Professional Documents
Culture Documents
UPCOMING EVENTS
December 18— 10:00 am to 3:30 pm—The Iowa Watershed
Improvement Review Board will conduct their December board meeting at • 10—11 am: Rathbun Land and Water Alliance
the Rathbun Regional Water Association water treatment plant. This is a presentation about watershed assessment and targeting
great opportunity to meet the WIRB board, thank them for their generous of Rathbun Lake Watershed
support, and to showcase the efforts going on in the watershed. Please plan • 11 am—12 pm: WIRB business meeting
to attend this meeting if your time allows. Tentative schedule at right. • 12 – 12:45 pm: Lunch
• 12:45 – 2 pm: Continue WIRB business meeting
December 21—9:30 am—Rathbun Land and Water
• 2 – 3:30 pm: Tour Rathbun Lake Watershed, showing
Alliance Board meeting at the Rathbun Regional Water
Association maintenance building on Hwy 5 north of
practice implementation in targeted subwatersheds and
Centerville. location of proposed WIRB-funded impoundments.
IOWA WATERSHED IMPROVEMENT REVIEW BOARD UPDATE
Contact Aaron Pickens at
641.774.2512 or Survey work for the following three WIRB structures has been completed:
by email AARON PICKENS Eshelman—Lucas County; Sponsler—Clarke County; and Oen—Wayne County.
Applications have been received
for two additional sites in Ap-
panoose county on farms owned by Darrell Tisue.
The state office has begun the design process and will conduct geological inves-
tigations on the three surveyed sites through December.
Pictured at right is some of the GPS surveying equipment used at the Sponsler
site.
FUNDING UPDATE
We have received our FY2007 agreements from the Division of Soil Conservation providing Section 319, Water Protection Funds
(WPF), and Watershed Protection Funds (WSPF) to support project activities in the 15 targeted sub-watersheds and staff.
The following is a summary of the funds currently available for FY07 activities:
It is anticipated that additional funding will be received during the first part of the year to support activities in five additional
sub-watersheds. Three of these five were included in the last proposal to DSC/DNR for funding through WPF/WSP/Section 319.
The additional two were included in a proposal to the WIRB board earlier this year.
BMP UPDATE
Cumulative FY
04-06 21649.2 13863.3 7796.3 8897.6 1090.9 7807.7 40678.2 5060.0 35623.2 5156.9
FY07 to date 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
At left—Rathbun Lake Protectors pictured L-R: Jimmy and Betty Carpenter, Wayne
County; Jean and Charles Argo, Appanoose County; John Glenn, Alliance Board Presi-
dent; and Betty and Jim Sullivan, Clarke and Decatur Counties. Rathbun Lake Pro-
tectors not pictured are Mike and Nick Hunter, Lucas County; Jeff Sullivan, Clarke
County; Mark Batchelder, Lucas County; and Warren Holder, Wayne County.
Below—Rathbun Land and Water Alliance activities were presented to a packed
house during the Alliance’s annual meeting.
The Rathbun Lake Special Project is a partnership of the following individuals, agencies, and organizations: Participating landowners in the Rathbun Lake
Watershed; Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship’s Division of Soil Conservation; Iowa Department of Natural Resources; Iowa State
University; Iowa Watershed Improvement Review Board; Southern Iowa Development and Conservation Authority; US Army Corps of Engineers; US
Environmental Protection Agency; USDA Farm Service Agency; USDA Natural Resources Conservation Agency; Appanoose, Clarke, Decatur, Lucas,
Monroe, and Wayne Soil and Water Conservation Districts; Appanoose, Clarke, Decatur, Lucas, Monroe, and Wayne Counties; Iowa Farm Bureau at the state and county levels; and Rathbun Re-
gional Water Association.
Special Report mm From Velvet’s View
Contact Mike Knox at 641.872.1350 or by Contact Velvet Buckingham at 641.872.1350
email at Michael.J.Knox@ia.nacdnet.net or by email at Vevet.Buckingham@ia.nacdnet.net
Iowa State University and Rathbun Lake Special Project We have fi ni she d li ning up the
will perform a research study to determine the effects remaining acres for the ICM component. There are
of cattle grazing along stream segments. The study will approximately 2160
try to disprove the theory that grazing along stream acres left to soil sam-
corridors is not detrimental to Rathbun Lake. The ple. Results of sam-
study will also make a determination of the impacts of ples that were
shade related to cattle grazing. collected last spring
were mailed to pro-
Twelve producers have eligible sites on which to ducers this fall—to
perform an erosion study. Iowa State University will ensure that they received copies. Mark Carlton has
place erosion pins on the stream bank to measure the become ill and is no longer able to assist with the
amount of erosion that occurs in a given period of project and we are unsure of which producers he
time. If you know of a landowner who may be willing had been able to get in contact with.
to participate with this study please let me know.
206 Project
An incentive payment is offered to
producers willing to have GPS collars We met with the Corps of Engineer staff, Parsons,
put on their cattle to track the and local partners to
movement and grazing patterns of discuss the engineer-
cattle. Six herds with three cows per ing progress that has
herd is needed for the study. been made on the
The cattle will be corralled six times during the representative sites.
summer to put on and to remove the collars. Please let The group toured
me know if you are aware of interested producers. each site, and dis-
cussed the
Six well-attended events took place this past summer designs with the landowners. The goal is for Parson
including pasture walks, grazing demonstrations, to finish working on the designs and get to 95
alternative feed source meetings and watering facility percent complete. The final package can then be
demonstrations. A special thanks to all the producers, put together of COE review and approval.
as well as Joe Sellers and Carl Neifert for putting
together these field days.
• Jennifer Bremer, a representative from the Midwest High Plain Journal will be here in the Rathbun Watershed to visit a couple
cooperator sites. She may be developing a story about the Rathbun Lake Forage project that is occurring here.