Cost Share
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65% cost share is available on soil erosion, water quality and habitat improvement projects. All Whitewater cost share contracts must address all erosion problems on the farm tract. Practices available include:
- Grassed waterways
- Terraces
- Diversions
- Sediment basins
- Critical area planting
- Tree planting
- Upland habitat management
- Feedlot fixes
- Other conservation practices
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Incentive Payments
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Incentive payments are offered for the adoption of new management-based conservation practices.
- Cover crops
- Nutrient management
- Conversion to organic crop production
- Conversion to organic pasture production
- Contour strip cropping
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Low Interest Loans
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Low interest loans are available for:
- Individual sewage treatment system upgrades
- Low-cost feedlot fixes
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Technical Assistance
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Available for the design and installation of conservation practices
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Education &
Outreach
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- Forest Stewardship Plans - A natural resources professional will work with you to develop a forest stewardship plan describing your forest resources and recommending appropriate management based upon your goals.
- Workshops and field days on land and water stewardship
- Nutrient and manure management planning
- Customized GIS mapping for sensitive feature setbacks
- Neighborhood meetings
- One on one contacts with watershed residents
- Newsletters
- Brochures on watershed forestry, biodiversity, and history
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Monitoring
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Citizen stream monitoring program: Since 2001, sixteen citizen volunteers, as well as staff from the Whitewater River Watershed Project have participated in Citizen Stream Monitoring Program (CSMP) activities in the Whitewater Watershed. Volunteers collect data on stream transparency, stream stage, water temperature and precipitation.
The CSMP activities have been helpful to develop stream awareness and to better understand the relationship of land use and precipitation to stream conditions. Local data are also included in the state database compiled in St. Paul.
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Forestry
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Private forests are a major and important part of the landscape in the watershed. The benefits of a healthy forest provide habitat for a diversity of plants & animals; Filter sediments, nutrients and chemicals from runoff, protect against erosion and diversify income for farmers and other landowners. Cost share & planning services include:
- Tree Planting: CRP (conservation reserve program), Windbreaks and Direct Seeding
- Timber Stand Improvement: Seedling release, Pruning, Thinning and Crop tree release
- Stewardship plans
- Harvest recommendations
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