MCSWCD Supervisors, Staff & Partners
|
|
|
Ryan Conway, Chair
Appointed / Board Member Since 2019 / Term Ends 2021 |
Martha Miller, District Manager
Has been with the MCSWCD Since September 2003 |
|
|
|
Whitney Schlegel, 2nd Chair
Elected / Board Member Since 2019 / Term Ends 2012 |
Gabrielle Deabler, O'Niell SPEA Fellow
Outreach Coordinator Aug. 2019 - Dec. 2021 |
|
|
Georgia Davis, Financial Auditor
Elected / Board Member Since 2019 / Term Ends 2023 |
|
|
|
Dallas Conder
Elected / Board Member Since 2008 / Term Ends 2022 |
Cara Bergschneider
Natural Resource Conservation Service Brown & Monroe County District Conservationist |
|
|
|
Keith McConnell
Appointed / Board Member Since 1987 / Term Ends 2022 |
Allison Shoaf
Natural Resource Conservation Service Soil Technician |
What is an SWCD?
Soil & Water Conservation Districts (SWCDs), or Districts, are units of state government that manage and direct natural resource conservation programs at a local and county level. They work to promote the wise use, development, and conservation of our state’s soil, water, and related resources in ways that are relevant to each individual county. Indiana Districts are closely tied to their communities and work with local, state, federal, private nonprofit, and educational institutions to provide technical, financial, and educational assistance to the local people they serve.
Districts are governed by a board of five supervisors - 3 elected and 2 appointed - who are county residents. These citizens are chosen by their peers and serve without pay for a three-year term. SWCDs are a part of the Indiana Code and their powers come from District Law.
From the Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA):
"Across Indiana, 92 Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCDs) - one in every county - help Indiana residents to conserve land, water, forests, wildlife and related natural resources that encompass our state's 23 million acres. Their mission is to coordinate assistance from available sources - public and private, local, state and federal - in an effort to develop locally driven solutions to natural resource concerns."
"Local Soil and Water Conservation Districts are uniquely positioned to bring a critical environmental perspective to land use and economic development decisions. The future of conservation in Indiana is bright and the potential of local Districts is unlimited thanks to the commitment from elected officials and individuals, and due to continued support for Indiana conservation and our 92 Soil and Water Conservation Districts through Clean Water Indiana."
Quick Facts:
Following the destruction of the Dust Bowl in the 1930s, the Standard State Soil Conservation Districts Act was created and recommended to all U.S. state governors. The first conservation district, Brown Creek Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD), was established in North Carolina in 1937. By the mid 1940s, every state in the nation passed the act developing local Districts. The MCSWCD celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2017.
Districts are governed by a board of five supervisors - 3 elected and 2 appointed - who are county residents. These citizens are chosen by their peers and serve without pay for a three-year term. SWCDs are a part of the Indiana Code and their powers come from District Law.
From the Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA):
"Across Indiana, 92 Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCDs) - one in every county - help Indiana residents to conserve land, water, forests, wildlife and related natural resources that encompass our state's 23 million acres. Their mission is to coordinate assistance from available sources - public and private, local, state and federal - in an effort to develop locally driven solutions to natural resource concerns."
"Local Soil and Water Conservation Districts are uniquely positioned to bring a critical environmental perspective to land use and economic development decisions. The future of conservation in Indiana is bright and the potential of local Districts is unlimited thanks to the commitment from elected officials and individuals, and due to continued support for Indiana conservation and our 92 Soil and Water Conservation Districts through Clean Water Indiana."
Quick Facts:
Following the destruction of the Dust Bowl in the 1930s, the Standard State Soil Conservation Districts Act was created and recommended to all U.S. state governors. The first conservation district, Brown Creek Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD), was established in North Carolina in 1937. By the mid 1940s, every state in the nation passed the act developing local Districts. The MCSWCD celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2017.
- SWCDs receive funding from a variety of sources, primarily Clean Water Indiana. The amount and sources of conservation funding in each Indiana county is available to be viewed by the public.
- Indiana’s 92 SWCDs fund and provide leadership for IASWCD, their state association. Incorporated as a 501(c)3 in 1968, the IASWCD provides legislative leadership, and fundraising, development, and training opportunities to its Districts.
FOLLOW US:
|
|
|
|
|
|
Contact1931 S Liberty Drive
Bloomington, IN 47403 (812) 334-4325 x3 monroecsoil@gmail.com |
|
