesses to assist with funding efforts that improve water quality in Missouri.

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MDC’s Kyle Lairmore receives State Employee Award of Distinction

Governor recognizes MDC Private Land Conservationist for outstanding public service. 

JEFFERSON CITY Mo – Missouri Governor Jay Nixon recognized Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) Private Land Conservationist Kyle Lairmore with the 2010 Missouri State Employee Award of Distinction for Public Service at an Aug. 18 ceremony at the Capitol.

The award recognized Lairmore for his “outstanding dedication to the advancement of state service, which enhances the quality of life to citizens and is above and beyond the employee’s normal job requirements.”

The annual awards are coordinated through the Office of Administration, Division of Personnel, and recognize outstanding state employees in the categories of Public Service, Human Relations, Safety and Heroism and Innovative Suggestion of the Year.

“Missouri’s outdoor resources are some of our greatest treasures, and preserving them for the use and enjoyment of future generations depends on our wise stewardship today,” said Gov. Nixon. “I commend Kyle Lairmore for his dedication to both his profession and to conserving those natural resources we are blessed with.” 

A five-year employee with the MDC, Lairmore works with private landowners and others in Maries and Gasconade counties to help them achieve their land-use objectives in ways that enhance the conservation of Missouri's fish, forest, wildlife and natural communities. He is also active in numerous MDC committees and working groups from feral-hog eradication efforts to driver’s training to customer service.

His public-service activities include staffing fishing events for kids, assisting conservation agents on patrols, working with the Missouri Seed Program, coordinating local stream-bank stabilization projects for the Soil and Water Conservation District, teaching hunter education courses, serving as an instructor for Missouri’s National Archery in the Schools Program, serving as a guide and mentor for the annual Governor’s Youth Turkey Hunt and assisting with the MDC’s Prairie Chicken Recovery Project. 

“Kyle exemplifies what it means to be conservation professional, and we value him, his talents and his energy,” said MDC Private Lands Division Chief Mike Hubbard. “He conducts hundreds of on-site visits with landowners and provides dozens of workshops and presentations that teach thousands of people about conservation. Kyle’s passion and enthusiasm for Missouri’s natural resources also carry over into his personal life.”

A resident of Owensville, Lairmore is active in his community and with other conservation-related organizations.

He helped establish the Mid-Missouri Dream Hunters program for young hunters with disabilities and helps with other hunts for youth with special needs. He is active in the Gasconade River Gobblers chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation, the Four Rivers chapter of Quail Forever, the Ozark Border Bobwhites chapter of Quail Unlimited, the Gasconade County Youth Shooting Sports groups and other local organizations. 

He has been recognized for his conservation-related leadership and public service by the Conservation Federation of Missouri (CFM) and is active in the CFM’s Conservation Leadership Corps where he helps students and young professionals as they begin careers in natural- resources fields. Lairmore was recognized recently by the CFM as its Conservation Educator of The Year. 

Lairmore also received the National Rifle Association’s award for the Best NRA Youth Club for 2008-2009 and a Partnership Award from the Natural Resources Conservation Service for his work.

Lairmore was also named Owensville “Man of the Year” for 2010. 

 Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) Private Land Conservationist Kyle Lairmore recently received the 2010 Missouri State Employee Award of Distinction for Public Service from Governor Jay Nixon during a ceremony at the Capitol. Pictured are (l-r): MDC Private Land Services (PLS) Unit Chief Bob DeWitt, MDC PLS Agricultural Program Coordinator John Knudsen; Fisheries Unit Chief and Lairmore’s former supervisor Brian Canaday, Conservation Commissioner Don Johnson, MDC PLS Division Chief Mike Hubbard, Lairmore, Gov. Nixon, MDC Director Bob Ziehmer, MDC Deputy Director Tom Draper, Lairmore’s mother Chris Lairmore, Lairmore’s father Jerry Lairmore and Lairmore’s grandfather

Maurice Landwehr.