The Allen County Soil Water Conservation District Annual Meeting

​On February 24th, 2024, the Allen County Soil and Water Conservation District held it's combined Annual Meeting and Pancake and Sausage Breakfast. This was a time to review the accomplishments and projects of 2023. I did not know what to expect. The setting was on a rural road outside of New Haven. The parking lot was full of pickups and my Chevy Spark looked out of place. When I went inside the hall I was greeted by friendly people, the aroma of fresh pancakes and sausage, and displays of successful projects.  
 
The Allen County Soil and Water Conservation District (the SWCD) had a busy year. They had hosted nine events and collaborated with allies in another eleven projects in the county. The displays highlighted some of the projects. The guest-speaker elaborated on the district’s history and future.
 
The meeting was MCed by Chad Shaw. Like many of the participants at the meeting he had a long history of environmental activism. He is the Chair and board member of the Allen County Soil and Water Conservation District. Chad is the Superintendent of Landscape and Horticulture for the Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation department. Chad is a landscape architect and serves on the board of Northeast Indiana Water Trails. There was an election during the meeting and Chad was re-elected Board Chair of the ACSWCD and was sworn in at the meeting. He clearly brought a lot to the meeting and was a wise choice for presenting project successes and introducing the guest-speakers.   
 
Before the speakers presented the many projects of 2023 were highlighted. These included:
 
The Urban and Small Farms Program. In this program 12 farmers and gardeners were assisted in soil testing and soil management. They also held 8 virtual workshops that reached 250 participants.

The USGS and the Allen SWCD partnered on the Edge of the Field Project. This involved assisting local farmers collect water samples and test for nutrients, sediment, and critical elements.
 
The Healthy Soils Collaboration was a project that paired the Allen SWCD and Purdue Extension and Heartland Communities. Together they created a project that was able to provide free soil testing and technical assistance to urban growers.
 
The On Farm Demo project provided demonstration farms in the Western Lake Erie Basin. The goal was to demonstrate a variety of best management practices and the use of new technologies.
 
The first guest speaker was Larry Clemens, the State Director, Nature Conservancy in Indiana. He is also a member of the State Soil Conservation Board. He provided the history of the events that lead to the cooperation of the counties of Northeast Indiana that protect the Maumee Watershed and the Western Lake Erie Basin. He highlighted some historical successes as well as identifying some challenges.
 
A very different talk was given by Rhiannon Lake. She is a Conservation Programs Specialist for the Allen SWCD. She spoke on the use of drones to assess the health and impact of programs on fields and production.
 
The last two speakers were Rod Renkenberger the Executive Director of the Maumee River Basin Commission and Michael Fruchey, the Allen County Surveyor. Together they spoke on programming to assess the health of riverways, to accurately assess floodplains, and how to work with other governmental entities.
 
The first video captures some of the projects presented and the first two speakers. The second video focuses on Renkenberger and Fruchey’s presentation.
 
Next year I will know what to expect and will work to interview members of the audience as well as board members and speakers. This was a meeting packed with information and that rightfully took pride in their many accomplishments. This group of environmentalists are critically important at a time when protections for wetlands are being diminished. Their focus on collaboration and education provides hope during this challenging time.

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