Our Mission: Protect our water and land resources by assisting Rock County landowners with understanding conservation rules and implementing best-management practices.

​QUICK ACCESS LINKS

​Crop Equivalent Ratios (CER)
Contact the
Farm Services Agency at 
507-283-236​9
CURRENT RENTAL RATES
Contact the local
MN-Extension office at 
​507-283-1302
​​Conservation Reserve Program (CRP)
​Contact the local 
Farm Services Agency at 
507-283-2369


​​IN THE SPOTLIGHT:

JOB ANNOUNCEMENT

CONSERVATION AGRONOMIST

Conservation Agronomist
Brewster, MN • Agronomy
Job Type
Full-time
Description
With roots reaching back to 1901, New Vision Co-op serves more than 2,000 member-owners from 18 different locations, providing products and services focused on feed, grain, and agronomy. New Vision offers limitless opportunities for passionate individuals looking to unlock a deeper value for the future of agriculture and our communities. Our growing company is in search for new talent for the role of Conservation Agronomist:
 
This position provides a variety of technical and administrative assistance to support all aspects of the programs and activities of New Vision Coop and project partners of the Missouri River Watershed in a direct effort to accelerate stewardship of agricultural lands and to bridge the gap between public/private sectors. This position will cover the service area of New Vision Coop and the Missouri River Watershed.
 
Essential Duties and Responsibilities include the following. Other duties may be assigned.
  • Expected to work cooperatively as a team player, participating in weekly meetings with conservation partners, especially SWCD staff, Technical Service Area (TSA), USDA staff, Missouri River watershed project staff, and others to develop conservation programs and accomplish goals and objectives of established plans.
  • Collaborate with the New Vision Coop agronomy team to create an outreach plan for their customers and deliver conservation services within the project area that includes their sustainability partner programming.
  • Collect agronomic data to generate stewardship and profitability insights and support scenario development for improvements and revenue opportunities, using New Vision Coop’s preferred sustainability platform.
  • Build capacity and expertise within the precision agronomy and agronomy sales teams at New Vision Coop to increase knowledge of Districts programs, NRCS practices, and USDA and other state cost-share programs.
  • Interface with Conservation Agronomists working with ag retailers across the U.S. to share best practices and help New Vision bring a new go to market strategy around sustainability.
  • With partners, develop and implement workshops and field days designed to educate growers, farm-related and grower-led organizations on best practices, and other innovative conservation systems that benefit natural resource quality and farm productivity.
  • These duties describe the general nature and level of work being performed by this position and are not to be construed as an exhaustive list of all duties performed. Other duties may and will be assigned.
 
Requirements
  • Two-year degree in agronomy and soils, biology, environmental science OR equivalent experience in a related field working with agricultural and natural resources.
  • Understanding of basic agronomic and agricultural economic principles.
  • Capacity to develop and interpret soils maps & aerial photography.
  • Computer Skills (Microsoft Office Outlook, Word, excel, Arc GIS, GPS).
  • An understanding of agricultural practice in our region.
  • Valid Driver’s License required.
Why New Vision?
Along with competitive wages, New Vision offers well rounded health insurance benefits including dental, vision, group life, & long/short term disability, HSA/FSA, and 401k (with a 6% company match). Employees benefits also include paid holidays, volunteer time, PTO, clothing allowances, referral program, and profit sharing.

SOIL HEALTH DEMONSTRATION PLOT 

The Rock County Soil Health Team partnering with the University Of MN Office Of Soil Health has established a field scale demonstration site to compare no-till farming with cover crops to conventional till farming without cover crops in a corn/soybean rotation with full width field equipment. The field is located in the SE ¼ of section 18 in Martin Township west of Hills.   
​Click here for a map of the location. 

A Learning Block Method will be used for Comparison
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​Using variable rate technology, data has been collected for historic yields, soils, fertility levels, cation-exchange capacities, etc., and generated variable-rate prescriptions for each grid of the field has been created. 
3 acre learning block will be compared to the 4 acres surrounding the learning block and using algorithms to create a statistical analysis that develops a strong or weak correlation in treatment differences. 
 Comparing 3 treated acres to 4 non-treated acres transecting the entire field within a management zone is a great apples-to-apples comparison.
The project will run 3 years and calculate the economic results of the demonstration plots utilizing input expenses, crop yields and potential soil health benefits. 
Plans are to hold field days at the site to present the findings.
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​
​2023 Calendar
Monday, June 19, 2023
8 am - RockSWCD Board Meeting
​Rock County Land Management  Office



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​Click the logo for more info
Click here for
​Clean Water
Land and Legacy ​Stories ​

CONGRATULATIONS TO BRAD PETERSEN 
​2022 ROCK COUNTY OUTSTANDING CONSERVATIONIST

               The Petersen Family        
        Lee, Megan, Harper, Brad, Heather, Mandie and Ty
  Brad's cover crop field of oats, radishes,      turnips, canola, annual rye and red clover.  
​The Rock SWCD Board of Supervisors and staff awarded Brad Petersen – Petersen Farms with the 2022 Outstanding Conservationist Award.   Brad lives with his wife Heather on their family farm and they have three children Megan (Lee and Harper), Mandie and Ty.
 
Brad has been farming for 30 years and is being nominated for this award for his awareness and commitment to the health of his livestock and practices to maintain and improve soil health as well as mentor and educate others in the importance of soil health. 
 
He operates as swine and cow/calf operation in which he practices rotational grazing pasture management with paddock fencing and also utilizes triticale, cereal rye, turnips, radishes and canola as cover crops in the grazing plan for his cow/calf pairs.    Manure from his facility is applied according to his nutrient management plan to the crop fields needing the most nutrients.  
 
Brad implements soil testing, no till beans and wide row corn with multi-species grazing mix between rows in working with his agronomist as part of a research plot.   He manages his operation in an effort to protect water quality and is certified in the MN Ag Water Quality Certification program.   
 
Brad has served as a director on the Rock County Planning and Zoning Commission since 2011, has been a member of the Rock County Soil Health Team since 2016 where he has not only promoted soil health but also served as a mentor to area farmers wanting to adopt soil health practices.   He is a member of the MN Soil Health Coalition, participates in the NRCS Local Work Group and serves on a research team that tests fungicides, micro-biologicals as well as row spacing, cover crops and other cropping management on his farm. 
 
Through his past and current practices and willingness to experiment with soil health practices within his own pasture and crop ground, Brad has shown his commitment to being a good steward of the land in an effort to protect, improve and preserve natural resources. 
MN CREP
WHAT IS MN CREP (Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program)? 
MN CREP is a voluntary, federal-state funded natural resource conservation program that uses a science based approach to target environmentally sensitive land in 54 Counties in southern and western Minnesota. This is accomplished through permanent protection by establishing conservation practices via payments to farmers and agricultural land owners.

CLICK HERE FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON: 
How it works.
MN CREP Objectives
How the will be restored and protected.
Why enroll now? 
Enrollment - Contact the Rock County Land Management Office

MINNESOTA BUFFER LAW

The Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources oversees implementation of the Buffer Law, which requires farmers to have vegetated buffers along cropland that borders ditches, streams, rivers and lakes.  ​In accordance with the MN Board of Soil and Water Resources, Rock SWCD has developed a plan for Buffer Compliance Tracking. Click here for further information.   

ROCK SWCD MONITORING PLAN FOR BUFFER COMPLIANCE TRACKING
§103F.48 RIPARIAN PROTECTION AND WATER QUALITY PRACTICES

​1. COMPLIANCE TRACKING OF ALL PARCELS SUBJECT TO THE BUFFER LAW
All parcels in the county are to be reviewed within a 3 year timeframe. The SWCD will review parcels in major watersheds (Map Attachment A)
2. RANDOM SPOT CHECKS
Random spot checks will be done in addition to the tracking of all parcels within a 3 year span. These checks may be conducted via aerial photo review or on-site review depending on availability of updated aerial photos and the practice that is being checked/access to farms. A combination of both aerial and on-site review may also be used. Rock SWCD will conduct 6% of parcels on a random spot check review each year. Additionally, the SWCD will review parcels of emphasis more frequently. Parcels of emphasis include previously non-compliant parcels, approved alternative practices, variable width buffers, practices that have received financial assistance, and potential violations. This list is not meant to be exhaustive and lists only some potential reason for emphasis.
3. PROCESS TO HANDLE COMPLAINTS
The Rock SWCD will review complaints received from the public within 10 business days of receiving the complaint. Complaints may be submitted to the SWCD by using Buffer Compliance Review Request form. Only the landowner will receive a copy of the site compliance report following a complaint. The landowner will not receive a copy of the complaint.   Click here for the Buffer Compliance Review Request Form. 
Large Energy Wind Conversion Systems
Permitting Process
Minnesota Rules 7854
*Timeline from application acceptance to permit decision is 180 days.
Click here for a flowchart of the process.

 MN Department of Commerce
Environmental Review of Energy Projects

The Minnesota Department of Commerce Energy Environmental Review and Analysis (EERA) unit conducts environmental review of proposed energy projects including power plants, transmission lines, wind farms, and pipelines.  EERA conducts environmental review on behalf of the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (Commission), and EERA’s environmental review informs the permit decisions made by the Commission.

Click here for the Department of Commerce and further information. 

Guides to Prairie Restoration in Minnesota
Restoring a prairie just got easier. 

Many landowners and managers have land that they would like to see covered with native flowers and grasses.  But, creating a prairie is hard and often unpredictable work.  The techniques and types of seeds planted will vary depending on the current state of the land, how moist or dry the site is, and type of prairie you would like to establish. 

To deal with these issues, The Nature Conservancy and the University of Minnesota have developed 20 different restoration guides, each specific to one of five different types of starting conditions, two different moisture levels, and two different intended uses for restored prairie. 

​Each guide includes recommended techniques, timing and plant species, as well as estimated costs for completing a successful prairie restoration.  The guides can be downloaded for free at:

 www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/northamerica/unitedstates/minnesota/explore/prairie-restoration-guides.xml