Buffer Ohio Award Winner- Wood/Lucas Pheasants Forever

News Release
For Release: Wednesday, January 23, 2002
Columbus, Ohio

Wood/Lucas Pheasants Forever was recognized today as one of ten statewide Buffer Ohio Award Winners. The award was presented at the Annual Meeting of the Ohio Federation of Soil and Water Conservation Districts.

Buffer Ohio is a statewide awards program, which recognizes exceptional landowners who have done an outstanding job of applying and maintaining conservation buffer practices to the Ohio landscape. It is co-sponsored by Ohio Farm Bureau, Ohio Corn Growers, Pheasants Forever, ODNR Division of Wildlife, ODNR Division of Forestry, ODNR Division of Soil and Water Conservation, Ohio Wetlands Foundation, Nature Conservancy, Ohio Soybean Association, National Conservation Buffer Council, USDA Farm Service Agency, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Ohio Federation of Soil and Water Conservation Districts, and the Lake Erie Buffer Team.

Conservation buffer practices include grass filter strips, riparian tree plantings, sod waterways, wetland restorations, and windbreaks. They are a fundamental part of the conservation effort to protect and enhance Ohio’s precious soil, water, plant, and animal resources. Buffer practices provide improved agricultural production, erosion control, water quality, and wildlife habitat benefits. Buffer areas trap sediment, nutrients, pesticides, provide food and cover for wildlife, and increase plant and animal diversity.

Wood/Lucas Pheasants Forever Chapter was recognized for their work in installing conservation buffer practices. The Pheasants Forever Chapter has made it easy for farmers to apply conservation buffers to their land. The chapter helps landowners who have signed up for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) to buy seed, and then plant the seed in the spring. The Pheasants Forever chapter does all the planting work for the landowner. The only thing the landowner is responsible for is the site preparation and fertilization prior to planting and then maintenance afterwards. Thanks to the outreach efforts of the NRCS/SWCD and the planting arrangement with the Wood/Lucas Pheasants Forever Chapter several streams in Wood County have nearly 100% voluntary participation in the Conservation Reserve Buffer Program. The chapter has further expanded to helping landowners along the Toussiant Creek in Wood, Sandusky, and Ottawa counties to plant buffers. The chapter has been instrumental in applying the buffers and without them the number of buffers installed in the past few years would have been greatly reduced. Wood/Lucas Pheasants Forever Chapter has done an outstanding job of helping landowners to apply and maintain conservation buffer practices, and their efforts have increased the amount of conservation applied on the land in Wood County.

As part of the award Wood/Lucas Pheasants Forever Chapter received a cash award, recognition plaque, and Buffer Ohio Jacket. Award recipients were selected based on a review of their conservation buffer accomplishments. Judging was done by a committee of the Buffer Ohio Partner Organizations.

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