By Aidan Mortensen | KOAL News
As ongoing concerns about water usage and the state of the Colorado River Compact loom large for producers, the Price River Watershed Conservation District is preparing to host its Agriculture Programs Fair on Wednesday, Feb. 18, to connect producers with resources.
Steven Price from Utah State University Extension joined the KOAL newsroom to preview the event and discuss the benefit it brings to the Castle Country.
“It’s a little bit different from the traditional crop school that we’ve had for so many years. So rather than having kind of a set schedule and speakers, we’re going to kick off the night with a free dinner for folks. And then we’re going to have a lot of booths there that people can go check out,” explained Price.
He continued, “They can talk to individual folks. We do have folks from the water optimization program, the Colorado River Authority, and some folks like that who they can talk to about changes in agricultural water policy and some of the things going on around the state. And then we also have some folks that’ll be talking more about different conservation programs. So like the easement programs, incentive programs, GIP will be there.”
As water policy rapidly evolves to address dwindling supplies, the Agriculture Programs Fair aims to make the road ahead clearer for producers. “These programs are constantly changing for farmers and ranchers. So being able to go in, we’ll have agency folks there so you can get some face time with them, ask questions in person, and kind of jump through a little bit of the red tape trying to get schedules and stuff going.”
A free dinner will be provided for all attendees. As such, organizers are asking those planning to attend to RSVP by contacting Julie Weber at 385-418-9860 or 435-381-2300 ext. 101. You can also email julieweber@utah.gov.
Giving another push for the public to get out and attend the fair, Price stated,” It’s going to be cold. It’s going to be dark. It’s a good time to talk to different folks around the community and get a free dinner. And it’s going to be a lot of good information and things we typically haven’t had. So it’s a little bit different. And we’re really hoping that people can take these programs and implement them and come away with some new ideas and a better understanding of what’s going on out there.”
Closing our conversation, Price shared a simple message, “Just please come join us.”
The Price River Watershed Conservation District Agriculture Programs Fair takes place on Wednesday, Feb. 18, from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in Jennifer Leavitt Student Center on the campus of USU Eastern.
