Support To Partners
The Resource Conservation District provides technical services to the local farming community and acts as a bridge between agricultural producers and the natural resource scientific community. Our goal is to help ensure that when our cooperating growers, ranchers and landowners make changes to their operations to conserve natural resources, they make the greatest difference with the least cost and risk. We remain abreast of latest developments in science and regulation to provide this level of service. RCD staff and Board Members also serve on the Technical Advisory Committees of a variety of projects led by partner organizations.
Ongoing Participation In Partner Projects And Technical Advisory Committees
- The Agricultural Water Quality Alliance (AWQA)
- Salinas River Channel Coalition
- Fire Safe Council for Monterey County
- Carmel River Task Force
- The Moro Cojo Restoration Project (Moss Landing Marine Labs)
- Regional Water Management Groups for Integrated Regional Water Management in the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel Bay, and South Monterey Bay Region
- Monterey County Weed Management Area
Funding
The RCD is independently-funded through competitive grants and contracts without reliance on a local tax base. As of 2017, we hold contracts with the following:
- Individual landowners and farming companies for professional engineering, agronomic, permit assistance and biological services by request
- Salinas River landowners and land managers for project biological monitoring and permitting assistance
- County of Monterey Agricultural Commissioner’s Office for weed abatement and landowner erosion control assistance
- Local, regional and national non-profits for partnership on shared conservation and restoration projects and initiatives, many of which are funded by state grants
- CA Wildlife Conservation Board grant funding for Arundo control on the Salinas River
- USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service for bilingual farmer project planning and design assistance
- CA State Coastal Conservancy for Integrated Watershed Restoration Program—project designs and permits
- CA State Parks for wildlife monitoring assistance
- US Fish and Wildlife Service for on-farm wildlife project facilitation
- CA Dept of Food and Agriculture for farm water conservation project assistance
- CA Fertilizer Research & Education Program and CA FarmLink (both funded by CDFA Specialty Crop Block Grants) for Spanish-language irrigation and nutrient management trainings for irrigators, field staff and small farmers
- CA Dept of Water Resources for Spanish-language irrigator trainings in partnership with Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and RCDs in Santa Cruz, Santa Clara, and San Benito Counties.
The RCD also solicits direct donations through special events such as our Annual Spring Barbecue and Harvest Celebration Dinner to support our conservation education and program development efforts.