For the second year tamarisk beetles were released on the Two Buttes Wildlife Area. On August 10th BCCD Weed Supervisor Brian Wait, NRCS Soil Conservation Tech Storm Casper, and Colorado Department of Ag Tamarisk Tech Connor Jandreau made the third release of beetles in two years.  The Technicians endured  ferocious  mosquitoes while releasing a miniature army of 5000 beetles. GPS points were taken of the release locations for future monitoring. The beetles released in 2008 do not seem to have survived the winter.  We don’t know if this was due to predators (ants) or the weather.  

A resolution BCCD will be submitting at our State Conser-vation Districts Association annual meeting in November:

Resolution: Be it resolved that CACD form a coalition of partnering State Conservation District Associations to lobby FSA and to direct Colorado agencies to work with FSA to maintain the mixed grass prairie ecosystem through continued efforts to ensure that CRP and rangeland remains in permanent vegetative cover, through the designation of a 6 State Dust Bowl Priority Area including portions of Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico (see map).  Priority areas will be exempt from county maximum acre limitations.

Background: For the past 23 years our Nation has enjoyed the benefits from a successful Conservation Reserve Program (CRP).  The heart of the Dust Bowl was the Southeast corner of Colorado, but the disaster encompassed a 6 state area including parts of Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico and Colorado.  In the 1930s & 40s the Federal Government sought to protect these fragile lands by reseeding them back to grass and keeping them from the plow.  This area represented a fragile ecosystem where up to 10 feet of soil eroded in some locations.  CRP has been instrumental in protecting soil, ground and surface water, and upland wildlife habitat for species like deer, antelope, elk, coyotes, bob cats, fox, hawks, owls, songbirds, upland game birds such as pheasants and doves, as well as listed species like the burrowing owl, swift fox, Lesser Prairie Chicken, and Mountain Plover. Maintaining acres in CRP has many ancillary environmental benefits:  a reduction in the application of fertilizers, chemicals, herbicides and pesticides into the environment.  Setting aside these acres for another 10-15 years will deliver a lasting and meaningful environmental impact for the generations to come.