Directions to the park: traveling on I- 65, take exit 48 at Park City and travel south a mile or so on 31-W to the Park Mammouth Resort entrance.

May 17, 2012, 3:30 - 7:30PM (Central Time)

3:30 pm    Registration

4:00 pm    Tree Farm Tour Begins

•          Tree Planting
•          Hunt Leasing
•          Invasive Species Control
•          Crop Tree Management
•          Wildlife and Woodlands
•          Karst Topography and Logging Best Management Practices

7:00 pm    Dinner and Fellowship

7:30 pm     Adjourn

Directions:

The Sebaugh Tree Farm lies in the southeastern part of Edmonson County.  The address is 3221 Chaumont Rd, Park City, KY  42160.  Take 31W south from Park City 3.5 miles to Chaumont Rd. and turn right.  It is 1 mile to the farm.

Pre-registration by May 14 is required for meal planning.  Call the Edmonson County Extension Office at 270.597.3628 to pre-register or UK Forestry Extension Office at 859.257.7597 or e-mail forestry.extension@uky.edu

http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs045/1105037637140/archive/1109574405887.html

The purpose of the newsletter is to provide timely and useful information for those interested in forest, wood, and logger certification and to inform partners and stakeholders of programs and activities of the Center.

The forests of the northeast are home to some of the greatest diversity of nesting songbirds in the country. For a number of these species, such as the black-throated blue warbler, the Northern Forest is the core of their breeding range. Others, including the wood thrush, are showing long-term population declines. Audubon Vermont, through the Forest Bird Initiative and its partnership with the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation on the Forester’s for the Birds project, is working with landowners, foresters, and other land managers in the conservation of these species through integration of bird habitat and timber management. We’ll also hear about the innovative Foresters for the Birds partnership and explore ways that active forest management can be a tool for habitat enhancement for a wide range of bird species.

Would you like to create some trails to better enjoy your woods? Did you know that you can create a more sustainable trail that requires less maintenance?
To learn how, join us on May 8, 2012 at 2:00 p.m. (eastern) for the Recreational Trail Design webinar. Dr. Mel Baughman will cover all steps in trail design, including how to: determine trail uses, select the trail corridor, establish trail design standards, mark exact trail location, clear the trail, construct tread, install structures to cross obstacles (e.g., a hillside, slopes and cliffs, wet soil, waterways and gullies, roads and fences), sign the trail, and install facilities that support the trail.

Since 1994, the Kentucky Heritage Land Conservation Fund has been providing funds to state agencies and local government to conserve some of Kentucky’s most cherished places to ensure that we can enjoy our lands, waters, wildlife and heritage long into the future. In the nearly 30 years since the Fund was created, more than 38,000 acres have been conserved and managed for the benefit of all Kentuckians. Now the General Assembly is considering a bill that would enhance the Fund’s ability to help protect water quality, improve wildlife habitat, and provide education and recreation benefits to all Kentuckians.

HB 427 would enable private, non-profit land trusts to apply for the public funding that is provided now through the state portion of the un-mined minerals tax, environmental fines, and sale of Kentucky nature license plates. But to be eligible to apply for the public dollars, the non-profit groups would have to match it dollar for dollar, which would increase the total amount of funds being used to conservation wildlife and habitat. This creates unique public-private partnership opportunities and protects more of our cherished areas without using more tax dollars.

HB 427 is a good idea that some critics have co-opted with misinformation and misleading dialogue.

Who thinks it’s a good idea? Members of the new Conserve Kentucky group, which includes organizations like The Nature Conservancy and the League of Kentucky Sportsmen.

Who thinks it’s a good idea? Members of the House of Representatives who showed bipartisan support to pass it unanimously in committee and by a 94-0 vote on the floor.

Who thinks it’s a good idea? Many members in the Senate where it was passed unanimously in the Natural Resources Committee and was requested to be placed on the consent calendar, again with bipartisan support.

Who thinks it’s a bad idea? A few who have the misperception that it’s a government giveaway, when in fact it leverages public dollars to conserve habitat and to protect rivers and streams. A few who think the program denies public access to private land, when in fact it increases public access to our forests and waterways.

So why should we be putting more emphasis on protecting our land, streams and wetlands?

 The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources estimated that Kentucky loses 47,000 acres of wildlife habitat per year.

 Kentucky has lost approximately 81 percent of its 1½ million forested wetland acres that existed in the 1780’s, putting it in the top 10 states with most wetland acreage lost by percentage.

 68 percent (well over half) of Kentucky’s river and streams are considered impaired as “primary contact recreation water” meaning people cannot swim in them without risk of adverse human health effects.

 Wildlife viewing, fishing, and hunting contribute more than $1.8 billion in retail sales and service to the Kentucky economy annually.

Let’s do the right thing and adopt HB 427. It’s the first step in a series of steps we need to adopt to preserve our heritage so that future generations can enjoy them as we do. Time is running out. Let your state senator know today that you, too, support HB 427. You can call your legislator toll free and leave a message at 1-800-372-7181. It’s easy – and it’s the right thing to do.

http://dnr.ky.gov/Pages/NaturalResourceReview.aspx

The Natural Resource Review is a quarterly newsletter intended to provide the latest information surrounding the Kentucky Department for Natural Resources’ employees and their latest accomplishments in helping Kentucky conserve and preserve our natural resources.

https://www.kyfb.com/federation/news-room/across-kentucky/2012/

bob-bauer-interview-march28

https://www.kyfb.com/federation/news-room/across-kentucky/2012/

billy-thomas-interview-march262

This bill would be a great public-private partnership and extend the limited conservation dollars in a compelling way.

Please call 1-502-564-8100, ask for Senator David Williams office right now. Leave a message and urge passage of HB 427.

“BCAP provides incentives to farmers and forest landowners to grow non-food crops to be processed into biofuels – a critical element of our national energy strategy to address high fuel prices and reduce reliance on foreign oil,” said Nelson. “Because most energy crops are perennial and take time to mature before harvest, BCAP is designed so that sufficient quantities of feedstock will be available to meet future demand. And because these crops can grow where other crops cannot, it provides farmers with new opportunities to diversify into more markets.”

The BCAP Project Areas where these crops are grown will be selected from proposals producers or biomass facilities submit to FSA. Information about submitting a proposal can be found on the www.grants.gov website.

BCAP was created in the 2008 Farm Bill. USDA selected nine project areas in FY 2011, which resulted in the approval of more than 860 producer contracts to grow camelina, hybrid poplar, warm season grasses and giant miscanthus on almost 50,000 acres. The total investment in those projects is estimated to be $55 million.

On Nov. 18, 2011, Congress enacted the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2012, limiting the total amount of funding available for BCAP to $17 million.

The Request for Proposal and additional information can be found at http://www.fsa.usda.gov/bcap.

To acquire information about grants available through the federal government:

Go to www.grants.gov Click on “Apply for Grants” heading on the left side of page. Click on “Download a Grant Application Package.” Type “10.087″ in the box with the heading “CFDA Number” and click on “Download Package.”

To create jobs in rural communities, drive economic growth, and help reduce our dependence on foreign oil, USDA is aggressively pursuing investments in renewable energy, investing in or making payments to over 5,700 renewable energy and energy efficiency improvement projects.

To learn about other programs offered through FSA, visit www.fsa.usda.gov.

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender. To file a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Stop 9410, Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call toll-free at (866) 632-9992 (English) or (800) 877-8339 (TDD) or (866) 377-8642 (English Federal-relay) or (800) 845-6136 (Spanish Federal-relay).