"To Promote Conservation of Natural Resources through Education, Technical Assistance, & Stewardship."

Welcome to Pipestone SWCD

SWCDs are local units of government that manage and direct natural resource management programs at the local level. Districts work with landowners in both rural and urban settings to carry out a program for the conservation, use, and development of soil, water, and related resources.

DISTRICT LEADERS ARE COMMITTED TO CONSERVATION IN ORLANDO

ORLANDO, FL. February 3, 2010 —Conservation leaders from the Minnesota Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts (MASWCD) and across the nation came together in Orlando, Florida, January 31 – February 3 for the 2010 Annual Meeting of the National Association of Conservation Districts.

The meeting centered on the theme “Committed to Conservation” and challenged attendees to identify and strengthen their commitments to conservation. Meeting participants networked, participated in thought-provoking workshops and breakout sessions, heard from key partners, agency heads and local leaders and more. More than 700 representatives from across the United States and its territories participated in the event.

Ian Cunningham represented the Southwest Area of MASWCD and the Pipestone SWCD at the event. “I found the issues that my peers face in other parts of the country are very similar to our challenges here in Southwest Minnesota. It was a good opportunity to gain another perspective” Cunningham said. “The NACD conference equipped me with new resources, fresh ideas, and a renewed commitment to solving the natural resource needs in our community.”

“Conservation districts have been putting conservation practices on the ground since the 1930s Dust Bowl. Each of our 3,000 member districts are governed by volunteer boards of passionate and committed people who recognize the importance of good stewardship of the land,” said NACD President Steve Robinson. “Orlando was a wonderful place for districts and partners to come together to both show others and remind ourselves why we work so hard to conserve our nation’s natural resources and why that task is so important, both today and for generations to come.”

In addition to NACD leaders, key speakers at the conference included Harris Sherman, U.S. Department of Agriculture Under Secretary for Natural Resources and the Environment; Dave White, Chief of the Natural Resources Conservation Service; Ken Arney, Deputy Regional Forester with the Forest Service; Jeff Lape, Director for the EPA Chesapeake Bay Program; Tom Porta, President of the Association of State and Interstate Water Pollution Control Administrators; Steven Koehn, President of the National Association of State Foresters; and Stuart Appelbaum, Deputy for Restoration Program Management with the Army Corps of Engineers.
Additional conference details are available on NACD’s website at www.nacdnet.org.