Oregon Women for Agriculture will be hosting their Annual Auction and Dinner on April 15th, 2023 at the Linn County Fair & Expo Center in Albany, Oregon. This year’s theme is “From Farm to Forest- and Everything in Between.” Shareholder Laura Schroeder, firm administrator Scott Borison, and senior paralegal Tara Lomacz are excited to be attending the event.

Founded in 1969, Oregon Women for Agriculture began with the mission to “work together to communicate the story of today’s agriculture.” The organization is passionate about educating the community on the importance of sustainable agriculture to the environment and economy. Their work can be found in their support of programs including Oregon Agriculture in the Classroom and the Summer Agriculture Institute. These programs are meant to help students learn the importance of agriculture in their day-to-day life, like understanding how their food makes it from the farm to the grocery store. OWA is also responsible for the popular crop identification signs that can be found all along Oregon’s roadways. These signs help spread the word on the hundreds of different crops farmers grow all across the state.

The 2023 Oregon Women for Agriculture Annual Auction will help support OWA so that they can continue their work in the Oregon community for years to come! The event will feature a silent auction and dinner, as well as a live auction beginning at 7:15 pm. Visit the event website here for details on ticket cost, reserving a table, and more. We hope to see you there!

At the end of 2021, the Nevada Division of Water Resources (NDWR) completed a public survey to update the 1999 State Water Plan. The previous plan made general water data and information available to the public and addressed water policy issues and recommended actions for a sustainable water future. A lot has changed since 1999, and to address those changes, in 2022 NDWR released the results of the 2021 survey.

1,192 people in total participated, including a wide range of agricultural producers, business owners, tribal members, and more. Respondents were also from both urban and rural areas, with 39% of respondents living in rural or semi-rural areas of Nevada.

The biggest consensus in response to the survey was that of water sustainability. A striking 77% of respondents agreed that the sustainable use of water is extremely important. 79% shared that they now think about water issues more than they did in the past.

Among the biggest concerns were long-term water planning, wasteful or inefficient water use, and the need for conserving water for the future. In rural areas, water availability for agriculture and the transfer of water from rural basins to supply urban areas were major concerns.

Respondents were also asked to give their thoughts on potential long-term plans going forward. Many called for more public outreach, emphasizing the need for accessible, research-based data. Respondents also urged NDWR to provide more opportunities for stakeholder engagement. 

NDWR plans to use these findings to develop a water plan that addresses respondents’ concerns. The agency will consider the survey results when mapping out the direction of future outreach and education efforts. To read the full overview of survey responses, click here.