News & Announcements

Landowners, Business Partners, NRCS Honored for Habitat Restoration Efforts

Landowners, business partners and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) conservationists were recently honored for their wildlife habitat restoration efforts by the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. “Each year, we recognize individuals and groups in each of the five wildlife regions based on their habitat management work, community outreach, and recreational opportunities,” said Wildlife Division Director Karen Waldrop. “We would also like to acknowledge three of our partners from the NRCS, who work to ensure that Kentucky’s private lands are managed responsibly for each of us to enjoy,” she continued. “NRCS has proven to be a valuable asset in
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Farmers and Ranchers Reach 50M-Acres in Voluntary USDA Conservation Program

In just four years, America’s top conservationists have enrolled 50 million acres in USDA’s Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), a program that helps farmers, ranchers and forest landowners take conservation to the next level. CSP is aimed at producers who are already established conservation stewards, helping them to deliver multiple conservation benefits on working lands, including improved water and soil quality and enhanced wildlife habitat. “Farmers and ranchers throughout the country are making USDA’s voluntary Conservation Stewardship Program a major force for conservation,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said. “The protection of natural resources through conservation programs such as CSP create outdoor and wildlife
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Discover Channel Produces Video on ABC Conservation Work at Powdermill

The American Bird Conservancy has been working to reduce the incidence of bird mortality from window collisions at the Powdermill Avian Research Center. Dr. Christine Sheppard has been at the forefront of this initivatie.  Recently the Discovery Channel has taken interest in the project and produced a five-minute video on the work of ABC and the Carneige Museum of Natural History.  Take a look at the video here.  The collisions story starts at about the 6:45 mark and ends at the 12 minute mark. You can learn more about this innovative project at the Powdermill Avian Research Center website.

V. Tech Researcher’s Work Helps Woodpecker Recovery

The woods around Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in North Carolina have, since 1986, featured an ever increasing rat-a-tat-tat sound that has nothing to do with weapons qualification training. The sound marks the 28-year recovery of the red cockaded woodpecker, said by some to be the spotted owl of the southeast because of its status on the endangered species list. Critical to the birds’ comeback has been Jeff Walters, the Harold Bailey Professor of Biological Sciences in Virginia Tech’s College of Science. A life-long bird lover, Walters has been working with, among others, the Marines and the U.S. Air Force
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Landmark Protection Project Finished on Little Pisgah Mountain

On December 22, 2011, the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy recorded conservation easements protecting 474 acres in southern Buncombe County. This project combines with neighboring conservation easements and other preserves to bring the total amount of land protected on Little Pisgah Mountain to more than 1,400 acres. “The Little Pisgah project is a major step in preservation of mountaintops in an important focus area of the Buncombe County land conservation plan,” according to Albert Sneed, chairman of the Buncombe County Conservation Advisory Board. The property contains 100 acres of high elevation pasture, rock outcrops and cliffs, and 374 acres of forested
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DEC Funding Available for Grassland Protection Program

Private landowners interested in enhancing and restoring critical grassland habitat could be eligible for grants totaling approximately $1 million, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Joe Martens announced today. With grasslands declining in New York and nationwide, DEC’s Landowner Incentive Program (LIP) for Grassland Protection and Management directs funding to projects on private property that will help at-risk species that depend on unique grassland ecosystems to survive. “Through the Landowner Incentive Program, private landowners have been directly involved in conserving grasslands for a variety of species since 2008,” Commissioner Martens said. “Governor Cuomo recognizes the value of
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