News & Notes October 2002

PACD Fall Meeting Returns to State College
NRCS/Conservation District Forum Slated

The Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. (PACD) will return to the Toftrees Resort in State College, PA, for its 2002 Fall Meeting, held October 30 through November 1, 2002. Conservation district directors and staff are strongly encouraged to attend in order to keep up to date with Association business and participate in several interactive sessions and forums.

The program for the Fall Meeting includes several standard conference business items as well as a number of unique events which will provide insight into conservation issues across Pennsylvania.

On Thursday, October 31, the PACD will host a Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)/Conservation Districts Forum, in order to provide an opportunity for discussion and information sharing regarding the local partnerships between NRCS and the districts. The workshop will focus on what is working well in the partnership's delivery of agricultural service programs, what improvements need to be made, and what actions need to be taken to allow the improvements to be made.
During the NRCS/Conservation Districts Forum, the group will be divided in accordance to their local partnerships in order to conduct roundtable discussions focused on issues pertaining to the local region. Groups will be asked to identify problem areas, locally and at the state level, and to share their findings with the rest of the audience. This forum is the first of its kind and will be used as a guide for district partnerships and the implementation of priority action plans, while the state-level needs determined by the local partnerships will be reviewed by the entire partnership.

PACD will continue the Conservation Issues Forum as a featured activity of its statewide meetings. The forum will be held on Wednesday afternoon, October 30, and will include a panel discussion on conservation agricultural services delivery. The purpose of the panel discussion is to provide information to conservation district directors and staff, which will assist them to coordinate agricultural services delivery and technical assistance to farmers. Given the many programs and the expected increase in demand for services, PACD believes that the information will prove to be very useful for the districts.

Members of the panel will include: Lynn Langer, PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) 319 and Growing Greener Programs; Karl Brown, State Conservation Commission (SCC), Nutrient Management Program; Cedric Karper, DEP, Chesapeake Bay Program; Barry Frantz, NRCS, Farm Bill Programs; Bill Foose, Farm Service Agency (FSA), Farm Bill and CREP Programs; and Mary Bender, PA Department of Agriculture, Farmland Preservation Program. Each individual will provide an overview of their respective program as it relates to conservation services and/or technical assistance for farmers.
The Conservation Issues Forum will also include an update on Envirothon activities provided by Cumberland County Director Barb Marbain, as well as updates on activities and issues from the various PACD Committees.

Additional highlight activities from the PACD Fall Meeting include:

• PACD Committee Meetings - The Technology Committee, Finance Committee and Legislative Committee have reserved time to meet.
  
• Conservation District Managers Meeting - District managers will be provided with the opportunity to network with their peers from across the state and discuss items of mutual interest.
  
• Auxiliary Meeting - The Auxiliary Breakfast and Meeting will be held on Thursday, October 31, at 8 a.m. To make reservations, contact Molly Burns at the PACD office, 717-238-PACD (7223).
  
• Gubernatorial Candidates Ed Rendell and Mike Fisher - Pennsylvania's two primary gubernatorial candidates have been invited to speak at meal functions.
  
• Ombudsman Program Update - Shelley Dehoff, of the Lancaster County Conservation District, will review issues related to the Ombudsman Program, such as how to prepare for a controversial meeting and the position of Agriculture Preservation Boards in relation to townships that restrict agricultural activities.
  
• PACD Executive Council Meeting - The Executive Council will meet at 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 31.
  
• State Conservation Commission Meeting - The SCC Meeting will be held at 9 a.m. on Friday, November 1. A ceremonial signing of recent memos of understanding is planned, along with a presentation on the new forestry provisions of the 2002 Farm Bill and a panel discussion to follow. Panel members include representatives from the USDA Forestry Service and the Bureau of Forestry; Ron Rohall, PACD President and consulting forester in Southwest PA; and Dave Trimpey, State Conservation Commission member and commercial forester in Northwest PA. The panel will address opportunities for interaction and cooperation between conservation districts, the USDA Forestry Service and the PA Bureau of Forestry.
  
• The SCC will also host a pre-meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 31.
  

Conference registration and hotel information may be found on the PACD website: www.pacd.org, and conference information has previously been mailed to conservation district offices as well as cooperating agencies.

Page 2>