Training News from BWSR

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In this issue:


Technical Training & Certification Program Updates

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Lawrence Svien Retirement

 

TTCP’s Southern Training Conservationist, Lawrence Svien, retired on June 8. Beginning with DNR Forestry in 1975 Lawrence worked in the natural resources field for 46 years. During that time, he held positions with the US Forest Service, Winona and Burns-Homer-Pleasant SWCDs, and in 1980 he joined the Soil Conservation Service (now NRCS). After retiring from NRCS in 2012 Lawrence spent several years as the Executive Director of the Zumbro Watershed Partnership before becoming a Training Conservationist here at TTCP. We will miss Lawrence’s experience, insight, and wisdom, but we wish him all the best in retirement. Thank you, Laurie, for so many years dedicated to the conservation of our natural resources!

 

New Training Available: Soil Erosion 101

 

As conservationists, we often think about soil erosion in a current, short term context. Wind or water erodes soil and then carries it, along with any nutrients and chemicals, into water bodies and water courses.  This causes sediment buildup, contamination, and reduces the productivity on the fields the soil has been stripped from.  In reality, destructive soil erosion is as old as agriculture, and it has led to the fall of countless civilizations throughout history. Hugh Hammond Bennett coauthored the report “Soil Erosion A National Menace” in 1928, which later led to formation of the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) or, as it is known today, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).  In 1948, Walter Clay Lowdermilk, an assistant chief of the SCS lectured on the Conquest of the Land Through Seven Thousand Years which documented soil erosion and land use problems around the world, including the destruction of great civilizations.

 

Understanding the fundamentals of soil erosion is a critical part of conserving our natural resources for future generations. Soil Erosion 101 is the first module in a Soil Erosion training series. It introduces the different types of erosion, factors that influence erosion, and other resource concerns influenced by soil erosion. Future modules will cover the use of tools to quantify soil loss and common conservation practices and management techniques used to protect and enhance the soil. This training is located on the MNC3 website. More information about the MNC3 website, including how to create an account, can be found on the Core Competency page.

 

2021 Conservation Planning Course

 

Registration for the 2021 Conservation Planning Course will close on June 22. Course attendees are required to be Level I Conservation Planners before attending, and it is expected that those attending this course will complete the additional requirements to become Level III Conservation Planners. The Level I Conservation Planner requirements can be found here. In addition to being a Level I Conservation Planner, all attendees need to complete the Core Competency modules before attending.

 

If you are interested in attending the Conservation Planning Course this summer, please register here. At this time we are planning to hold this course again next year.


Upcoming Training Events

BWSR Sponsored Training Events

 

October  
Oct 26-28 2021 BWSR Academy - Cragun's, Brainerd area

 

Technical Training & Certification Program Trainings

 

Tech Talk Webinars:  Mondays at 1:00 pm

June 21 Engineering Design Resources
June 28 Designing Pollinator Seed Mixes
July 12 Designing Wetland Restoration Seed Mixes
July 19 Roof Runoff Structure (CPS 558): Gutters

 

July  
July 27-Aug 5 Conservation Planning Course, Online and Field

 

Related Partner Training Opportunities

 

July

 

July 14

Grazing and Burning for Wildlife, Karlstad, Pheasants Forever

July 20

EQIP and CRP Pollinator Plot Establishment, Houston, Pheasants Forever

 

 

August

 

Aug 3 & 4

Annual Salt Symposium, Fortin Consulting, Inc., Online - Save the Date

Aug 11

Grazing on Conservation Lands, Forest City and Hutchinson, Pheasants Forever

Aug 17

Wetland Restoration Review and Grazing, Marshall, Pheasants Forever

Aug 19

As-Planted Seed Mix Differences, Hutchinson, Pheasants Forever

 

 

September

 

Sept 14

Diverse Food Plot Planting and Maintenance, Dassel and Forest City, Pheasants Forever

 

 

Extended Training Opportunities
Through December 31

MinnFARM, Self-Paced Online Training, UMN Extension

Through October 22

Silvopasture Workshops and Field Days, Sustainable Farming Association

 


Learn on Your Own

Not all training takes place in a classroom. Check out the links below to learn at a time and place of your choosing.

 

We’ve also put together a searchable library of recorded modules, webinars, videos and other resources to help our staff and partners find professional development information on a variety of topics. You can visit BWSR's Online Learning page to find web-based technical training resources sorted by category.

 

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Program Contacts

Barbara Radke   Jon Sellnow David Demmer & Ben Meyer
Training Coordinator   Technical Training and Certification Program Coordinator MN Wetland Professional Certification Program Coordinators
(507) 844-0442   (218) 340-3521 (218) 464-8289 & (612) 201-9806
 barbara.radke@state.mn.us   jon.sellnow@state.mn.us

david.demmer@state.mn.us & 

ben.meyer@state.mn.us