It has been said that you can never judge a book by its cover and that same meaning applies when the world looks at the Pike County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD). The District has put on a new game face in the last two years and brought a new meaning of conservation efforts in a county that rarely had any. The list of "first time's" and "awesome achievements" can be applied to just about anything that the District has done recently, giving the District AND the county something to be proud about.
While the District succeeded in several goals, our biggest achievement had to be the recognition for a full time administrator in the office. Please keep in mind that Pike County's economic income is well below that of our neighboring counties, so with a tight county budget it was almost like attempting the impossible. Supervisors along with the now full time administrator had worked for over two years to accomplish this goal, putting in long hours of campaigning, meetings with county politicians and generating leveraging sheets (showing the District brought in over $70 for every $1 the county put in) and reports to produce to the county officials before both the Commissioners and the Council voted to make the position full time. This achievement was the first time in Pike County SWCD history that the District has ever had a full time staff member and as a result, interest in conservation efforts have sky rocketed in this little old southwestern Indiana county!
With the 2011 CWI grant, the District decided to take a different direction in conservation efforts. We targeted the urban/rural communities of the county with a Rain Barrel Cost Share Drive. The response we received during this drive was overwhelming! Ninety-nine rain barrels were sold at a cost of $36.50 for a complete set up. Consumers on a fixed income could afford to take pride in their conservation efforts and understand that they were helping to clean up the counties streams & rivers by purchasing a rain barrel and make the drinking water healthier for generations to come.
In late 2011, another achievement would be the news that our partnership with Knox & Daviess County SWCD's was awarded a CWI Watershed Grant. This grant will allow for a part time technician to start working in our counties and assist with promoting our conservation programs and assist with getting conservation efforts on the ground. It is just what our District needs and will greatly assist with accomplishing our Business Plan goals.
And in our spare time from all that above, the District has been partnering with various organizations and co hosting many events including the Area Corn & Soybean Day with neighboring SWCD's & the Purdue Extension; the Surface Mining Reclamation Field Day with Peabody Energy & Indiana Soils/Prime Farm Land Team; the Southern Indiana Grazing Conference with Daviess County SWCD & Four Rivers RC&D; as well as the upcoming Soil Quality Workshop and the No Till Workshop with neighboring SWCD's, Purdue Extension & the NRCS.
All the above would not be possible without the grants, agreements, partnerships and dedication of the Supervisors and staff to conserve our natural resources. Everything the Pike County SWCD has been a part of has made us stronger than ever before. We are now a county to be reckoned with in our conservation efforts and not one who will be looked over. Our success led to the District receiving the 2011 IASWCD District Showcase Award and has encouraged us to set the bar even higher for accomplishing short and long term goals and making it our life long mission to provide leadership and assistance in the proper use and management of soil, water and related natural resources throughout our county.