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The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), formerly known as the Soil Conservation Service (SCS), is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture
United States Department of Agriculture

The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive departments responsible for developing and executing Federal government of the United States policy on farming, agriculture, and food....
 that provides technical assistance to private land owners and managers.

Its name was changed in 1994 during the Presidency of Bill Clinton
Presidency of Bill Clinton

The United States President of the United States of Bill Clinton, also known as the Clinton Administration, was the Executive of the federal government of the United States from January 20,1993 to January 20 ,2001....
 to reflect its broader mission. It is a relatively small agency, currently comprising about 12,000 employees. Its mission is to improve, protect, and conserve natural resources on private lands through a cooperative partnership with local and state agencies.






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The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), formerly known as the Soil Conservation Service (SCS), is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture
United States Department of Agriculture

The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive departments responsible for developing and executing Federal government of the United States policy on farming, agriculture, and food....
 that provides technical assistance to private land owners and managers.

Its name was changed in 1994 during the Presidency of Bill Clinton
Presidency of Bill Clinton

The United States President of the United States of Bill Clinton, also known as the Clinton Administration, was the Executive of the federal government of the United States from January 20,1993 to January 20 ,2001....
 to reflect its broader mission. It is a relatively small agency, currently comprising about 12,000 employees. Its mission is to improve, protect, and conserve natural resources on private lands through a cooperative partnership with local and state agencies. While its primary focus has been agricultural lands, its many technical contributions to soil survey
Soil survey

Soil survey, or soil mapping, is the process of classifying soil types and other soil properties in a given area and geo-encoding such information....
ing and classification
Soil classification

Soil classification deals with the systematic categorization of soils based on distinguishing characteristics as well as criteria that dictate choices in use....
 and to water quality improvement are well known. One example is the Conservation Effects Assessment Project
Conservation Effects Assessment Project

The Conservation Effects Assessment Project "began in 2003 as a multi-agency effort to quantify the environmental benefits of conservation practices used by private landowners participating in selected United States Department of Agriculture conservation programs" including the Conservation Reserve Program and the Wetlands Reserve Program....
 (CEAP), set up to quantify the benefits of agricultural conservation efforts promoted and supported by programs in the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002
Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002

The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, also known as the 2002 U.S. Farm Bill, is the most recent incarnation of Federal government of the United States assistance to domestic farmers....
 (2002 Farm Bill). NRCS is the leading agency in this project.

History

The agency was founded largely through the efforts of Hugh Hammond Bennett
Hugh Hammond Bennett

Hugh Hammond Bennett was a pioneer in the field of soil conservation in the United States of America. He founded and headed the Soil Conservation Service, a List of United States federal agencies now referred to as the Natural Resources Conservation Service....
, a soil conservation
Soil conservation

Soil conservation is a set of management strategies for prevention of soil being erosion from the earth?s surface or becoming chemically altered by overuse, salinization, acidification, or other chemical soil contamination....
 pioneer who had worked for the Department of Agriculture
United States Department of Agriculture

The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive departments responsible for developing and executing Federal government of the United States policy on farming, agriculture, and food....
 since the early 20th century. On September 13, 1933, the Soil Erosion Service was formed in the Department of the Interior
United States Department of the Interior

The United States Department of the Interior , also called the Interior Department, is the United States federal executive departments of the Federal government of the United States responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land and the administration of programs relating to Native Americans in the United States, A...
, with Bennett as chief. The service was transferred to the Department of Agriculture on March 23, 1935, and was shortly thereafter combined with other USDA units to form the Soil Conservation Service by the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act of 1935, passed by Congress on April 27, 1935. Hugh Bennett continued as chief, a position he held until his retirement in 1951. On October 20, 1994, the agency was renamed to the Natural Resources Conservation Service as part of the Federal Crop Insurance Reform and Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994.

See also

  • National Cooperative Soil Survey
    National Cooperative Soil Survey

    The National Cooperative Soil Survey in the United States is a nation-wide partnership of federal, regional, state, and local agencies and institutions....
  • Dust Bowl
    Dust Bowl

    The Dust Bowl or the Dirty Thirties was a period of severe dust storms causing major ecological and agriculture damage to United States and Canada prairie lands from 1930 to 1936 ....


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