
NEWS
Opportunities Available for Farmers and Landowners to Create or Enhance Wildlife Habitat on Private Lands!
With a November 3rd application deadline right around the corner, Pottawattamie USDA Service Center would like to remind farmers and landowners of the significant funding opportunities within NRCS's Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) to establish high-quality habitat for wildlife.
EQIP offers landowners an opportunity to receive a one-time incentive payment to install a wide array of conservation practices that can not only improve soil health and water quality but also create and improve wildlife habitat. Diverse, native habitat is critically important to sustaining healthy populations of wildlife species ranging from monarch butterflies and native bees to game species like pheasant and white-tailed deer.
A few examples of conservation activities available under this program include establishing native prairie, filter strips, contour buffer strips, edge-feathering along timber, planting trees and shrubs, removing undesirable woody brush, or invasive species removal. Other practices available aim to improve the productivity of your cropland by using no-till and cover crops.
Local USDA field office staff can assist landowners and producers with their habitat project every step of the way, for a variety of goals including creating habitat for pollinators, helping reduce erosion, increasing soil health, controlling invasive species, providing quality forage for livestock and making agricultural operations more resilient and productive.
Applications for the EQIP are accepted on a continuous basis, but the cutoff for this current round of funding is November 3rd, 2023.
For more information about EQIP and other assistance available through the USDA Service Center, contact your local Pheasants Forever Biologist, Tabitha Panas at (402) 506-0101 or by e-mail: tpanas@pheasantsforever.org or contact your local USDA Service Center.


"The Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) promotes coordination of NRCS conservation activities with partners that offer value-added contributions to expand our collective ability to address on-farm, watershed, and regional natural resource concerns. Through RCPP, NRCS seeks to... implement projects that demonstrate innovative solutions to conservation challenges and provide measurable improvements...." USDA
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Eligible practices within this new opportunity include: Cover crops, denitrifying bioreactors, grade stabilization structures, streambank and shoreline protection, and terraces.
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For more information about conservation planning and financial assistance, please contact your local NRCS office. Or, click
New Cost Share Opportunities in the West Nishnabotna Watershed!

Farm Bill Wildlife Biologist Quarterly Report
April - June 2023
"April through June of this year has been fantastically busy and fun. I was able to get out into the field quite a bit, meeting with landowners that have new and establishing grassland seedings through various programs like CRP, EQIP, or Prairie Partners. Native seedings take a few years to get established, and I have noticed a trend that landowners planting grassland......

Women Land and Legacy July 2023 Newsletter
The July 2023 Women, Land and Legacy Newsletter has been released!
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In this month's edition you can read about WLL's plan to guide the next five years, the 2023 Iowa Women in Agriculture Conference, the WLL State Team Members, women-led organizations that serve to empower Iowa female farm/ land owners.
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If you'd like to read the July 2023 WLL Newsletter
click !

2022 Annual Report
The West Pottawattamie 2022 Annual Report is Now available! With offices open since last spring we have seen a lot more interest in conservation programs. A district Education Coordinator was also hired for both East and West Pottawatattamie SWCDs in 2022 with hopes of providing more education and outreach within the County.

Farm Bill Wildlife Biologist Quarterly Report January - March 2023
"Spring is in the air and folk are bust planning for the next growing season. I have been working with who will not only be planting crops, but also planting habitat in the Conservation Reserve Program in the upcoming months. The most popular CRP practices I am seeing are native seeding filterstrips and other upland bird habitat practices that.......

The February 2023 Women, Land & Legacy Newsletter has been released! In this month's edition you can read about the newest WLL chapter, who the WLL state team members are, how gender affects successions and transfers of Iowa Farms, and upcoming opportunities with Women, Land & Legacy!
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To read the WLL Newsletter click the box below!
Women, Land and Legacy
-February 2023 Newsletter

State Cost Share Funds Now Available for Soil Health and Water Quality Practices
Farmers and landowners can now sign up for cost share funding through the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship to adopt soil health and water quality conservation practices. This program includes planting cover crops, transitioning acres to no-till / strip-till soil management, or applying a nitrification inhibitor. Cost share funding is limited to 160 acres per farmer or landowner, and will be available in July. However, farmers can start submitting applications immediately to their local Soil and Water Conservation District Offices!

Black Locust Control In Natural Areas
By Jason Anderson, Farm Bill Wildlife Biologist, PF
Black locust is an aggressive tree that can quickly take over grasslands and is a problem for many landowners in southwest Iowa. Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) is a medium-sized hardwood tree native to the eastern United States. The tree has attractive flowers and foliage which led to it being cultivated and planted for landscaping, allowing it to escape and spread throughout the country. Black locust ...............

Pottawattamie County Bridges Stream Sign Project
This project will help educate and identify some of the major streams and watersheds in Pottawattamie County. Over the past three years, 57 stream signs have been added at bridges throughout our county. This project has been successful because of cooperation and contributions of many partners, including both East and West Pottawattamie Soil and Water Conservation Districts.
Pheasants Forever
Pheasants Forever is dedicated to the conservation of pheasants, quail and other wildlife through habitat improvements, public awareness, education and land management policies and programs.
How do we achieve this mission across more than 45 U.S. states and parts of Canada? Through the dedicated efforts of our:
-149,000 members
-Diverse staff including more than 150 wildlife biologists
-More than 700 local chapters
Want to Become a Commissioner? Here's How!
If you're qualified to vote in a Pottawattamie County general election, you're an eligible candidate for election to the East Pottawattamie County Soil and Water Conservation District board. Each district is governed by five commissioners who are elected at a general elections on a nonpartisan basis for four-year terms. only one commissioner may reside in any single township. You'll need a nominating petition from the county Auditor or SWCD office.