News

Building Better Lives along the Border

Remarks by Bruce I. Knight, Chief,Natural Resources Conservation Service, at the U.S.-Mexico Border Coalition of RC&D Councils Annual Conference,

Las Cruces, NM
May 24, 2004

Thank you, Marty. It is a pleasure to be here for the annual conference of the U.S.–Mexico Border Coalition of Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D) Councils.

I attended the National Association of RC&D Councils Annual Leadership Forum in Washington, DC, in February. That meeting marked the end of Joe Cantu’s term as president. Joe is a fine example of the kind of RC&D leaders you have here in the Border States. It also marked the Election of Sharon Ruggi as the new president. I am also enjoying working with Sharon very much.

National RC&D Accomplishments

2003 was a year of great accomplishments for RC&D areas. All across the nation, you
– Completed nearly 4,300 projects,
– Brought in almost a third of a billion dollars from other sources!
– Improved habitat on more than half a million acres, and
– Improved nearly 160 thousand acres of lakes and more than 1,800 miles of streams.

You continue to be a major contributor to conservation in this country. RC & D areas
– Benefited more than 800,000 economically disadvantaged people, and
– Implemented projects that served 15.5 million people.

Today, in addition to specific issues along the border, I would like to mention three things that I know are important to you: The NRCS reorganization, 2004 cooperative agreements, and the RC & D program evaluation.

Reorganization

We recently announced a reorganization of NRCS above the State office level in order to strengthen our ability to help America's farmers and ranchers reach their conservation goals, and to offer them the latest science-based technologies. The reorganization affects regional offices, national headquarters, and centers and institutes. The reorganization will not directly affect State, area, or field offices.

The most important thing to keep in mind about the NRCS reorganization is that it is designed to keep our scientific, customer service, and quality control functions up to date and ready to interact with more partners and more technical service providers. The challenges of the farm bill require us to become more of a catalyst for conservation and less of a direct provider –and that requires a different organizational structure. The reorganization will take place over the next few months.

NRCS has always been known for providing high-quality science and high-quality service. But we will need to be even more efficient and effective in both these areas to support all the conservation that is happening on America’s private lands as a result of the 2002 farm bill. We have decided to refocus our operational, technology support, and resource assessment functions in order to meet these growing needs in the future.

I know you all value the relationships you have with your regional NRCS offices. Let me assure you that we will make sure the new organization gives you all the services you are used to receiving – and more.

Let me also assure you that the new Resource Conservation Development and Rural Lands Division will continue to provide strong support for the RC&D Program.

Cooperative Agreements

I know that the State RC&D Associations and the National Association, along with other partner organizations, are interested in how the cooperative agreement process is working in 2004. I am happy to report that the process is working pretty well this year. Many of you may know that the agreement with the National Association was signed last month and is now being implemented.

There is a very good reason why it takes longer to craft a cooperative agreement these days. That reason is increased accountability. The increased investment in conservation represented by the farm bill brings with it closer scrutiny and greater accountability.

I talked about accountability at the NARC&DC meeting in San Antonio last summer, both in terms of the program evaluation required by the farm bill – I will talk about that in some detail in a minute – and in terms of the help we need from RC&D Councils with regard to recordkeeping.

Cooperative agreements are another area where accountability comes into play. Today’s cooperative agreements must include specific deliverables. We also need to include output measures that go beyond simply listing the deliverables by type.

Last year was a year of adjustment. Our partners had to adapt to the new philosophy behind cooperative agreements. There was more “back and forth” between NRCS and the partners. That took time. And the money to back up our part of the agreements was slow in coming.

NARC&DC did a good job of adapting. That is an important part of the reason your National Association had one of the first cooperative agreements last year and already has its agreement in place for the current year.

Another thing that is speeding up agreements this year is that we finally have updated instructional materials available for our partners to use in coming up with their proposals. We introduced these materials in a national training session the last week in April in New Orleans.

Implementing agreements will also be easier this year, because we have our budget in place much earlier than we did in 2003. In fact, we sent allocation letters to the NRCS State offices the last week of February.

Program Evaluation Process

I know all of you are interested in the RC&D program evaluation now underway, as required by the farm bill. We are conducting the review in cooperation with RC&D councils and the National Association.

We have had four successful listening sessions: Plymouth, Mass., Bismarck, N. Dak., Angola, Ind., and Oklahoma City. And there are three more planned: Wheeling, W. Vs, Savannah, Ga, and Chelan, Wash.

We have completed our review of all area plans. And we have selected the States for on-site reviews: Florida, Indiana, and California. The State visits will take place this summer.

The Program Evaluation is intended to determine whether the RC&D program is meeting the needs of the people and governments it serves, including States, other units of government, Tribes, non-profit organizations, and RC&D councils. We have to get the results and recommendations to Congress by June 30, 2005, which means we have to get the evaluation done by the end of 2004.

This program evaluation gives us a chance to take an excellent program and make it even better.

RC & D Activities along the Border

Let me finish up by talking a bit about your challenges and activities along the border.

It is amazing how many issues you face and how many different approaches you use across RC & D areas and across States. Even with regard to water, you have not one issue but several. Everyone agrees water is scarce, but – still – flooding is an issue in many areas.

Solutions to scarcity include single-operation approaches, such as drip irrigation and other water conserving measures. Drip irrigation is really catching on in parts of New Mexico, for example.

There are also multi-operation solutions, such as improving delivery systems. In Texas and California, RC&D councils are doing good work, helping irrigation systems line ditches and build pipelines.

And there are wide-ranging solutions, such as water planning across large watersheds, which we see all along the border. Look at the lower Rio Grande water summit, for example.

Everywhere, education on ways to conserve water is an important part of the mix. Elimination of water guzzling invasive species along riverbanks is also an important conservation measure along much of the border.

Solutions to flooding are similarly diverse. Restoration projects along riverbanks can help even out stream flow and prevent flooding and sedimentation. In California and elsewhere, efforts to control bark beetles are related both to wildfire and to the subsequent danger of flooding. New Mexico and Arizona have their own problems with flooding.

Outreach continues to be an important issue. It is the key to improving the quality of life for many people along the border. The farm bill opens up so many new opportunities, and it is important that we continue to make traditionally underserved populations aware of these opportunities and help them to participate.

RC&Ds along the border have been doing good things in reaching out to the Hispanic, Native American, and Southeast Asian communities. Keep up the good work. The census of Native American farmers in New Mexico is a great example. Councils in Texas are doing great things in the Hispanic communities and through the Hispanic-serving institutions of higher education. I understand the Mojave Desert-Mountain RC & D in California has a unique project going to prevent loss of native grasses used by Native Americans in traditional basket weaving.

Southern California also has some of the most intense competition along the border between urban and rural uses of resources. And RC&D councils that are willing to work in both worlds – creating a wildlife oasis in the city, helping agricultural landowners save water that is desperately needed in metropolitan areas, and helping farmers on the urban fringe market their crops in the city.

There is no limit the issues you have addressed and will continue to address, including solid waste management, plugging abandoned wells, testing existing wells, dry hydrants for fire suppression, encouraging tourism, developing small businesses, and many other activities.

You have found innovative tools for funding projects, including starting community grant programs, which can be used anywhere to stimulate local thinking and local effort and applying to use State environmental fines for projects, as the Councils in Texas can do under State law.

Emerging issues

Working together on existing and emerging issues is one way Councils can extend their influence and really make a difference all along the border.

Some of the emerging issues include border security in remote areas, water quality, as opposed to water quantity, and regional planning to help everyone in local communities gain the benefits of conservation and proper use of water and land resources. The ravages of long-term drought make it clear that we need long-term planning to make the best use of the water we have, (By the way, congratulations to those of you from here in New Mexico, who have seen some easing of the drought this spring. Let’s hope that the increased moisture continues and is not just raising false hopes!) and greater emphasis on cultural and historical resources, which are taking a beating as traditional cultures either whither away or are replaced by modern cultures.

Conclusion

Your efforts here along the border are important to the strength of your local communities – and in some cases – even crucial to their survival. Keep up the good work – and keep up your spirit of innovation.

As you continue to find ways to enlist more partners, find new sources of investment, and apply new technologies, you will gradually see a new kind of conservation on private lands along the border and new vitality in your communities.

I look forward to working with all of you.

Thank you.