The Fall 2024 Watershed Academy was focused on siting wetland and effectively communicating with farmers and landowners about wetlands.
Full agenda: fall_2024_watershed_academy_agenda.pdf
The training was largely led by Shane Wulf, Wetlands Project Manager, and Dr. Casey Judge, Geographic Information Systems Coordinator, both with the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship.
Shane discussed the different programs in Iowa that can fund wetlands such as the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program and the Water Quality Initiative, and why the state is focused on nutrient reduction wetlands. Shane also discussed the process of getting a wetland on the ground including engineering, permitting, archeology, easements, construction, and maintenance.
Casey reviewed the key pieces of information she needs in order to evaluate a potential wetland site. She discussed some the hazards or issues often found out sites that make them imcompatible with wetlands, and some tools that can be used to investigate sites such as the Iowa NRCS Web Map Viewer, Web Soil Survey, and StreamStats.
Here is a link to their presentation: iowa_watershed_academy_10.23.24.pdf. Sites that were visited: sitevisitwetlandmaps.pdf. And links to additional resources: wetland_tools_and_resources.pdf
Then we headed out to the field to explore a recently constructed pumped wetland as well as an established wetland.
On Day #2, we kicked off the day with Jean McGuire, Field Outreach Specialist with the Wetlands Initiative, who discussed the best way to talk to farmers about wetlands, given their identity and approach to conservation. Jean's presentation can be found here: mcguire_ia_watershed_present_final_10-22-2024_pdf.pdf Jean also had participants work through an activity (wetland_and_farmer_id_participants_final.pdf) to match farmer identities to the best wetland message.
Here is a PDF copy of one of Jean's excellent papers on the good farmer identity: mcguire_morton_and_cast_2012.pdf. I also highly recommend checking out the Illinois Sustainable Ag Partnership's website and the Aggregate, their newsletter.
Next we heard from two former watershed coordinators who have recently transitioned to new roles as part of the Watershed Coordinator Success Panel. Cara Morgan is the Southwest Iowa Director for ALUS and discussed opportunities in Iowa with ALUS.
Devin Stortz, a Working Lands Biologist with Ducks Unlimited, discussed some of DU's programs for wetlands and cover crops and how DU employees can work with watershed coordinators. His presentation can be found here: du_iwa_presentation_2024.pdf
