NRCS - Natural Resources Conservation Service

02/08/2023 | News release | Distributed by Public on 02/08/2023 18:31

Rangeland and Riparian Health in the Eastern Grasslands of Custer County Project Announces Application Date

NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE (NRCS), Huron, S.D., February 8, 2023 - The Rangeland and Riparian Health in the eastern Grasslands of Custer County Conservation Implementation Strategy (CIS) Project begins its second year in Eastern Custer County, South Dakota, serving the community and improving land quality.

This three-year project is one of 16 selected in Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 and federally-funded through the NRCS' conservation programs in the 2018 Farm Bill. The purpose of this project is to improve rangeland and riparian areas and will be implemented by the NRCS in collaboration with farmers, ranchers, and landowners within the project area who are eligible to apply for financial assistance. While applications are accepted year-round, the application date for FY2023 implementation is March 10, 2023.

The NRCS' conservation specialists and partners are coordinating these projects throughout the state. Through collectively focusing expertise and resources on the highest priority resource concerns, CIS projects can yield impressive returns. Collaborative funding and support from other agencies and groups create a coordinated community effort and focus on mutual issues of concern. The Rangeland and Riparian Health in the Eastern Grasslands of Custer County Project partners with the Custer County Conservation District, Buffalo Gap National Grassland, USDA Forest Service, Fall River Ranger District, and the Custer County Weed and Pest Department to directly benefit landowners and producers in the project area. Project sponsors identified feed and forage balance, inadequate livestock shelter, inadequate livestock water quantity, quality, and distribution, plant productivity and health, plant structure and composition, and plant pest pressure as resource concerns and developed this CIS project to address the situation.

"Improving the riparian areas of Custer County is key to rangeland health and water quality," said Joel Milos, NRCS District Conservationist (DC). "The practices implemented here will benefit both producers and the surrounding wildlife."

To apply to be a part of this project, find and contact your local NRCS Service Center at https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/contact/find-a-service-center, or contact DC Joel Milos at [email protected] or (605) 342-0301, Ext. 3. For more information on CIS in South Dakota, or if you have ideas for a project, visit https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs-initiatives/eqip-environmental-quality-incentives/south-dakota/south-dakota-conservation, or contact Jeff Vander Wilt, Assistant State Conservationist for Programs, at [email protected] or (605) 352-1226.

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