Conservation Clips is a weekly collection of articles distributed by NACD that provides our members and partners with the latest news in what’s driving conservation. These articles are not indicative of NACD policy and are the opinions of their authors, unless otherwise noted. If you have a relevant submission or need assistance accessing articles, please contact the NACD Communications Team.
Editor’s Note: There will be no Conservation Clips next week because of NACD’s Annual Meeting. The next edition of Conservation Clips will be on February 27.
NACD Blog: Did You Know? There Are Resources Available to Support Producer Mental Health
02/10/2026
Farmers today are under an increasing number of stressors: many commodity prices have fallen in recent years, labor and other input costs have increased, and natural disasters across the country have reduced crop yields and impacted livestock. Suicide rates are also elevated in the farming profession. A recent study estimates the male suicide rate for farmers at 52.1 per 100,000, compared to 32.0 per 100,000 among male working-aged adults across all occupations.
Successful Farming: Farmers Would Lose Prevented Planting Buy-Up Coverage Under USDA Rule
By Mariah Squire
01/28/2026
Senate Ag Committee leaders last week led a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins insisting USDA restore a type of prevented planting coverage removed by a recent federal rule. The Expanding Access to Risk Protection (EARP) rule from USDA’s Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC) was published near the end of last year with the goal of “modernizing the system, expanding access to crop insurance, and making it easier, not harder, for farmers and ranchers to protect their operations and keep doing the work that keeps America fueled and fed,” according to a statement by Rollins in December.
USDA-NRCS: NRCS Highlights Benefits of New Regenerative Pilot Program
02/03/2026
NRCS Chief Aubrey J.D. Bettencourt outlines how the agency is helping producers cut through red tape to plan and implement whole-farm regenerative practices through the new Regenerative Pilot Program. The new pilot program focuses on meeting producers where they are and integrating into farm operations to create a more sustainable, efficient, and profitable system that ultimately gives producers the credit they deserve for integrating voluntary conservation efforts.
Farm Progress: Crop insurance decisions loom: What should farmers know?
By Joshua Baethge
02/04/2026
The ground rules have changed some, thanks to last summer’s budget reconciliation package (aka the One Big Beautiful Bill Act). Federal premium support has increased between 3% and 5% for all insurance coverage levels. The maximum coverage level for area-based insurance plans now stands at 95%.
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The Ranch Podcast: Soil Conservation Districts in Idaho with Tori O’Neal
Idaho | Pacific Region
01/22/2026
Tori O’Neal is part of the soil conservation district system in Idaho and came in to explain what these districts do. Idaho cares deeply for its soil health, and each county has a group that will help you find out how you can maximize the health and productivity of your individual soils.
North Dakota Office of the Governor: Armstrong rolls out statewide program to improve North Dakota’s soil health and wildlife habitat
Bismarck, ND | Northern Plains Region
01/29/2026
Gov. Kelly Armstrong today rolled out the Governor’s Legacy Soil Health and Habitat Program, a cooperative effort to improve soil health and wildlife habitat on marginally productive cropland across North Dakota’s rural landscape. Joining Armstrong at a Capitol press conference to unveil the program were state Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring, Game and Fish Director Jeb Williams and North Dakota Association of Soil Conservation Districts Executive Director Rhonda Kelsch, along with roughly 50 partners and supporters of the pilot project.
Michigan Association of Conservation Districts: MACD Awarded $1.6 Million Grant to Strengthen Statewide Conservation Leadership and Water Quality Protection
Lansing, MI | North Central Region
02/04/2026
The Michigan Association of Conservation Districts (MACD) has been awarded a $1.5 million, three-year capacity-building grant from the Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Family Foundation to strengthen statewide conservation leadership, coordination, and delivery across Michigan. Beginning in 2026, the investment will allow MACD to significantly expand its ability to support Conservation Districts throughout the state by building the systems, training, and infrastructure districts need to focus more time and resources on conservation outcomes that protect Michigan’s land, water, and Great Lakes.
The Vacaville Reporter: Students get hands-on environmental education
California | Pacific Region
02/06/2026
They were one group of many students from every corner of the county that have been taking to the trails and getting hands-on outdoor science experience this year through the Solano Resource Conservation District’s Watershed Explorers Program. More than 1,800 third graders are participating in the free field trip program to learn how humans can impact our environment and what students can do to be good caretakers of land and water resources.
Lookout Santa Cruz: Holding the line: What’s happening with salmon in Santa Cruz County
By Cassidy Beach | Santa Cruz, CA | Pacific Region
02/08/2026
Still, hatcheries can only do so much. Daniel Nylen, who leads the Watershed Restoration Program of the Resource Conservation District (RCD) of Santa Cruz County, said habitat destruction continues to be the primary challenge for salmon recovery in the area. To tackle this, the RCD takes three main approaches. It improves salmon habitat by adding big logs to streams and restoring estuaries and floodplains, giving young fish safe areas to grow.
Mahoning Matters: Ag Security Area aims to protect farmland, way of life in North Manheim Twp.
By Ron Devlin | Pottsville, PA | Northeast Region
02/09/2026
Members of the consortium are protected from local ordinances that would restrict farming practices. There is a review process for potential condemnation under eminent domain by government agencies. Kelse Brown, a conservation technician at the Schuylkill County Conservation District, oversees the Agricultural Security Area program.
KXLG: Shane Jordan, Resource Conservationist for USDA NRCS in Clark Named Conservation Planner 2025 Hugh Hammond Bennett Award winner
By Holly McKernan | Clark, SD | Northern Plains Region
02/09/2026
Shane Jordan, Resource Conservationist for the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service in Clark, South Dakota, has been named the national winner of the Conservation Planner 2025 Hugh Hammond Bennett Award for Conservation Excellence for his outstanding conservation efforts.