GULF COAST SOIL AND WATER
CONSERVATION DISTRICT
ANNUAL REPORT
July 1, 2006 - June 30, 2007

The district was formed in 1945. The goals of the district are to coordinate conservation activities and educational programs, and to provide technical assistance to landowners and units of government on the use of their soil, water, and related resources. The district board is composed of three elected and two appointed supervisors. Louie Barbe III, Edwin Quinn, and Jim Paul Dupont are elected, while Harold Aymond and William Hardeman are appointed. This fiscal year the officers were as follows:

Jim Paul Dupont Chairman

Harold Aymond Vice-Chairman

Edwin Quinn Secretary-Treasurer

In addition, the district began the fiscal year with three district employees: Patti Busby, District Secretary, Celina Yentzen, Office/Program Assistant, and Marc Carlson, Vegetative Technician. Cecilia Richmond was hired by the District in December, 2006 as a Vegetative Technician. Marc resigned in January, 2007 to take Mrs. Richmond’s Environmental Specialist position with the Louisiana Department of Agriculture, and Rene Dandry came on board with the District as another District Technician. In May, 2007 Mrs. Richmond resigned her position with the District and Blake Karam and Jeff Aguillard were hired as District Technicians.

In partnership with the district is USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Charles Starkovich is the NRCS District Conservationist at the Lake Charles Field Office providing assistance to District Cooperators in Calcasieu and Cameron Parishes. As of June 30, 2007, his staff includes: George Mason, Soil Conservation Technician, and Dustin Farmer, Student Trainee.

The Lake Charles Field Office also houses Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry Environmental Specialist, Cecilia Richmond through December, 2006 and Marc Carlson as of January, 2007.

The second annual District Tree Seedling Sale was held at the Lake Charles Field Office on January 24 – 26, 2007. More than 2,500 bare-rooted seedlings of 15 hardwood tree and bush species were sold, including several fruit trees. The District began the tree sale after Hurricane Rita as an outreach to the community, and to offer an inexpensive means of replacing lost trees. The first tree sale proved to be such a success that the District decided to make this an annual project.

The District continued implementing the EWP Downed Timber Removal Program in partnership with Imperial Calcasieu RC&D. The cooperative agreement was initially signed on May 24, 2006, and resulted from Hurricane Rita’s destruction of so much timber. Under this program, NRCS partially reimburses non-industrial forest landowners for costs associated with the removal of downed timber through the Emergency Watershed Protection Program, a USDA-NRCS program that is administered after natural disasters. At the end of this fiscal year, the District has taken thirty-nine applications with 6,248 damaged acres, and a total of $237,450 has been reimbursed through this program.

The Gulf Coast SWCD is also cooperating with NRCS to implement the Emergency Watershed Protection Debris Program. Drainage ditches in Calcasieu and Cameron Parishes were surveyed to determine which ditches would be cleaned. This work was carried out through the Gravity Drainage Districts and Police Juries.

The Gulf Coast Soil and Water Conservation District with technical assistance provided through the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), has been active in addressing natural resource concerns with landowners and land users in Southwest Louisiana during this fiscal year. The District has 2094 District Cooperators, and can account for at least 6539 general contacts made throughout the year to review conservation topics of concern.

The District assisted cooperators with the installation of the following Conservation Practices to treat natural resource problems.

Brush Management 36 Acres

Fencing 20,657 feet

Grade Stabilization Structures 16 structures

Heavy Use Area 1 Acre

Irrigation Land Leveling 820 Acres

Irrigation Water Management 1,064 Acres

Nutrient Management 149 Acres

Pest Management 1,498 Acres

Pipelines (livestock) 15,577 feet

Prescribed Grazing 1,702 Acres

Residue Management 1,013 Acres

Underground Irrigation Pipeline 872 feet

Upland Wildlife Habitat Management 288 Acres

Watering Facilities 5 facilities

Wetland Enhancement 13,190 Acres

Wetland Wildlife Habitat Management 2,305 Acres

Conservation plans were written on 19,572 acres. Total cropland acres with conservation applied to improve soil quality was 2,262. Land with conservation applied to improve water quality totaled 18,470 acres, and land with conservation applied to improve irrigation efficiency totaled 1,279 acres. Of these acres, 13 contracts were funded in the 2007 EQIP Program. A total of $230,212 was obligated to treat natural resource concerns through this program. The long term contracts provide cost share assistance to help pay for installation of conservation practices such as livestock in cattle grazing operations and underground irrigation pipelines in cropland practices. The contracts are for terms lasting from 3 to 10 years. On October 18, 2006 the district office and NRCS staff hosted an EQIP Work Group Meeting for 2007 fiscal year.

During this fiscal year, ninety-two “Earth Team” volunteers have been recruited with a total of 491 hours logged. The District was pleased to have “Earth Team” volunteer groups from the University of Louisiana at Monroe, the Nature Conservancy, and Claiborne Christian School come to assist with vegetative projects. Volunteers helped with vegetative planting on Constance Beach and Little Florida Beach and the Hollister Chenier Tree Planting Project.

The District also worked closely with the state, federal, and local government agencies that are working with the (PL-646) Coastal Wetland Planning, Protection and Restoration Act Projects. The District assisted Calcasieu and Cameron Parish with planning and material support for the continuation of the Brown Lake Hydrologic Restoration Project.

The District actively participated in the 2006-07 District Vegetative Planting Program with the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources (LADNR) and Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry (LDAF) in the restoration and conservation of coastal wetlands. The District installed nine projects that consisted of planting and monitoring 32,150 feet of shoreline and 26,500 feet of interior vegetative plantings. Along with the marsh plantings 5 acres of trees were planted. Donation money from a South Dakota Soil and Water Conservation District allowed the vegetative program along with the assistance of the district to plant over 10,000 tree seedlings along coastal cheniers and levees to aid in storm surge protection from future hurricanes. Photos of this fiscal year completed projects are included in the back of this annual report.

The District has always had a very active Information/Education Program, and this year proved no different. From April 29 - May 6, 2007, the board of supervisors sponsored Soil and Water Stewardship Week. The theme this year was “Today is the Day to be a Part of Conservation’s Power.” The office distributed 100 flyers around the Calcasieu-Cameron area. Six area mayors were contacted by letter, and the board was honored to receive a proclamation from one of them, Randy Roach, mayor of Lake Charles. Also during this week, special “thank you” cards were mailed to 140 cooperators to show the District’s appreciation to them for their conservation efforts. A total of 30 posters were distributed throughout the area, with one being displayed at the Main Branch of Calcasieu Parish Library in Lake Charles, and one at the Lake Charles Field Office. A public service announcement was sent to 9 radio stations, and 2 news releases were sent to 6 newspapers. In addition, throughout the week, Stewardship Week was announced on a local TV Station, KPLC’s Morning Show. Soil and Water Stewardship Week was also promoted on the District’s Web Page, and during the months of April, May and June a total of 3,124 people were reached. Both Calcasieu and Cameron Parish School Boards were contacted, and 42 schools received letters, educator guides, program leaflets, flyers, and activity sheets.

One of the highlights of this year’s Soil and Water Stewardship Week, was visiting some of the elementary schools in the area, (Kindergarten and 1st Grade Classrooms) and reading to the children the energy story, The Tale of Annie Soakley. As the story was being read, the children pretended to be a water drop traveling through the water cycle.

They made Water Cycle bracelets using a colored bead to represent each phase of the Water Cycle. Since the theme for this year Stewardship Week was “Conservation’s Power,” we emphasized that the Sun is one of the main energy sources that moves the water through the water cycle. We held a simple discussion on "What is energy?" This led up to doing an experiment with the children using a regular light bulb and a new compact fluorescent light bulb (CFL). We used two desk lamps. The children put a regular light bulb in one lamp and a CFL in the other lamp. We lowered each lamp down to a separate thermometer. After about 15 minutes we checked the thermometers. The thermometer under the CFL registered significantly lower than the other thermometer. We explained that the hotter light bulb was using more energy. Then we showed them the blue Energy Star symbol on the package of CFL bulbs and told them to look for that symbol when they are shopping. We also encouraged them to help save energy by asking their parents to buy the bulbs with the blue Energy Star symbol on the package. After the experiment we gave out information flyers titled, “Change a Light, Change the World with Energy Star,” and special stickers designed by the District that featured the blue Energy Star and said, "I am Energy Smart!" We ended by giving out the Stewardship booklets, "Energy and Me" and bookmarks. We presented each child with a participation certificate signed by the board chairman with this year's theme, "Today is the day to be part of Conservation's Power!" The teachers were also given special certificates for being "Outstanding Conservation Teachers." We had a really excellent response from the students and the teachers.

Five teachers participated in the program for Stewardship Week. They are listed below with the schools they represent:

1. Brenda Doyle, Starks Elementary

2. Ellen Edgar, Starks Elementary

3. Nina Trawick, Starks Elementary

4. Tara Parra, College Oaks Elementary and Nelson Elementary

5. Vickie Perkins, Vinton Elementary

Between these 5 teachers, a total of 600 Stewardship Educational Books were distributed, along with 300 activity sheets and 300 supplemental materials. Also, 300 stickers and flyers promoting the “Energy Star” were given, 300 student certificates of participation were presented, and 5 “Outstanding Conservation Teacher” certificates were given to the teachers in recognition of their exemplary work and dedication to teaching the highest standards of conservation to their students. In addition, 700 activity placemats and 700 bookmarkers were distributed between the Gulf Coast SWCD office, the library, and the schools.

On April 4, 2007 District employees assisted Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry employees, Joey Breaux and Marc Carlson, with presentations to the sixth, seventh, and eighth grade classes at Our Lady Queen of Heaven School. There were approximately 80 students and 3 teachers in each class, totaling 240 students and 9 teachers. Students participated in the Project WET activities, “Drop in a Bucket” and “Incredible Journey.”

Gulf Coast SWCD has also sponsored the LACD Auxiliary Poster Contest, the Area III FFA Forestry Judging Contest, and the Area IV Soil Judging Contest. The District also participated in the annual Career Day at McNeese State University on October 2, 2006.

In an effort to provide service to the general public, district office staff assisted 4 consultants on aerial photography. In addition, the District provided soils information and books for site evaluation and other uses to 54 individuals/groups. Other brief technical assistance was provided to 6,539 customers.

Also, as part of the delivery of services, the local news media outlets were utilized to advertise federal programs, meetings, and events. Throughout the year, seventy-two news releases and other public service announcements were released to local newspapers and radio and television stations to inform land users and others on conservation topics. These releases had the potential of reaching approximately 870,000 citizens.

In addition, the District’s website @ www.gulfcoastswcd.la.nacdnet.org has been updated regularly to provide vital conservation information and links to government and private environmental agencies. A total of 6,428 citizens have been reached through the District’s Web Page during the year.

Also, district personnel cooperated in various area-wide functions during the fiscal year. An example was meeting with their federal counterparts to increase efficiency and improve delivery of services to the cooperators.

To further facilitate education to the public and/or to gain additional knowledge and provide information, District Supervisors, NRCS, and/or field office staff have participated in many meetings throughout the year. These include, but are not limited to, the following:

District employees and District Conservationist attended the NRCS Area III Workshop on August 24, 2006 in Leesville.

On October 5, 2006 District employees and District Conservationist participated in the Farm Bill Training held on Louisiana State University Campus at Alexandria.

On January 10 through 12, 2007, the LACD Convention in Lafayette was attended by district office staff, district conservationist and supervisors. The District Supervisors take an active role in LACD thru various levels.

On March 8, 2007 the District Conservationist and District Supervisors attended the LACD Area IV Meeting at Grand Coteau. In addition, the district invited 3 Senators and 6 Representatives to attend.

On May 4, 2007, the District Conservationist and District Employees attended the Louisiana Master Farmer Field Day at McNeese State University. A tour was taken to Jim Paul Dupont’s farm. Mr. Dupont is a master farmer and also serves as chairman of the Gulf Coast SWCD.

The Gulf Coast SWCD is actively cooperating with NRCS to provide training to new employees of the NRCS. The Lake Charles Field Office is a training location and the District’s staff cooperates in this training function.

In addition, the supervisors are active in staying informed with farm bill legislation and corresponding with legislators concerning conservation issues.

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