Earth Team Volunteer Benefits USDA with Wetland Expertise

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Michelle Banks, Natural Resources Conservation Service, on April 8, 2014 at 4:15 PM

Molly Stetz, a graduate student in wetland ecology in New York, gives of her time and expertise to NRCS through the Earth Team program. NRCS photo.

When not in class, Molly Stetz volunteered her time to USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), assisting with the agency’s efforts to restore wetlands and curb other environmental concerns.

As part of National Volunteer Week, NRCS is celebrating the contributions of volunteers like Stetz that help the agency advance the conservation mission through Earth Team.

Stetz, a graduate student in wetland ecology at the State University of New York at Brockport, donated more than 900 hours to NRCS through the agency’s Earth Team volunteer program.

“Volunteers are an integral part of our agency,” NRCS District Conservationist Heath Eisele said. “In a one-employee field office, every bit of assistance helps.”

Stetz worked closely under Eisele’s supervision assisting with many of the day-to-day operations of the office, including compliance reviews, highly erodible land slope measurements, construction checks and wetland plant identification.

“She helped us with so many different projects, it was like having another NRCS position on staff,” Eisele said.

She took the lead in creating a map guide of the Tonawanda Creek watershed and revised a guide on another creek watershed. These are used to show visitors and residents boat launch areas, fishing locations and other attractions within the watershed.

When she wasn’t in the field, Stetz was offering top-notch computer support with geographic information systems, or GIS, and developed innovative techniques for identifying potential natural resource concerns.

She conducted the annual monitoring of seven wetland easement sites throughout Genesee County, N.Y. Her knowledge of wetland plant identification and hydrology was critical to the success of the project, Eisele said.

Her volunteer work helped her with her master’s thesis in wetland ecology. Stetz and her professor received $5,000 as part of a grant from USDA Rural Development for agriculture and water quality studies.

Stetz’s service won her the national individual service award from the Earth Team. Only four of these awards are given out each year. To read more volunteer stories or see how to sign up to be an Earth Team volunteer, visit www.nrcs.usda.gov/EarthTeam.

Earth Team Volunteers Help USDA Soil Scientists Collect Data in Remote Minnesota

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Julie MacSwain and Michelle Banks, Natural Resources Conservation Service, on April 7, 2014 at 2:00 PM

Earth Team volunteer Meghan Zenner assisted NRCS soil scientists with taking soil samples in a remote forest in Minnesota. Photo from NRCS.

A group of dedicated volunteers helped make it possible for soil scientists with USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to collect soil samples in remote parts of Minnesota.

Today kicks off National Volunteer Week, and NRCS is celebrating the hard work of Earth Team volunteers like the seven people in Minnesota who aided in the soil survey.

Earth Team volunteers, the agency’s volunteer corps, make a big difference, said Larissa Schmitt, a soil scientist with NRCS. “The volunteers’ wilderness skills were a huge time savings to the soil scientists,” she said.

Seven volunteers logged 510 hours of service in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness for assisting Schmitt and other NRCS staff on five expeditions last year. The volunteers included Aaron Janz, Dennis Meinert, Timothy Nigh, Kyle Lilly, Kim Steffen, Jeffery Albers and Meghan Zenner.

The area is composed of a million acres in northeastern Minnesota and is managed by the U.S. Forest Service. NRCS and the Forest Service partnered to collect soils data for 595,000 acres with more than 200 sample points.

“One of the biggest challenges is the remoteness of the area that can only be reached by either canoe or on foot,” Schmitt said.

The expeditions ranged from five to 10 days with average work days of 10 hours. Earth Team volunteers assisted NRCS soil scientists by navigating, paddling canoes, bushwhacking to sample points, carrying soil sampling tools, digging soil pits and recording soil data.  After work hours, volunteers cooked by campfire, chopped fire wood, hung bear bats and kept the camp clean.

This soil sampling project is a national pilot project for digitally mapping soils to create digital soil survey products. As NRCS moves ahead with more soil products, lessons learned from the project are invaluable, Schmitt said. This is all part of NRCS’ Web Soil Survey, which provides free soils information online.

This group of dedicated volunteers won Earth Team’s Group Volunteer Award for their region. Read about the other award winners.

Individuals from all walks of life donate their time to NRCS. These diverse skill sets help NRCS with its mission of “Helping People Help the Land.”

Volunteers can help with almost any task that an NRCS employee does as part of his or her job duties. From soil sampling in the wilderness to preparing accounting paperwork, volunteers help NRCS get conservation on the ground. Even virtual volunteering is possible.

In the past fiscal year, more than 22,000 Earth Team volunteers donated more than 330,000 hours of their time to Earth Team. These hours are valued at more than $7.3 million.

To learn more about how you can volunteer in your area or to read about other volunteers, visit nrcs.usda.gov/EarthTeam.