HomeArchive by Category "Forest"

Conservation Easement Programs for Rural Landowners, Webinar, Dec 5

Join us on Thursday, December 5th from 7:00 to 8:00 pm to learn about conservation tools such as easements and potential funding opportunities available to rural landowners in New York. Land Conservation Specialist Kate Riley from the Finger Lakes Land Trust (www.fllt.org) will cover the options available to landowners to protect and preserve the legacy they have created for their land. Bring your questions. To join the free webinar, register ahead at: https://cornell.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_N7wjZI90QTK5N7DTYBzMjQ Organized by the Southern Finger Lakes Chapter of the NY Forest Owners Association (www.nyfoa.org) and the Cornell Cooperative Extension SCNY Ag Team. Contact Brett Chedzoy at bjc226@cornell.edu with questions.

Brett Chedzoy
Sr. Resource Educator – Ag and Natural Resources
Cornell Cooperative Extension of Schuyler County
South Central NY Agricultural Team
office: 607-535-7161 – cell: 607-742-3657
bjc226@cornell.edu
www.forestconnect.info

Job: Hudson Estuary Trees for Tributaries

Streamside Restoration Technician with Hudson Estuary Trees for Tribs

Learn more and apply here: https://tinyurl.com/ye6rz3dc

The Restoration Technician, will be responsible for developing and maintaining a plant materials nursery, conducting plant monitoring at previous restoration sites, data entry, providing one-on-one assistance to landowners, assessing and preparing potential planting sites, and leading volunteers at planting projects. Other duties include:

  • Implementing, monitoring, and adaptively managing streamside restoration and enhancement projects.
  • Assessing and preparing streamside planting project sites.
  • Leading volunteers at planting events.
  • Developing and maintaining a native plant materials center for planting projects.
  • Assessing and mapping planted project areas using an established protocol.
  • Monitoring and managing invasive species.
  • Instructing landowners in the maintenance of restoration areas.
  • Updating and maintaining databases and files.

CONTACT

Beth Roessler

Stream Buffer Coordinator, Hudson River Estuary Program/ NYS Water Resources Institute

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

21 South Putt Corners Rd, New Paltz, NY 12561

P: (845) 256-2253 | F: (845) 255-3649 | beth.roessler@dec.ny.gov

$50 million to help private forest landowners mitigate climate change

Forest Landowner Support provides competitive grant opportunities to entities and organizations for delivering technical and financial assistance to private forest landowners—including Tribes, underserved landowners, and smaller-acreage landowners.

To see the following opportunities, go here: https://www.fs.usda.gov/about-agency/state-private-tribal-forestry/coop-forestry/ira-forest-landowner-support

County Working Groups hosted by NRCS

Local Working Group Meeting to be Held on July 16th for Erie County

The USDA – NRCS will hold a Local Working Group meeting for Erie County. This meeting is open to the public.

WHEN: 07/16/2024
TIME: 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
WHERE: USDA Service Center Conference Room
Address: 50 Commerce Way, East Aurora, NY 14055

The Local Working Group will focus on identifying agricultural and natural resource issues existing in your community and providing information and feedback to NRCS. Participants may be agricultural producers; owners of nonindustrial private forestland; representatives of agricultural and environmental organizations; and representatives of governmental agencies carrying out environmental, agricultural, or natural resource conservation programs and activities.

NRCS Local Working Groups are subcommittees of the NRCS State Technical Committee and provide recommendations on local natural resource priorities and Farm Bill program conservation activities. For information about the State Technical Committee, contact Angela VanDyke via e-mail, angela.vandyke@usda.gov.

To participate in your Local Working Group, please contact Ray Hummel, your local District Conservationist, via e-mail at Raymond.hummel@usda.gov. Directions and phone numbers to your local USDA Service Center can be found online at https://www.farmers.gov/working-with-us/service-center-locator.

 Please Contact Ray Hummel by July 12th if you would like to attend!

Funding! Round 8 Climate Resilient Farming Grants opened for NYS landowners! $28 million

RECORD INVESTMENT IN AGRICULTURAL STEWARDSHIP PROGRAMS

 

Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Provides Nearly $82 Million for Programs that Assist Farms to Implement Environmentally Sustainable Best Practices, Protect Soil and Water Quality, and Reduce Greenhouse Gases

 

Announces $28.75 Million is Now Available for On-Farm Projects Through the Climate Resilient Farming Grant Program

 

 

Governor Kathy Hochul today, during Earth Week, announced that as part of record funding being invested in the State’s agricultural stewardship programs, $28.75 million is now available for on-farm projects through the Climate Resilient Farming grant program. Round 8 of CRF provides critical funding that helps New York’s farmers reduce greenhouse gas emissions, protect water, ensure soil health, and increase on-farm resiliency to the effects of a changing climate. Under the Governor’s leadership, the Fiscal Year 2025 Budget provides $81.8 million through the Environmental Protection Fund, up $4 million from last year, for agricultural programs and initiatives, such as Climate Resilient Farming grant, that are helping farms to implement environmentally sustainable practices and combat climate change.

 

“Our farmers work hard to feed our communities, producing food in a way that is also thoughtful about protecting our precious natural resources,” Governor Hochul said.  “The Climate Resilient Farming grant program is providing record funding to further assist our farmers and their Soil and Water Conservation Districts to elevate water quality and help New York State meet our climate goals.”

 

New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets Commissioner Richard A. Ball today visited Providence Farm Collective in Orchard Park along with a number of agricultural partners, including the Erie County Soil and Water Conservation District, New York Farm Bureau, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Erie County, the State Soil and Water Conservation Committee Chair, United States Department of Agriculture, the Western NY Land Conservancy, as well as elected officials and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation for an Earth Week celebration and to announce the CRF program funding opportunity. Round 8 of the CRF program also offers record funding this year, nearly $30 million, double what was available in the last round of the program.

 

Providence Farm Collective was awarded funding through the Erie County SWCD and under Round 7 of the Climate Resilient Farming (CRF) program to install an irrigation water management system, which, when installed will promote greater environmental efficiencies, reduce greenhouse gases, and improve on-farm resiliency to extreme weather events, such as drought.  Providence Farm Collective is a non-profit farm, which supports refugee, immigrant BIPOC and under-resourced farmers in Western New York by offering access to clean, rural farmland, farming and business education, technical assistance, access to markets, and, critically important, the opportunity to farm for income through its Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program.

 

During the visit, the farm shared its current environmentally sustainable farming practices, which includes growing cover crops, intercropping, and crop rotation for soil health; using high tunnels to extend the growing season; drip-line irrigation and water conservation practices; protecting its 37-acre home forever as farmland with an agricultural conservation easement, and more.

 

Funding for CRF Round 8 is provided by the State’s Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) and, for the first time, additional funding is being provided by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and its NYS Connects: Climate Smart Farms and Forests Project through the Partnerships for Climate Smart Commodities Program.

 

Awards will be made in the following tracks, which will assist projects related to livestock and manure management; water management and erosion control; and soil health management projects. Practices such as manure storage cover and methane capture projects, manure solid/liquid separation, prescribed grazing, cover crops, conservation tillage, irrigation, soil and water management structures, riparian buffers, tree planting, and many more are also eligible for funding.

 

  • Track 1A: Livestock Management: Alternative Waste Management & Precision Feed Management (NYS funds)
  • Track 1B: Manure Storage Cover and Methane Capture Projects (federal funds)
  • Track 2: Adaptation & Resiliency (NYS funds)
  • Track 3A: Healthy Soils NY (Systems and Best Management Practices that support soil health and agroforestry (NYS funds)
  • Track 3B: Soil Health Systems (federal funds)
  • Track 4: Agricultural Forestry Management (for carbon sequestration) (NYS funds)

 

This year’s program also includes a new funding track, Agricultural Forest Management, with approximately $1 million allocated to support healthy productive forests and afforestation on agricultural lands, goals that are a part of the New York State Climate Action Council’s Scoping Plan.

 

Through seven rounds of CRF funding to date, $36 million has been awarded to 396 farms that are estimated to deliver the equivalent of 454,000 metric tons of CO2e per year emissions reductions, equivalent to removing 108,053 cars from the road for one year.

 

The County Soil and Water Conservation Districts in NYS can apply now on behalf of farmers for these competitive grants. The application and additional information are available on the Department’s website at https://agriculture.ny.gov/funding-opportunities. Project proposals are due at 5:00 p.m. on June 24, 2024.

 

State Department of Agriculture and Markets Commissioner Richard Ball said, “Visiting Providence Farm Collective today, especially during Earth Week, helps us to shine the spotlight on our farms who are using best practices to ensure environmental sustainability and combat the effects of climate change.  With more than $60 million dedicated to the CRF program since its’ launch, we are seeing our farms, along with our Soil and Water Conservation Districts, implement a variety of projects that are addressing greenhouse gas emission reductions, carbon sequestration, and helping on-farm resiliency to extreme weather. Farm by farm, we are seeing significant progress in our collective goals to combat climate change, while also supporting our producers to remain competitive, profitable, and sustainable.”

 

Department of Environmental Conservation Interim Commissioner Sean Mahar said, “New York’s farmers are critically important stewards of our shared environment and are valuable partners in promoting resiliency and addressing climate change through land conservation, water quality improvements, and cutting-edge best practices. Thanks to the Governor’s continued record support of the Environmental Protection Fund, DEC and our agency partners like the Department of Agriculture and Markets are providing significant resources to mitigate and adapt to our changing climate’s impacts on agriculture and across our economy.”

 

New York State Soil and Water Committee Chair Dale Stein said, “The record level of funding being offered through the Climate Resilient Farming grant program this year is an exciting opportunity for our farmers and Soil and Water Districts, who are committed to improving soil health and protecting our waterways as part of our agriculture’s shared goals to combat climate change. The hundreds of projects completed across the State so far —from cover cropping and irrigation systems to manure storage covers—are not only benefiting our environment but also helping our producers to better prepare for and recover from the increasing number of extreme weather events are facing as a result of climate change.  We saw a great example of this today at Providence Farm Collective, and hope to keep this momentum moving forward across the state.”

 

State Senator Michelle Hinchey said, “New York farmers are on the frontlines of the Climate Crisis and need our continued support to scale the most effective methods for environmental stewardship and resilience against severe weather so we can continue to have a local food supply. The Climate Resilient Farming Grant program is instrumental in this effort, helping farmers across the state build soil health and protect our air and water. We’re especially excited about a new funding track for Agricultural Forest Management, which I was proud to push for along with increased support for climate-forward agricultural programs through the EPF this year.”

 

Assemblymember Donna Lupardo said, “Agricultural stewardship programs like Climate Resilient Farming are vital to protecting NY’s natural resources through planning and promoting best practices. They help farmers develop unique on-farm solutions to combat the climate crisis and its effect on their farm operations. I am especially pleased that our Soil and Water Conservation Districts received an increase in funding to assist with their important work at the county level. A special thank you to NY’s farmers who have continued to demonstrate their commitment to protecting our natural resources.”

 

Providence Farm Collective President and Executive Director Kristin Heltman-Weiss said, “Today as we celebrate Earth Week, Providence Farm Collective farmers and Commissioner Richard Ball are shining a light on the need for environmental sustainability and resiliency in agriculture and food systems, while also uplifting the need for farms to be economically viable. Through several climate resiliency farming grants received by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, Erie County Soil and Water Conservation, the Natural Resources Conservation Services, and the United States Department of Agriculture, PFC farmers have tools for managing the effects of climate change that include implementing best practices for irrigation and water management, nurturing healthy soils through cover cropping, crop rotation, onsite composting, access to no-till equipment, and minimizing tillage, installing low tunnels and high tunnels, and protecting our farmland forever through a conservation easement. In our values, mission and vision, we are committed to a holistic sustainability model that empowers and provides equitably for people, honors and cares for the health of the planet, embodies the purpose and values of the organization, and balances all of those with the need for financial viability.”

 

The State’s Fiscal Year 2025 Budget, through the EPF, included several agricultural initiatives, including funding for Cornell Soil Health, a $1.25 million increase for the Soil and Water Conservation Districts, and continued funding for the CRF program along with the establishment of new initiatives such as the Eastern Finger Lakes Coalition, which will direct key investments into the Eastern Finger Lakes Coalition of Soil and Water Conservation Districts to support agricultural and resiliency-related projects on farms. This will also include support for farmers to invest in more cover crops, improve culverts to reduce runoff, and other investments to improve soil health and reduce water quality impairments in the region.

 

About NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets

The New York Department of Agriculture and Markets, in coordination with the New York State Soil and Water Conservation Committee, administers the Climate Resilient Farming Program through its Land and Water Division, which works to protect New York’s land and water resources through farmland protection, farmland conservation, and proactive environmental stewardship. The Climate Resilient Farming Program functions as part of the Agricultural Environmental Management (AEM) framework, a broader effort that helps farmers achieve higher levels of environmental stewardship and more efficient, cost-effective farming systems. County Soil and Water Conservation Districts use the AEM framework to assist interested farmers through planning and implementation to make science-based and cost-effective decisions. As a result, farmers can meet business goals while conserving the state’s natural resources.

 

NY landowners: Do you own or manage natural areas that are or could be forested? Survey

Do you own or manage natural areas that are or could be forested?

  • The NYS DEC Division of Lands and Forests is conducting a survey to learn more about how public and private forestland is being managed, as well as the tree planting potential for lands that are not currently forested
    e.g.  lawns, grassland, shrubland, vineland, wetlands, and previously-developed sites

  • DEC will be using this data to help with reforestation and afforestation (creating new forests) efforts across the state to meet our tree planting and forest regeneration goals.

If your organization owns or manages forest land or land that could be planted to create new forests, please fill out this survey by March 29, 2024:https://forms.office.com/g/qfdAbJbX9i.

Farmers+Forest Owners: Agroforestry Incentives Program (2-3 enrollment cycles per year)

The Nature Conservancy’s new agroforestry project called Expanding Agroforestry Production (EAP).  The EAP program is focused on adding new fruit, nut, timber, and biodiversity trees and shrubs through alley cropping, silvopasture, and windbreak practices. For qualified farmers, this project will offer technical assistance, Per-Tree Installation Costs Incentive (average $30/tree),  and Transition Incentive of $450/acre paid out in three installments. You can find more about the payments here: Fact sheet on the Incentive Payment Program.

Regions included shown below.

When, Where, How?

  • Enrollment is open now for producers in the Upper Midwest, Lower Midwest, Mid- Atlantic/Central Appalachia, Northeast and Hawai’i regions.
  • Projects need to be in one of the following states: Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawai’i, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
  • Projects must follow NRCS Conservation Practice Standards for Alley Cropping, Silvopasture, and/or Windbreaks (either the state Conservation Practice Standards or the national Conservation Practice standards may be used).

    So essentially, EAP can pay producers about $1200 per acre to establish trees on their operations.  That should go a long way toward getting silvopasture established on lots of farms and creating shade for livestock, improving summer forage quality, and extending the grazing season. Check out the program! And if TFG can be of service in the process, please feel free to reach out.

What is agroforestry?

Agroforestry is the intentional integration of trees and shrubs into crop and animal farming systems to create environmental, economic and social benefits.

Best Practices on a Small Wooded Acreage. Webinar March 20

Best Practices on a Small Wooded Acreage.

Presented by Peter Smallidge

20 March 2024

Presentations at 12:00 to 1:00 PM and again at 7:00 to 8:00 PM (webinars may run long with questions)

Many woodland owners have parcels that are “small” compared to other owners. These parcels are endearing to the owners, and provide many opportunities for activities to ensure they remain healthy and support the owner’s interests. This presentation will cover several simple and basic actions that owners can take to be active in the woods and enjoy the land to its fullest extent. This presentation is intended for new owners, owners of small parcels, and resource professionals and educators who work with these owners.  A fact sheet related to this presentation is available at https://blogs.cornell.edu/cceforestconnect/files/2020/01/Managing-Small-Parcels.pdf

Instructions:

  1. Read all these instructions.
  2. You need to register for each monthly webinar.  There is unlimited space for participants, the ID simply provides you the necessary access.  Obtain your registration ID via:  https://cornell.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_5IRFqn7oSYm5D-Vyqb8-3Q    If prompted for a password use “Cornell”.
  3. The registration page prompts you for information if you want CEU credits. You must register and attend the webinar > 20 minutes if you want to receive documentation for CEU credits.
  4. After registration you will receive the link to the webinar and a password. Your registration is valid for either the noon or 7PM presentation.  It should go without saying that you should retain that email.
  5. The registration email you receive provides the link you will use the day of the webinar.

USDA Climate Smart Commodities Grant Data Base

Find all the organizations, agencies and universities that were funded for “Climate Smart Commodity” (CSC) projects

The USDA agenda for this funding: USDA is committed to supporting a diverse range of farmers, ranchers, and private forest landowners through Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities. This effort will expand markets for America’s climate-smart commodities, leverage the greenhouse gas benefits of climate-smart commodity production, and provide direct, meaningful benefits to production agriculture, including for small and underserved producers.

NYS was awarded a CSC grant :NYS Climate Smart Farms & Forests

  • NYS Department of Environmental Conservation
  • NYS Department of Agriculture & Markets
  • SUNY ESF
  • Syracuse University
  • Cornell University

Here is the Press for Cornell: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2022/09/60m-usda-grant-supports-nys-climate-smart-farms-and-forests

To note, the cost-share funding

  • for NY farms will be disbursed by  NYS Department of Ag & Markets, through the Climate Resilient Farming (CRF) program.
  • for NY forests will be disbursed by NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, through the Regenerate NY program.

Here is a screenshot of the USDA CSC dashboard for navigating all of the projects administered across the US.

 

Faculty Job: Forest Ecosystem Sustainability, tenure-track, Cornell

Faculty Position Available

Assistant/Associate Professor, Tenure-track.

Forest Ecosystem Sustainability 

Department of Natural Resources and the Environment

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Cornell University 

Full Listing here: https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/26799

 

Location: Ithaca, NY, USA. The academic home for this position is the Department of Natural Resources and the Environment in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS), housed on the Ithaca campus of Cornell University.

Position Description and Responsibilities: 

We invite applications for a 9-month, full-time tenure-track position at the level of assistant/associate professor. The position will be 50% research and 50% teaching. The Department of Natural Resources and the Environment (DNRE) (https://dnr.cals.cornell.edu/) is a leader of sustainability science within the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (https://cals.cornell.edu) at Cornell University due to our collective expertise in the environmental and social sciences and a strong program of transdisciplinary, engaged scholarship. We aim to build on this capacity by hiring a tenure-track assistant/associate professor whose work advances understanding of forest ecosystems.

The successful candidate will establish an internationally recognized, externally funded interdisciplinary research program that advances theory, methods, and practice related to forest ecosystems. The position is premised on our department’s commitment to examining both ecological and social dynamics of natural resources. We seek applicants who investigate the direct/proximate drivers of forest ecosystem degradation related to natural disturbances, such as insect induced mortality, as well as anthropogenic forces, such as climate change and forest harvesting/management, as well as the implications of those changes in terms of carbon sequestration, displacement of people and communities, and/or ecological function. The research of the successful candidate is not limited to a particular scale, although we seek candidates with the ability to work across scales. The successful candidate’s program is also expected to include a field research component. Local on- and off-campus forest lands can be utilized for program research and teaching that are part of the Cornell Botanic Gardens (https://cornellbotanicgardens.org) and the Arnot Teaching and Research Forest (https://blogs.cornell.edu/arnotforest/). In addition to the candidate’s knowledge and passion for trees and forests, experience with other diverse biophysical components of forest ecosystems are welcome.

Outstanding research scholarship is expected, as is excellence in and commitment to teaching, translation of knowledge, and advising and mentoring of students. We seek colleagues with a record demonstrating success and promise across all these areas, and who will be supported by and contribute to a vibrant culture of inclusive excellence at Cornell. As such, candidates are expected to engage in service and leadership activities within their department, the college and university, and relevant professional societies. The successful candidate will teach two undergraduate courses (one of which will be in the area of forest ecology) that will strengthen the cross-college Environment and Sustainability (E&S) undergraduate major, and will develop one graduate seminar.

Qualifications:

The successful candidate will have a Ph.D. in a related field. Applicants should demonstrate capacity to apply cutting-edge methods in novel ways that advance understanding of forest ecosystems. Ability to teach at undergraduate and graduate levels is required. We seek candidates able to support a diverse student body through culturally aware advising and inclusive teaching strategies. The Department of Natural Resources and the Environment particularly seeks applicants whose record in research, teaching, and outreach prepares them to contribute to Cornell’s institutional commitment to diversity and equity, and to our department’s commitment to work across the social and biophysical sciences.

Applications received by February 29, 2024, will be given full consideration. Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.