Three grants just announced by the Arkansas Natural Resources Division of the Department of Agriculture enhance the ground-breaking work of Sebastian County Conservation District in developing an accelerating conservation effects in the West Border County partnership of Sebastian, Crawford and Scott Counties; Scott is known as Poteau River Conservation District.
Awards totaling $38,600 were announced by Ryan Benefield, Deputy Director of the Natural Resources Division.
A sensor device for aerial mapping grant makes possible state of the art mapping of agricultural projects of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) by providing funding for an infrared sensor for the District’s DJI Inspire 2 drone. Sebastian County flies a drone for a variety of conservation uses, such as verification of NRCS practices. The addition of infrared capability enhances significantly mapping capabilities for nutrient manage plans in protected watersheds.
A grant for pollinator seeding enables development of dozens of native pollinator patches to provide food for pollinators, such as the Monarch butterfly and honeybees, as well as for other beneficial insects. The pollinator patches, equaling in total about 100 acres of food sourcing, will be scattered through all three of the counties, Sebastian, Crawford and Scott.
A grant for an agricultural high tunnel provides a season-lengthening plant house for the Sebastian demonstration and production farm, Holland Oaks Farm, which is a key part of the District’s Urban Conservation endeavor.
“The District deeply appreciates the valued support of the Natural Resources Division in helping with these three ground-breaking projects,” said Conaly Bedell, Finance and Personnel Committee Chairman for the Sebastian County District.
