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Ventura County Resource Conservation District
VCRCD
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We Collaborate with Landowners, Government Agencies, and Willing Partners to Facilitate the Conservation and Restoration of Ventura County's Natural Resources for Current and Future Generations.
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Welcome to the VCRCD's quarterly newsletter. Each quarter we will highlight the important work in conservation and agriculture that we are doing in Ventura County.
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The VCRCD has adopted its Strategic Plan for 2019-2023. After a collaborative effort with our staff, board of directors, other agencies, and the public, we created the plan.
The plan focuses on eight areas of resource conservation for the next five year period. They include:
- Water Resources
- Fire Preparedness
- Soil & Climate Resilience
- Invasive & Resistant Species
- Land Resource Management
- Wildlife Habitat
- District Communication & Outreach
- District Operation
You can access a copy of the Strategic Plan
here.
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Established in 2011, the Ventura County Resource Conservation District’s (VCRCD) Storm Water Quality Program (SWQP) has assisted local livestock owners with improving the environmental quality of storm-generated runoff emanating from their properties.
Horse facilities and intensive livestock operations may contribute to water quality issues in local waterways, with manure from these animals serving as a significant source of nutrients. Nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorus, when in excess, can lead to algae growth within a watershed.
Therefore, it’s encouraged that horse and livestock facilities implement best management practices (BMPs) on their properties to reduce the potential of runoff into nearby waterbodies. By implementing BMPs, local horse and livestock facilities can do their part in preventing contaminants from entering the watershed, conserving natural resources, increasing facility safety and maintenance efficiency, enhancing property aesthetics, and protecting the ocean.
In 2016, the RCD was awarded U.S. EPA 319(h) Clean Water Act grant funds to provide education and outreach, develop voluntary nutrient management plans (NMPs), and offer cost-share to horse and livestock owners interested in implementing BMPs on their properties for the purpose of attaining load allocations (LA) required by the Algae, Eutrophic Conditions, and Nutrients Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for the Ventura River Watershed.
By the grant’s end of March 31, 2019, the VCRCD completed fifteen (15) NMPs for high priority properties and provided cost-share for the construction of a manure bunker. Approximately 457 horses across 493 acres were addressed by the grant. If all recommended BMPs were implemented in each NMP, the TMDL’s LA for nitrogen would be attained, and the TMDL’s LA for phosphorus would be nearly attained.
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Would you like to help support the VCRCD?
The VCRCD operates on grants and donations. All donations are tax deductible and a receipt will be provided.
To donate, please click the Donate link below.
Thank you for your support!
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The “Living with Fire” Outreach Initiative will work to expand the capacities of the Ventura County Resource Conservation District’s (VCRCD) staff and board, while also enabling the organization to confidently distribute outreach and education to the communities it serves.
The project’s education and outreach efforts will focus on providing local landowners with practical information on how to strategically “live with fire”.
Topics will include the importance of defensible space and guidelines to achieve at least a 100-foot zone around structures, effective firescaping techniques, along with fire-wise plant species and the critical role hardscape features (i.e. rock pathways, walls, etc.) and irrigation play around vulnerable properties.
Additional topics will include other benefits of effective firescaping beyond the reduction of fire threat (i.e. pollinator habitat and water conservation), along with species and characteristics of plants that are more fire-prone.
This project will consist of three (3) components: 1) Ventura County Fair Exhibit; 2) Firescaping Demonstration Garden at the VCRCD office; and 3) Resource Development. Each of these project components will work in tandem with each other, complimenting and enhancing the messaging each will be designed to convey.
Because wildfires are now a year-round reality in Ventura County, it is imperative that home and property owners become part of the solution to mitigate potential fire hazards, and therefore, risk. The reduction of hazards will limit environmental impacts, such as erosion, degraded water quality, and impaired air quality in the event of a fire.
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Through EQIP, NRCS provides agricultural producers and forestry owners with financial resources and one-on-one help to plan and implement improvements, referred to as practices, such as cover crops, grazing management, and irrigation systems.
As the producer, you can voluntarily implement conservation practices, and NRCS co-invests in these practices with you.
To get started, NRCS first works one-on-one with you to develop a conservation plan that meets your goals and vision for the land. This becomes a roadmap for which conservation practices best meet your needs.
Financial assistance covers part of the costs from implementing conservation practices. NRCS offers about 200 practices depending on where your land is located.
The best way to learn if EQIP is a good fit for you is by contacting your local NRCS office. If you choose to move forward, your local NRCS Conservationist will guide you through applying for the program. Applications are ranked, and if yours is funded, NRCS will offer you an EQIP contract to receive financial assistance for the cost of implementing practices
- For more information on EQIP click here.
- To find and contact your local NRCS office, click here.
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Monday – Friday
8:00am to 4:00pm
The above hours are typical, however, staff oftentimes performs various work outside of the VCRCD office. Please contact us before stopping by the office to check availability.
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Ventura County Resource Conservation District
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3380 Somis Rd, PO Box 147, Somis, CA 93066
phone: 805-764-5130
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