From the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)

Sarah Troutman and Frank Curtin of NRCS had this to say in our award nominations:

Cascadia Conservation District has always been a great partner but in 2024 rose to the NRCS call for help on multiple occasions. Cascadia CD applied for and was successful in receiving an NACD outreach and technical assistance grant to help promote NRCS programs and increase our customer base in this largely underserved community. NRCS has seen an increase in their program application numbers as a result. Additionally, Cascadia CD is the recipient of an RCPP award with powerful partners in Chelan County, where we’ve seen forest land treatments go from 20 acres in 2023 to 280 acres in 2024. Cascadia was also awarded with an agreement to hire a partner position for NRCS, which will be critical for our agency to meet the growing need in this county, generated in large part thanks to them. Finally, Cascadia has been an instrumental partner when flood and fire events occur and is well-versed in the Emergency Watershed Protection Program and able to communicate timely and effectively with NRCS customers about this program when needed, as seen as a result this year following the Pioneer Fire.

Elizabeth “Liz” has served as a critical partner to NRCS for a number of years, dating back to her experience as a conservation planner with the Foster Creek CD where she wrote numerous farm plans, resulting in thousands of acres of conservation enrolled in Douglas County. More recently, Liz is employed as the Program Director with Cascadia Conservation District where she leveraged an NACD outreach and technical assistance grant in order to educate customers in the Wenatchee and greater Chelan County area about programs available through the NRCS to bolster our program application numbers. Liz can effectively communicate NRCS programs to a customer base that hasn’t traditionally participated in our programs, which includes a large number of historically underserved applicants. She has hosted farm tours and outreach programs which we are beginning to see the result of in our application numbers serviced out of the Wenatchee Service Center. She has also been the liaison between NRCS, Cascadia and school districts across the state to host an annual FFA Soil Judging Competition and Natural Resources Competition. NRCS has been the main sponsor for these events and they could not happen without Liz’s excellent coordination.