District Conservationist Talking Points             February/March 2010 Watershed Initiatives The NRCS conducted two Mississippi River Basin Initiative (MRBI) informational meetings in January.  Meeting locations were Columbus and Wabash.  They were both well attended and many SWCDs were interested in these opportunities.  NRCS has not yet announced the Request for Proposal guidance for the Mississippi River Basin Initiative.  Indiana NRCS anticipates receiving additional dollars for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) through an agreement that is currently being finalized with EPA.  The EPA GLRI Request for Proposals date has passed, and proposals received can be viewed at: http://epa.gov/greatlakes/fund/2010rfp01/2010rfp01_idlist.html Farm Bill Programs Field Offices have until March 12 to conduct field verifications for the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) and until April 1 for the contracts to be obligated.  Applications are currently being ranked for the FY 2010 Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP).  All funds must be obligated for these programs by April 1.  Goose Pond Dedication A celebration is being held February 26th in Linton, Indiana, to celebrate the completion of Goose Pond, a nationally significant Wetland Reserve Program site.  The event will include presentation, including Ray McCormick, special recognitions and a bus tour of the site.  Due to limited space the celebration is not open to the public and is by invitation only. All project partners were invited to send a representative to attend. Contribution Agreements NRCS will be seeking proposals to assist with technical and administrative assistance for 2010.  The process will be similar to previous years, and information about these opportunities will be distributed to SWCDs by mid March.