Utah Prairie Dog Habitat Credits Exchange Featured at National Conference

NRCS recently co-sponsored the 12th National Mitigation & Ecosystem Banking Conference held May 6-8, 2009 in Salt Lake City, Utah.  As a national sponsor, NRCS headquarters worked with the Utah NRCS State office to develop a concurrent session presentation on the Utah Prairie Dog Habitat Credits Exchange project and create an exhibit highlighting NRCS market-based strategic efforts.

Through an NRCS Conservation Innovation Grant and other funding supports a three-year pilot project in Cedar City was funded to evaluate whether a credit exchange would encourage farmers to help with the recovery of the Utah Prairie Dog, currently listed as a threatened species.  The system would operate as a recovery credit trading system where impacts on the species can be offset by funding conservation and management actions on private lands elsewhere.

The exhibit, seen by some 300 attendees, highlights the NRCS long range strategy to "facilitate the growth of market-based opportunities that encourage business and industry to invest in conservation on private lands."  In addition to the market-based Utah Prairie Dog Pilot project, the exhibit also features efforts by the NRCS National Technical Center in Oregon, to develop a Nutrient Trading Tool (NTT).  This web-based, user-friendly model is designed for landowners to quickly run through a series of customized scenarios that calculate varying nutrient savings (in nitrogen and phosphorus) by adjusting management practices while incorporating local climate, soils, and agronomic data. This prototype model is being validated on projects in the Chesapeake Bay area and the Ohio basin.  Once NTT is in full production, landowners will have the nutrient reduction information necessary to participate in water quality credit trading markets.

Another highlight of the conference included a plenary speech by Sally Collins, Director of USDA's new Office of Ecosystem Services and Markets (OESM).  Collins described the function of OESM and explained the expanded efforts by USDA in ecosystem services markets to a very excited and supportive audience.  Collins fielded questions for over 30 minutes from conference participants yearning for more information.

OESM is charged developing the infrastructure for ecosystem services markets which includes development of quantification standards, a registry, and certification and verification protocols to enable farmers, ranchers and foresters to participate in ecosystem services markets.  Collins said OESM will initially focus on carbon sequestration and water quality with the intention of expanding into habitat, wetlands and biodiversity markets in the future.

Carl Lucero, NRCS’ National Leader for Clean Water Leader is on detail to OESM where he is working with Director Collins to coordinate the development of protocols for water markets and other ecosystem services.  He is also the national contact for development of the NTT and other tools in the ecosystem services arena.
Your contact is Carl Lucero at 202-361-9772.
 

Links...
USDA news release: USDA Announces New Office of Ecosystem Services and Markets