Welcome!
Foster County Soil Conservation District is here to promote soil, water, and resource conservation by offering technical, financial, informational, and educational assistance and opportunities to the people of Foster County.
Check out our programs and services. Get in touch with us if you have any questions, comments, or concerns, or if you are interested in participating in any of our programs.
HELP WANTED
Part-time custodian for office building in Carrington. References required.
Contact Dionn at dionn.schaaf@nd.nacdnet.net or 701-650-9054
Two Cover Crop Programs Available
Two programs offering assistance to plant cover crops will be available for 2026, in addition to the EQIP and CSP programs from USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service.
One of these programs is the Cover Crops and Saline Soils Initiative, intended to improve soil health on saline soils. This program is administered by the North Dakota Association of Soil Conservation Districts and funded by the North Dakota Department of Agriculture. Applications that meet requirements will be funded on a first-come, first-served basis at up to $50/acre and for up to 160 acres. Applicants must submit the application form, field map with acreage shown, and a seeding mix that meets NRCS practice 340 specifications. Please contact our office for assistance with applications and seed mix specifications. Note that successful applicants will also need to submit planting documentation and cover crop photos for reimbursement.
****We received word on July 15 that the 2026 funds for the Cover Crops and Saline Soils program have all been allocated. Hopefully it will be funded again next year. Meanwhile, please consider applying to the program listed below if would be helpful to you for this year.****
The other program is from the ag organization Farmers for Soil Health. It will pay $35 per acre to assist farmers with a corn or soybean rotation to plant cover crops in corn, soybean, wheat, or grain sorghum acres. The enrollment period will be June 1 to August 31, with a seeding deadline of Oct. 1, 2026. Broadcast seeding may be an option. The financial assistance is federally funded, so applicants will need to provide the usual supporting forms and information. Any one interested in this program should go to the Farmers for Soil Health website to enroll.
Alliance for Climate-Smart Agriculture
The Alliance to Advance Climate-Smart Agriculture was a three-year pilot program designed to encourage farmers and ranchers to adopt conservation practices that improve productivity, strengthen rural communities, and enhance environmental stewardship. It was supported through USDA's Advancing Markets for Producers initiative. The program provided payments of $100 per acre or animal unit for eligible conservation practices. North Dakota was one of four states participating, and Foster County SCD was one of eight districts in the state that took part.
The project was led nationally by Virginia Tech with North Dakota Farmer's Union serving as the state lead for North Dakota, and the North Dakota Association of Soil Conservation Districts and the North Dakota Conservation District Employees Association also providing administrative support for the project. The local soil conservation districts participating delivered technical assistance to producers.
During the two years the program operated in North Dakota, more than $13 million was distributed to 582 producers across those eight counties. Over 124,000 acres and animal units were enrolled in conservation practices, with No-till, Reduced Till, Prescribed Grazing, and Conservation Crop Rotation among the most widely adopted.
Foster County SCD had 84 producer contracts and more than 16,000 acres and animal units impacted. Local producers received more than $1.7 million through the program to assist them with implementing conservation practices.
Not the Dirty Thirties, Now!!
Photo: Storm Tracker Weather
Photo: Bev Nessler
These photos were taken spring of 2017, showing that soil erosion is still a threat to our farmland. These sights have been repeated more than once since then. See the "News and Information" page for photos of ditch deposits from the dust storm of March 29-30, 2021. Parts of eastern North Dakota have lost over half of their topsoil since 1964.
"Most of what we call topsoil today is a mixture of the remains of the original higher organic matter topsoil mixed through tillage with some subsurface horizon. Loss of soil in millions of acres can be measured in feet over the past 120 years. Most lost soil...is going high into the air, and only a small amount lands in a roadside ditch." (Dave Franzen, NDSU) For more information, see the video "The History of Soil Erosion in North Dakota" on YouTube.
There are things we can do to prevent sights like this. Windbreaks that help decrease wind erosion are being removed and not replaced. There are other practices as well that promote soil health and will also help decrease erosion, such as keeping the soil covered with vegetation or residue, minimizing soil disturbance, and keeping live roots in the soil for as long as possible with practices like cover crops.
June 6, 2024
One of the SCD Board members took this photo through his windshield while stopped on the road. Soil erosion continues to be an ongoing problem in Foster County.
Photo: Sam Partlow
When land does well for its owner, and the owner does well by his land; when both end up better by reason of their partnership, we have conservation. -- Aldo Leopold