State Technical Advisory Committee  (STAC)

Updated 05/09/2012
 

Washington State Technical Advisory Committee meetings are from 9:30 until 3:00 on the following dates:

• September 27, 2011 - Spokane
• November 22, 2011 - Spokane

• January 24, 2012 - RESCHEDULED FOR FEBRUARY 3, 2012.

• March 27, 2012 - Spokane

• May 22, 2012 - Spokane

• July 24, 2012 - Olympia

View STAC meeting materials.

What is the State Technical Advisory Committee?

The State Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) is a group composed of agricultural producers, owners/operators of nonindustrial private forest land, federal and state agency representatives, and other professionals who provide information, analysis, and recommendations to officials of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) on implementing and establishing priorities and criteria for natural resources conservation activities and programs. The STAC has no implementation or enforcement authority, but USDA gives strong consideration to the STAC’s recommendations.

The Washington STAC, which is chaired by the State Conservationist, provides input to programs and initiatives, as well as annually reviews whether Local Working Groups are addressing State priorities and criteria for ranking program applications.

There is currently one subcommittee of the STAC, which has a purpose of reviewing and providing input to Natural Resource Conservation Service’s conservation practice standards and specifications, which are contained in the Field Office Technical Guide.
 

Who is on the State Technical Advisory Committee?

The STAC represents a variety of interest and disciplines in the soil, water, wetlands, plant, and wildlife sciences.
By policy, representatives should be from among the following:

• US Department of Agriculture Agencies:
     o Natural Resources Conservation Service
      o Farm Service Agency
      o FSA State Committee
      o Forest Service
      o National Institute of Food and Agriculture
• Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts
• State Departments and agencies including:
      o Agriculture
      o Fish and Wildlife
      o Forestry
      o Soil and Water Conservation Agency
      o Water Resources Agency
• Agriculture producers representing the variety of crops and livestock or poultry raised in the State
• Owners of nonindustrial private forest land
• Nonprofit organizations with conservation expertise
• Nonprofit organizations with experience working with agriculture producers
• Agribusinesses
• Each of the federally recognized American Indian Tribal governments*
          *A separate Tribal Advisory Council is being established in Washington
• Local Working Group (LWG) chairpersons
   

What is the current composition of Washington’s State Technical Advisory Committee?

The STAC is currently composed of representatives of the following organizations. As of November 2010, agencies and organizations were contacted to formally designate representatives to the STAC. This request will be refreshed at least annually, and the composition will be reviewed to determine if sufficient representation of a variety of diverse groups has been achieved.

 

To update contact information, send an email to Sherre Copeland.

STAC Subcommittees:

Washington State Practice Standard Subcommittee

In August 2010, by recommendation from the State Technical Advisory Committee (STAC), the State Conservationist determined a need for a subcommittee to provide input on conservation practice standards (CPS) and specifications. The primary purpose of this Subcommittee will be to provide input to the review of NRCS CPS and associated field office technical guide materials.  The link to directories and schedules for standards review, on a national level, is ftp://ftp-fc.sc.egov.usda.gov/NHQ/practice-standards.

Local Working Groups

Local working groups are subcommittees of the State Technical Committee and provide recommendations to USDA on local and state natural resource priorities and criteria for conservation activities and programs. Membership of the local working groups may include but is not limited to Federal, State, county, Tribal, or local government representatives. Currently, Washington has 10 local working groups and one proposed for Tribal priorities as follows:

   LWG Name     (Affiliated Area)     Chair
• Northeast (Stevens, Pend Oreille, Ferry Conservation Districts) To be determined
• West Palouse (Lincoln, Adams CDs) Tom Schultz
• Palouse (Whitman, Pine Creek, Palouse, Spokane County, Palouse-Rock Lake CDs) Larry Cochran
• Snake River (Asotin County, Columbia, Franklin, Pomeroy, Walla Walla CDs) Mark Nielson
• North Central (Okanogan, Foster Creek, South Douglas, Cascadia CDs) John McLean
• Big Bend (Grant, Kittitas County, Moses Lake, Warden CDs) John Preston
• South Central (Central and Eastern Klickitat, Benton, North & South Yakima CDs) Dave Guenther
• Northwest (Snohomish, Whatcom, Skagit, San Juan Islands, Whidbey Island, Clallam, Jefferson CDs) Larry Davis
• Puget Sound (Thurston, Kitsap, Mason, Pierce, King CDs) Fred Colvin
• Southwest (Clark, Underwood, Lewis County, Cowlitz, Wahkiakum, Grays Harbor CDs) Joel Rupley
• Tribal (Colville Confederated Tribe) - Proposed

How can I be involved in the Washington State Technical Advisory Committee?

Meetings of the STAC are open to the public and will be given the opportunity to address the committee and present their opinions and recommendations. Meeting information is posted on this web site. Presenters are encouraged to provide written comments to the Committee, but are not required to do so. Written comments or suggestions can be submitted to Sherre Copeland.

Individuals or groups wanting to become a member of the STAC may submit a request to the State Conservationist explaining their interest and outlining their credentials for becoming a member. Decisions of the State Conservationist concerning membership on the STAC are final and cannot be appealed. Requests can be sent to Roylene Rides-at-the-Door.

Washington State Technical Advisory Committee meetings are from 9:30 until 3:00 on the following dates:

• September 27, 2011 - Spokane
• November 22, 2011 - Spokane

• January 24, 2012 - RESCHEDULED FOR FEBRUARY 3, 2012. LOCATION TO BE DETERMINED.

• March 27, 2012 - Spokane

• May 22, 2012 - Spokane

• July 24, 2012 - Olympia

All STAC meeting materials.
 

Where can I get more information on the Washington State Technical Advisory Committee?

Policy governing the STAC is available at: http://directives.sc.egov.usda.gov/ . (Proceed to the manual tab, Title 440 - Programs, Part 501.)

Contact

Sherre Copeland
Partnership Liaison
Natural Resources Conservation Service
1835 Black Lake Blvd., SW, Suite D
Olympia, WA  98512-5607
Phone: 360.704.7758
Email: Sherre.Copeland@wa.usda.gov

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