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PTM App training coming soon! LGUs watch your email next week for an announcement on upcoming online trainings on the PTM App in early April.
Introducing Minnesota’s Conservation Cohorts
Conservation Cohorts are On the Job Trainings (OJT) where attendees meet, virtually and in person, with the same small group over several weeks or months. The focus of these meetings is the planning, design, and installation/certification of conservation practices and systems that are part of real world conservation planning that the attendee is working on. The intention of these cohorts is that attendees will gain the skills, confidence, and credentialing (including Job Approval Authority) to independently plan, design, and certify conservation practices that address high priority resource concerns in their work area.
There are no registration deadlines or official start/end dates for these cohorts. As interested attendees sign up the cohorts are created based on geographic areas, levels of experience, and desired outcomes. There are several cohort options, so attendees will likely need to consider what they can take on and prioritize their training needs.
Prescribed Grazing (CPS 528) Cohorts
There are two training outcomes from these cohorts: 1) CPS 528 Prescribed Grazing certification, and 2) developing grazing systems with a producer from start to finish. Technical staff that need to review grazing records and grazing systems in the office and in the field for the sole purpose of certifying Prescribed Grazing do not need to complete the grazing plan development portion of the training. Please consult your supervisor on what level of training is appropriate for you.
Additional information and a link to register for a Prescribed Grazing Cohort can be found here.
Soil Health Cohorts
The focus of these meetings is the planning, design, and installation/certification of soil health related conservation practices. The core practices that will be the focus of these cohorts includes:
- Conservation Crop Rotation (CPS 328)
- No Till (CPS 329)
- Cover Crop (CPS 340)
- Reduced Till (CPS 345)
By the end of this cohort participants will be able to design soil health conservation systems that treat site specific soil health resource concerns using adaptive cover crop species or mixes in conjunction with reduced tillage, residue management, and diverse crop rotations.
Additional information and a link to register for a Soil Health Cohort can be found here.
Seeding Practices Cohorts
The focus of these meetings is the planning, design, and installation/certification of seeding practices. The core practices that will be the focus of these cohorts include the practices below based on IDP requests:
- Pasture and Hayland Planting (CPS 512)
- Conservation Cover (CPS 327)
- Critical Area Planting (CPS 342)
- Wetland Restoration (CPS 657)
- Filter Strip (CPS 393)
- Restoration and Management of Rare or Declining Habitats (CPS 643)
- Wildlife Habitat Planting (CPS 320)
- Contour Buffer Strips (CPS 332)
Attendees have the option to identify a primary and a secondary seeding practice they are working to obtain Job Approval Authority for.
Additional information and a link to register for a Seeding Practices Cohort can be found here.
National Conservation Planning Partnership Survey
The National Conservation Planning Partnership (NCPP) is asking for your feedback! NCPP is gathering information on your level of support, knowledge, and experience with conservation planning and the conservation planning process. This survey is a component of the NCPP's newly developed strategic plan and your identification of barriers can help the NCPP address factors that impede the initial certification of new planners and advancing to the next planner certification level. Your feedback will also provide an understanding of the barriers to the conservation planning process. Most importantly, the NCPP is interested in ways to overcome any of the limitations and barriers identified.
The survey will take between 8 and 10 minutes of your time. The results will be aggregated and analyzed collectively. All individual responses will be confidential. Within 60 days of the survey's closing, a report of the survey's findings, along with recommendations, will be posted on the NCPP website. Please submit your feedback by Friday, March 22.
Water and Sediment Control Basin - AutoCAD
TTCP is offering the second of two Water and Sediment Control Basin trainings using the NRCS WASCOB Design Spreadsheet. The February session, which will utilize AutoCAD to obtain topographic information for entry into the design spreadsheet, was postponed to April 2. The WASCOB Design Spreadsheet is located in the Minnesota NRCS FOTG. The training is intended for individuals who have some experience with the WASCOB (CPS 638) practice, but need training on design using the spreadsheet.
Additional information and a link to register can be found here.
Native Seed Mix Design and Evaluation Training
Most large scale native habitat plantings are created with seed mixes. Plant diversity is a requirement for pollinators, other wildlife, and the foundation of ecological resilience, but it can be a complicated and consequential challenge to select the best mix for any given site. Building high quality native seed mixes that serve multiple species, replicate natural plant associations, establish readily, conform to certain conservation practice standards, and fit within budget constraints requires training and experience. It takes a lot of familiarity with native flora, experience with specialized design tools like seed calculators, and awareness of the commercial availability of various species in your region. Two workshops focusing on seed mix evaluation, using the seed calculator, and other exercises will be held on April 9 in Farmington and Detroit Lakes on April 11.
Additional information and a link to register can be found here. Also, be sure to attend the virtual prerequisite session on April 8.
Grade Stabilization Training
A Grade Stabilization field and classroom training will be held in Le Center on April 10. The training will focus on the Investigation and Evaluation (I&E) phase, with some discussion of design topics and construction inspection. Various types of grade stabs used in southern Minnesota will be introduced, giving staff the opportunity to understand the pros and cons of each, especially in reference to our afternoon field sites. We'll also talk about the thought process for choosing a type of grade stab, as well as what construction layout will look like.
Additional information and a link to register can be found here.
Cultivating Career Success: On Farm Communications Training
We are partnering with Central Lakes College to provide field instruction and online training for basic agriculture. At the end of the training, participants will have gained knowledge and skills related to ag systems in relationship to the adoption of cover crops and other soil health practices to improve water quality. The trainings offered through this partnership will provide participants with the opportunity to fill training needs identified in their Individual Development Plans.
Save the dates for the chance at a spot in one of these packages of three enriching, six hour training days. Sessions will be held on May 8/9, July 18/19, and October 16/17 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Central Lakes College Ag & Energy Center, Staples, Minnesota. Participants will be expected to attend one session in each of these months.
Prescribed Burning Awareness Training
For those looking to obtain Job Approval Authority (JAA) for CPS 338 Prescribed Burning, there is still space available in the Prescribed Burning Awareness Training. These 16 hours of Awareness Training are required to obtain Job Class I JAA for Prescribed Burning, allowing the planner to recommend CPS 338 as an alternative during the conservation planning process. If you already have JAA you likely do not need this training. Please consult your supervisor/ARC if you have questions.
This training is being held at Camp Ripley beginning May 21 at 12:30 p.m. and concluding May 23 at 12 p.m. Space is limited to 35 attendees, so please do not sign up if you cannot attend all three days. Additional information and registration can be found here.
Introduction to Conservation Engineering
Introduction to Conservation Engineering (ICE!) will be held June 3-7 in the Faribault area. This course is intended for newer technical conservation staff to get exposure to the common engineering practices and skills they may encounter. The week will also be an excellent opportunity to meet and network with many of the area and state office engineering staff across Minnesota.
The week will include numerous hands on activities, outdoor exercises, and a field tour of installed practices. Engineering topics include: hydrology, erosion control practices, surveying, construction inspection, engineering references, livestock waste, wetlands, livestock watering systems, irrigation, drainage, streambank protection, energy, quality assurance, and soils/geology. Each of these topics will be higher level overviews intended to get participants familiar with a practice’s purpose and application in Minnesota as well as understand the skills needed for implementation. This course does not include mastering in depth design procedures for any practice.
Questions? SWCD staff can reach out to Pat Schultz or Aaron Peter, TTCP Regional Training Engineers. NRCS staff can reach out to Lea Holter, assistant state conservation engineer, and must get approval from their supervisor to sign up. There is not a registration form for this course. Contact Lea, Pat, or Aaron if you would like to sign up for this course.
University of Minnesota Extension Cover Crop Academy
Do you work with farmers who want to use cover crops but are struggling to incorporate them into Minnesota’s short growing season? Are you striving to help producers build soil health systems that are agronomically and economically successful? If you want to learn more about using cover crops to help address crop production challenges, consider signing up for the University of Minnesota Extension Cover Crop Academy.
The UMN Extension Cover Crop Academy is a hybrid, yearlong, statewide course for crop advisors, consultants, educators, agency personnel, and ag advisors who work with cover crops in coops, ag retailers, lending institutions, nonprofits, Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCD) and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) offices. This unique opportunity will take a deep dive into cover crops and will be tailored to Minnesota cropping systems and conditions.
Additional information and a link to the registration can be found here. Register by June 10 to reserve your spot for one of three locations: Waseca, Crookston, or Lamberton. Registration will be limited, and filled on a first come, first served basis. Note, all attendees are expected to participate in the entire program, and certificates of completion will be awarded at the final session. Contact Anna Cates for more information.
Save the Date: 2024 Conservation Planning Course
The weeklong Conservation Planning Course will be held at the West Central Research and Outreach Center in Morris the week of July 29 through August 2. If your goal is to become a Level III Conservation Planner, set aside this week on your calendar to attend this course. It is an intensive week of hands on training, assessing resources on several landuses and working through the nine steps of conservation planning on a family farm. There are significant hours of prerequisites for this course and if you plan on attending in July you should get started on them now. You can find a list of prerequisites here.
2024 Shared Training Calendar
An updated working version of the 2024 training calendar is now available. This 12 month view of training offerings is regularly updated and provides information about upcoming training events, including potential dates and locations. Please see the legend at the top and note that the further out a training is proposed the more likely adjustments will need to be made. The dates, locations, and other details are always tentative until the event is posted on the Training Calendar.
BWSR Sponsored Training Events
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Minnesota Wetland Professional Certification Program |
More information on each course, registration, and MWPCP professional exams can be found at the MWPCP website.
2024 MWPCP Course Schedule:
Introduction to Wetland Delineation and Regulations
Introduction to Wetland Delineation and Regulations: Arden Hills - June 10-14
Introduction to Wetland Delineation and Regulations: Brainerd - Sept. 9-13
Introduction to Wetland Delineation and Regulations: Arden Hills - Sept. 30-Oct. 4
Technical Training
Hydric Soils: Albany City Hall and Two Rivers County Park, Stearns County - April 30 & May 1
Wetland Restoration: McLeod County Fairgrounds - May 15-16
Wetland Delineation Methods: Prairie Woods Environmental Learning Center - Spicer - May 29-31
Floristic Quality Assessment (FQA) Method: MNDOT Shoreview Training Center - June 17 or 18
Wetland Plant ID: Lino Lakes (July 16) or Cloquet Forestry Center (July 18)
Antecedent Precipitation Tool: St Cloud MNDOT Training Center - Oct. 17 (2 sessions)
Regulatory Training
TEP Academy: St Cloud MNDOT Training Facility - April 9
Regional Training
Redwood Falls Community Center - Aug. 27-28
Technical Training & Certification Program Trainings
Tech Talk Webinars: Mondays at 1 p.m.
March 18 Pest Management Follow Up
March 25 Hydrology Single Watershed Tool
April 1 2024 Pest Management Forecast
April 8 Designing and Evaluating Seed Mixes
April 15 Brush Management (CPS 314) in Grasslands and Savannas
April 22 Intro to Urban Soil Health for Conservation Planning and Management
April 29 Soil Health Resource Concerns
Conservation Cohorts
Prescribed Grazing
Seeding Practices
Soil Health
March
March 15 Basic Cover Crop: Webinar 2, Online
March 19 Basic Cover Crop, Brainerd
March 21 Basic Cover Crop, Austin
April
April 2 WASCOB Design Spreadsheet Training (AutoCAD), Faribault
April 9 Native Seed Mix Design and Evaluation Workshops, Farmington
April 10 Grade Stabilization Training, Le Center
April 11 Native Seed Mix Design and Evaluation Workshops, Detroit Lakes
June
June 3-7 Introduction to Conservation Engineering, Faribault
- Monthly Jan. 9 to Dec. 10 Sustainable Forestry Education Cooperative 2024 Forestry Webinar Series, SFEC, Online
- Fridays Feb. 9 to April 19 Fridays with a Forester, UMN, Online
- March 14 to April 25 Improving Restorations Webinar Series, UMN Extension, Online
- March 21 Getting the Most Out of Cover Crops, Conservation Webinars, Online
- March 28 Forests restorations and climate adaptation, UMN Extension, Online
- April 11 Climate contingency planning for restorations, UMN Extension, Online
- April 25 Seed sourcing: local, mix and match, assisted migration, UMN Extension, Online
- Starting in June Cover Crop Academy, UMN Extension, Multiple Locations
Not all training takes place in a classroom. Check out the links below to learn at a time and place of your choosing.
We’ve also put together a searchable library of recorded modules, webinars, videos and other resources to help our staff and partners find professional development information on a variety of topics. You can visit BWSR's Online Learning page to find web-based technical training resources sorted by category.
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Program Contacts
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