The United States had a government environmental office before there were environmentalists! It was founded in 1935 in response to the Dust Bowl years. As a result, when it comes to soil problems and best practices, the first and most practical resource lies at hand in every county: the USDA Soil Conservation Program.

There is a volunteer Board for each Soil Conservation District, made up of citizens from the county. Each county is a district, more than 3000 in all. (There are 3043 counties in the United States. 43 of these with low populations have multi-county districts.) Funded through the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the County Office maintains a small staff and provides service to all landowners.

The Soil Conservation Office is the first stop for information, research findings and best management practices relating to soil and water. The County Office provides information relating to agriculture but also regarding lawn care, shrubs, fertilizers and erosion prevention. The offices provide assistance, both technical and financial, for wetlands restoration, fish stocking practices, wildfire prevention and other environmental initiatives. They do this with a practical flavor: what works best where we live? What can we afford? What has been learned from the experience of others about what does and what does not work? What resources are available? Who can help? Where are they and how can they be contacted? How long will the job take? What to expect? The County Office serves all landowners, not just farmers.

The Soil Conservation Program is perhaps the most successful and useful program ever devised by the federal government. It began in 1935 because of Mr. Hugh Hammond Bennett. Hugh was a soil scientist. The drought was destroying the Plains States but he convinced President Roosevelt that there was a solution. It involved proper soil management. There were many who thought it was too late, given that the prairie grass had all been plowed under to allow for the raising of wheat and other crops. With years of drought literally all the top soil blew away. Eventually the dust storms became so great that they would reach into the sky for several miles and be wider than blizzards.

Mr. Bennett needed funding for the launch of the programs he advocated. How to convince a skeptical congressional committee? He timed the meeting to be on the very morning that he knew a dust storm would reach as far as Washington D.C.. As he was explaining to the committee that in due time dust would rain down on the East Coast from 1500 miles away, the bright morning sun became dim and morning turned to nightfall as darkness enveloped the room and everything outside. The dust was like dirty brown-gray snow. No one in that room except Hugh Bennett had ever seen anything like it in their lifetime. The recommendation for funding was instant!

What makes the Soil Conversation Offices so unusual are two things: first, the programs have been successful! Secondly, the direction is local and achieved by ordinary citizens who volunteer to serve as the Board and the many more who contribute their time, labor and expertise to what is needed locally.

So: support and utilize your local Conservation Office! With an ear to the ground about land, water and air, they know what they are talking about and they will help connect you with others who can add information and expertise.

Beyond resources, the County Office is an excellent source of information about what else is happening in the state and beyond, what to expect from the Department of Agriculture, what new projects are in the wind and what federal programs might be of use to your particular situation.

Experience has taught this writer that two aspects of local government are closest and most helpful to the citizens of the county. The first is the county Sheriff Department. The Sheriff is a citizen, living among neighbors and fellow citizens: accessible and most often wanting not only to protect but also to support and help. The post is responsive to the electorate, in the public eye and accountable. The second is the County Soil Conservation Office. Staffed by a professional, it is run by ordinary volunteer citizens and is well informed about what is happening locally, nationally and internationally. Above all, the people involved with these two offices are dedicated!

Give the County Office a try. It is a good first stop for anything environmental!

Further reading about the Dust Bowl days and the role of the federal government in that situation: The Worst Hard Times by Timothy Egan.