Conservation Clip List is a weekly collection of articles distributed by NACD that provides our members and partners with the latest news in what's driving conservation. If you have a relevant submission, please contact your NACD Communications Team.

NACD Blog: Soil Health PSAs: A great way to spread the message

The Redlands Community College (El Reno, Oklahoma), USDA Southern Plains Climate Hub, and Oklahoma NRCS recently teamed up to produce three public service announcements (PSAs) on soil health.

NACD Blog: NACD participates in Field to Market meetings

Field to Market committees gathered for face-to-face meetings in Washington, D.C., last week, where NACD was represented by Director of Development Melisa Augusto and Communications Specialist Bill Berry.

NACD Blog: Forestry Notes Q&A: Sustainable Urban Forests Coalition

Gerry Gray and Paul Ries serve as co-chairs of the Sustainable Urban Forests Coalition (SUFC). The Coalition’s 35 members represent state and federal agencies, non-governmental organizations, private industry, and other urban forestry interests.

Thune calls for raising cap on CRP acres via Agri-Pulse

Thune, a Republican who serves on the Senate Agriculture Committee, proposed a CRP cap of 30 million acres and expanded haying and grazing on land under a contract. The cap would be a 6 million acre increase from the current 24 million acre limit imposed by the 2014 farm bill.

Wildfires Scorch Parts of Florida; Gov. Declares Emergency via U.S. News

Firefighters are battling wildfires from the top of Florida near the Georgia line to Miami-Dade County in the south. Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam said this is the most active wildfire season since 2011, with some 107 fires statewide.

Push to dismantle Water Works likely dead in Legislature via The Des Moines Register

A bill to dismantle the Des Moines Water Works is likely dead in the Iowa Legislature this session, although some lawmakers want talks to continue on regional representation for central Iowa water customers.

Salt from icy roads is contaminating North America’s lakes via The Washington Post

NaCl kept roads free from slippery ice, but it also changed the nature of North America's freshwater lakes. Of 371 lakes reviewed in the new study, 44 percent showed signs of long-term salinization. Extrapolating that finding for all of North America, at least 7,770 lakes are at risk of elevated salt levels.

California governor declares end to drought emergency via Reuters

One of the worst droughts in California history has officially ended, Governor Jerry Brown declared, but not before it strained the state's farm economy and threatened water supplies for millions of residents. The drought cost the agricultural economy billions, killed an estimated 100 million trees, led a half-million acres of farmland to be fallowed, and deprived some communities of reliable sources of drinking water.

Trump Administration Lifts Hiring Freeze via Roll Call

New guidance from the Trump administration will officially end the federal hiring freeze implemented days after the president took office. Instead, agencies are instructed to act wherever possible to bring their workforce size and activities in line with Trump’s fiscal 2018 budget plan.

Yellowstone Grizzly Expands Habitat via Wyoming Public Media Statewide Network

Grizzly bears are expanding the range of their habitat in the Greater Yellowstone area. Management could be given to states as early as June when the Yellowstone-area grizzly bear may be taken off the Endangered Species List.

Trump approves funds for California relief, including $274 million for Oroville Dam via The Sacramento Bee

President Donald Trump announced more than a half-billion dollars would be coming to California to help cover the damage from the winter storms, including $274 million for repairs to the Oroville Dam spillway.

Critics: Lawmakers continue to defy will of voters on land conservation via New Chief

(Opinion) The Florida House is moving forward with a budget for next year that sets aside no money for the state’s marquee land conservation program, Florida Forever, or a separate program that ranchers have used to put conservation easements on their properties. The Florida Senate is proposing to fund Florida Forever at a tiny fraction of what the state once spent, and also has no money for the agriculture easements program.

Trump Proposes EPA Cuts via DTN/The Progressive Farmer

Though the appetite for scaling back the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's influence in the countryside may be palpable, potential budget cuts to the agency may come in some areas critical to agriculture.

Wildfire risk is getting higher in 11 N.J. counties, weather service warns via NJ.com

Last week, New Jersey was saturated with rain and worried about flooding. Now, some forests and other wooded areas are getting very dry, which generates a whole new concern. The combination of low humidity and gusty winds has increased the risk of wildfires in 11 counties across the Garden State, as well as in eastern Pennsylvania.

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