The Howard County Soil and Water Conservation District, DSC/IDALS and the USDA/NRCS Office were pleased to recently receive funding for the Staff / Beaver Creek Water Quality Project. Over a period of three to four years, the project will seek to improve the water quality of these two Upper Iowa River (UIR) tributaries located in northern Howard County. The Water Protection Fund (WPF) dollars stem from annual REAP allocations approved by State Legislators. The Division of Soil Conservation (DSC) administers funding for projects. The Watershed Protection Fund (WSPF) dollars stem from a portion the gaming revenue collected in Iowa and is also administered by DSC to water quality projects and educational campaigns gnes across the state.

Water quality projects like this one, offer cooperating producers incentive payments and high cost share rates to adopt practices that improve water quality. An informational and educational campaign supported by incentive payments and high cost share rates (75%) for Best Management Practices (BMP’s), will be the tools available to make the necessary nutrient and sediment reductions, ultimately improving the water quality of these two streams. Water quality projects often result in operators making long term cultural changes in their operations. We live in an age of increasing regulation and environmental awareness. New government programs like the Conservation Security Program (CSP) focus on financially rewarding landowners and operators for adopting high standards of conservation in their operations.