Cottonwood
   Soil and Water Conservation District

Conservation Programs

Tree Program

• Field Windbreaks and Shelterbelts
  
  District staff will assist with the development and installation of field windbreaks and shelterbelts for County landowners and operators.
  
  
• 2012 Tree Price List
• 2012 Tree Order Form
  
  Other items available are tree mats and staples, tree tubes and stakes and deer repellent.
  
  
• Tree Program Policy

Urban Tree Program

• Cottonwood County Urban Tree Program
   

                           Planting a Field Windbreak                             

State Cost-Share Program

• Conservation Practices
  
  Through the State Cost-Share Program, landowners can request financial and technical assistance for the implementation of approved conservation practices that protect and improve water quality by controlling soil erosion and reducing sedimentation.
  
  This program provides up to 75 percent of the total eligible costs of a practice.
  
  Some of the most common practices are as follows:
  Critical Area Plantings, Field Windbreaks, Shelterbelts, Grass Waterways, Terraces, and Water and Sediment Control Basins.
  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ag-BMP Loan Program

• Agriculture Best Management Practices
  
  This program provides low interest financing to farmers, landowners, and agriculture supply businesses to encourage agricultural best management practices that prevent or reduce runoff from feedlots and farm fields and other pollution problems identified by the county in local water plans. 
  
  The District provides this opportunity through the MN Department of Agriculture and local banking institutions.
  

RIM/CREP Easement Programs

• Reinvest in Minnesota
  
  The RIM Program is a permanent and limited easement program administered through the Cottonwood SWCD by the Board of Water and Soil Resources.
  
  RIM/WRP Sign-up  June 26 - July 18
  
  
• Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program
  
  Minnesota River and Des Moines River Watershed CREP easements are administered through the Cottonwood SWCD by the Board of Water and Soil Resources.
  
  

Rainfall Monitoring

• The Cottonwood SWCD works with 18 rainfall monitors across Cottonwood County and reports rainfall/snowfall results monthly to the State Climatology Office.
  

Groundwater Monitoring

• The Cottonwood SWCD reports to the MN Department of Natural Resources  the depth to groundwater readings from four wells in Cottonwood County.