Sherman County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) provides local leadership in implementation of watershed enhancement projects focused on improving fish and wildlife habitat, overall watershed health, and water quality.  The SWCD works closely with the four Watershed Councils in Sherman County to develop and implement scientifically sound, economically feasible natural resource conservation plans for private landowners.

This project meets a critical need in the lower Deschutes and lower John Day basins.  Coordination and technical staff shortage for conducting assessments and developing plans has created a growing backlog of potential conservation projects.  This project implements requirements associated with Reasonable and Prudent Alternatives (RPA) 153 and 154.

Notes:
Operation and Maintenance (O&M) are not required in this project:
Actual O&M costs are either the responsibility of the landowner/operator or are funded in Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).  The landowner/operator signs a project agreement with the Sherman County SWCD on non-CREP water quality/habitat improvement projects in which it is specified that maintenance is the landowner/operator's responsibility for the expected lifespan of the installed structure(s).

Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) is included as a cost item.  Additionally, records of stream miles, acreage and number of plans completed will be tracked for reporting purposes:
Farm Service Agency (FSA) has programmatic responsibility for spot-checking CREP contracts to ensure terms are being met.  Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has responsibility for technical supervision.  The SWCD will use the NRCS Stream Visual Assessment Protocol as the principal monitoring and evaluation tool to evaluate and describe both pre- and post- CREP project conditions.