205: Get More Funding Faster for Land Conservation Projects

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style= "mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Since the time of the Dust Bowl, landowners have worked with Resource Conservation Districts (RCDs) to conserve water, improve soil, preserve natural habitat, and prevent erosion. However, it can take two to three years to secure funding to begin a sustainable initiative.</span> <span style= "mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> Devin Best, Executive Director at the Upper Salinas-Las Tablas Resource Conservation District, and Michael Larcher, North American Solution Lead at cBrain have partnered on a new system that drastically decreases that timeframe by matching a</span> <span style="mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">grower’s land conservation needs with grants in a database.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style= "mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> Landowners can participate in the Sustainable Land Initiative by submitting a short form that includes their location, acres, and goals. Technical staff from the RCD will follow up with a sight visit to determine all potential conservation projects including healthy soils, cover cropping, beaver dam analogs, and carbon farm plans.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style= "mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> Through a database, the RCD can pull a report on all landowners interested in similar projects and connect them with funding and permitting. By aggregating data, the RCD can fund more growers, advise grant agencies on what conservation programs are most effective, and spend more time helping growers on the ground.</span></p> <h2><span style= "mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Resources:</span></h2> <ul> <li class="MsoNormal"><a href= "https://vineyardteam.app.neoncrm.com/np/clients/vineyardteam/event.jsp?event=184&"> *** Register 12/6/2023 | Prepare for 2024: CA DPR Changes, Bulk Wine Trends & Funding S