Background The Working Lands Initiative (WLI) was embraced by the Rainwater Basin Joint Venture (RWBJV) in 2010. Its goal is to increase the value of the remaining Rainwater Basin wetlands by stepping up grazing on them. If done correctly, grazing on wetlands can be an economically viable component of
Jessica Votipka, York News-Times, 3/29/19. Conservation groups, including Ducks Unlimited and the Rainwater Basin Joint Venture, offer a variety of ways for rural landowners to partake in wetland conservation. According to Ted LaGrange, Wetland Program Manager for the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, about 97% of Nebraska’s wetlands rest on
The Wetland Reserve Enhancement Program (WREP) is a special option in the NRCS’s Agriculture Conservation Easement Program (ACEP). This option allows producers to retain water rights and the option to pass their pivot over restored wetland and upland acres enrolled in the program. NRCS ACEP Team 5 oversees delivery of
Join landowners, agricultural producers, conservation professionals, congressional staff, researchers, and students for a day of education and networking about conservation in Nebraska. The 24th annual Rainwater Basin Joint Venture Informational Seminar will be held on Thursday, February 7, 2019 at the Ramada Midtown Grand Island (the former Hotel Grand Conference Center)
(Posted 9/5/18) Since the early 2000s, the Rainwater Basin Joint Venture (RWBJV) partnership has acknowledged the importance of grazing Rainwater Basin wetlands. Cattle grazing provides disturbance, which promotes desirable, seed producing plants and helps control undesirable plants. Not only does grazing benefit the habitat, it also benefits the landowner by
(Posted 5/8/18) An exciting new conservation program is available in the Rainwater Basin region to protect wildlife habitat while allowing landowners to crop the site when conditions permit. The program is called the Agricultural Land Easement (ALE), a permanent non-development easement (i.e., no building structures) held by the local Natural
Hear what your colleagues and neighbors had to say about the 2018 RWBJV Info Seminar in these short audio clips. Then, plan to join them in 2019 to learn, network, exchange information, and have a great time!
(Posted 1/12/18) Meeting goals 0f a producer while enhancing grassland habitat is especially important in the Sandhills. This is because the Nebraska Sandhills make up one of the largest intact grassland systems and are home to large populations of the federally endangered American burying beetle and the Greater Prairie-Chicken, an
(Updated 1/12/18) Join landowners, agricultural producers, conservation professionals, congressional staff, researchers, and students for a day of education and networking about conservation in Nebraska. The 23rd annual Rainwater Basin Joint Venture Informational Seminar will be held on Thursday, February 1, 2018 at the Hotel Grand Conference Center in Grand Island, Nebraska. The
(Posted 9/17) Earlier this year, an exciting new Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) option was announced for Nebraska and Kansas: the Migratory Bird, Butterfly, and Pollinator State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement, known as the Migratory Bird SAFE. This CRP option is available to landowners who own a playa wetland within one
