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WELCOMING NEW BOARD MEMBERS IN 2016?

TWO FILES TO CHOOSE FROM! Many of you will be welcoming new

members to your conservation boards in January, and IACCB is pleased to

offer several resources available to you to assist with bringing those new folks on board! You can either access the

“NEW BOARD MEMBERS” file in the IACCB Portal, or follow the IACCB

link at the bottom of any page on our

RECOGNITION CERTIFICATES AVAILABLE Whether you have a retiring Board Member or CCB Staff person, or perhaps just a term limit is up – IACCB does provide custom certificates for you upon request - at no charge. These are printed on parchment paper and can be configured with logos and signatures of your design – a “standard version” is pictured here. Please allow ample advance time of several weeks with your request to allow for production and USPS mail time…… IACCB staff may also be in the field or traveling at times too . We look forward to assisting you with the recognition of your dedicated individuals! IACCB@mycountyparks.com

mycountyparks.com

 IMPORTANT DATES:  

* Jan. 8‐9 – REAP Congress 

– State Capitol 

* Jan. 19‐21 – Winterfest 

2016 – Waterloo Ramada 

* Feb. 18 – District 4 Mtg. – 

Madison County  

* March 3 – Capitol Day for 

IWILL – Fund the Trust 

* March 9 – County Day at 

the Capitol (ISAC) 

* March 22 – REAP Day at 

the Capitol (IEC)  

  

The IACCB Newsletter is 

produced on a periodic basis, and 

provided in digital format as a 

membership benefit to IACCB 

Members and stakeholders. 

MacBride 

IACCB@MyCountyParks.com       (515) 963‐9582

HOLIDAY BLAST FROM THE PAST by Robert D. Walker, Iowa Conservation Commission - 1984 The state of Iowa is blessed with many natural wonders that we sometimes overlook. The most obvious is our black soil which allows us to be one of the primary row crop states in the country. We also have two primary tributaries which form our eastern and western boundaries that have been the object of many novels and classics which are known by people all over the world – the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. Approximately 4 percent of Iowa’s surface is covered by timberland with the heaviest concentrations in the eastern counties of the state and approximately 3,000 acres of native prairie which has never been touched by the plow. Because our emphasis on crop and livestock production and the large amount of valuable crop land, we must work especially hard to preserve our natural wonders and provide outdoor areas for Iowans to enjoy in their leisure time. Approximately 20 other states in the U.S. have county conservation programs. Other than Iowa, Indiana’s program is the most successful with approximately 50% of their counties having the benefit of county boards. The real key to the success of Iowa’s county conservation program is local people making sound conservation decisions based on local needs”. We remain The Most Successful County Conservation Program in the United States – some 32 years later!

Volume 57, Issue No. 12 December 23, 2015

Merry 

Christmas 

IACCB 

wishes 

you a 

MyCountyParks.com website to the “New Board Member Information” section. Amongst the files you will find in either location are: 1) A Welcome Letter from IACCB; 2) Current IACCB Board Member Handbook; 3) New Board Member Orientation PowerPoint; 4) The Chapter 350 Code of Iowa (“County Conservation Code”); 5) State map of CCB Districts & Directors; and more! We encourage all board members – new or veteran – to please take advantage of these educational materials. During this time of transition to Portal storage, for your convenience – the IACCB link on MCP.com requires no sign-in to access!

WINTERFEST DEADLINES LOOM! LODGING AT RAMADA – January 1st! CONFERENCE REGISTRATION – January 6th! It is time to proceed post-haste should you find yourself in a position of having put theses chores off! Information/forms available on website at: http://www.mycountyparks.com/Info/WINTERFEST.aspx

 

   

$101,000 MORE IN 2015! As of early December, the online reservation system of MyCountyParks.com has already

generated $101K more in online reservations than in all of 2014! Adams, Benton,

Jackson, Shelby and Union CCBs are all in the process of launching this service for

their customers in 2016!

Cyber Bytes

There seems to be numerous “items” trending out there – so I thought I would dedicate a page to clarify some things, and bring you all up-to-speed on a few others!

TRAINING DATES IN THE OFFING ONLINE RESERVATIONS – Thursday, January 14th – Jackson County Hurstville Interpretive Center – 10:00 AM This training will be a hands-on (bring your own wireless lap-top) work session with the JCCB staff as they prepare to provide online reservations in 2016. You are invited to join in on this experience with them. This will be an in-depth look into the essentials of online reservationing and the technical functionalities that staff must be able to perform/encounter for excellent customer & administrator service! If you are interested in partaking – please email to: IACCB@mycountyparks.com

WEBSITE OVERVIEW & PORTAL – Tuesday, January 19th – Winterfest 5 Sullivan Brothers Convention Center, Waterloo – Room 24 – 9:00 AM This will be a hands-on tour of the all-new 2015 edition of our award-winning MyCountyParks.com website and IACCB Portal (yes they are two separate entities!) You will need to bring your own wireless laptop to participate. This will be fast-paced and tailored to answer the questions that you bring. There will be limited discussion on the online reservation features of the website unless additional time allows. You will need to sign-up for this training via your Winterfest Registration – due 1/6!

THE PROFILE CONUNDRUM OF 2015 Why is all this secured profile access to MyCountyParks and the Portal so confusing? Well, because it is somewhat – so, here’s my best attempt to clarify! We have to first-of-all consider the website and the portal to be two separate, dynamic entities – created 5 years apart from each other. They are, however “joined at the hip” – thus your login occurs by going to the website for access to both. There are 53,012 users with profiles in the system – 51,900 (98%) are Registered Users (non-CCB public users) that have access to ONLY the public front side of MyCountyParks.com. The other 1,112 users (CCB folk) have some level of administrative access to either and/or both MyCountyParks.com and The Portal. Let’s have a looky-see at each of these unique profiles from highest to lowest in the security food-chain:

COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR – Highest Security Level – Access to ALL admin features of BOTH the website and the Portal. Initial C.A. created by the System Administrator, subsequent C.A.s within a county can be created by another C.A.

PARK ADMINISTRATOR – 2nd Highest Level on MyCountyParks.com ONLY – no access to the Portal. When created by the C.A. in a particular county, the P.A. profile is assigned to a specific park with full admin access to features of that park only – no other access RANGER – Lowest Security Level on MyCountyParks ONLY – no access to the Portal. When created by the C.A. in a particular county, the RANGER profile can see all reservations for facilities and events – no ability create or modify – no other access. (Works good for staff/volunteers that need to check on these items)

PORTAL ADMINISTRATOR – Highest Security Level for Portal ONLY- access to all admin features of the Portal – Contacts, Jobs, Files and Best Practices. When logging in, user will land on Portal’s “CONTACTS” page. Profile is created as a “RANGER” by C.A. and converted to Portal Administrator by System Administrator upon email request by C.A.

PORTAL USER – Lowest Security Level for Portal Only – access to FILES and JOBS tabs only. Jobs view will be public view only. Profile is created by same means as Portal Administrator profile previously.

PORTAL USERS ALREADY IN EXISTENCE?So you are seeing some Portal Users in your listing already? Back when the Portal was first rolled out in Jan. 2013, we uploaded all of the Board Member and Personnel data from the 2012 Personnel Directory to the CONTACTS portion of the Portal to give us a baseline. At that time – each person was given a Portal User profile automatically. The profiles ARE functional utilizing the login profile provided. If you want to change either the Username or Password, you will need to delete the profile and create a RANGER profile as indicated, and we can convert them over to either a Portal Administrator OR User. Questions? Email Tom Hazelton -

 

   

2016 Trust Fund Resolution

WOW! 85% SUPPORT !!! While there are still 14 potential CCBs that could come on board in support of Funding the Trust in 2016 – to have 85 “in hand” a full three weeks before the start of the 2016 Legislative Session – SHAZAM! This has been a great process for our conservation boards to progress through – in part because many paused to take a more in-depth look at the 2010 legislation, the 2015 Trust Fund Annual Report and other informational materials in order to make an educated decision for support. Many, many thanks for working this item and associated discussion(s) into your monthly meeting agendas – this collective voice from county conservation will provide a strong statement as the broader discussions ensue throughout the upcoming weeks!

WINTERFEST RESUME REVIEWERS NEEDED With an occasional professor hovering nearby, or another student eavesdropping – the “Collegiate Resume Review” has become a very important aspect of our day with the college kids at Winterfest! The piece that makes it so successful is the wonderful cast of CCB professionals that give of their time to improve each student’s interview opportunities with a critique of perhaps the first resume that they have ever put together. Where else can you get a collection of free advice in one place from conservation professionals?!! This session directly follows the 11:00 AM “Collegiate Seminar” that is held on the lower level of the convention center – and is sandwiched in right before the luncheon in the event center. If you have experience in the review of resumes, and perhaps a couple of years in the hiring arena – AND, you are already at Winterfest 2016 – YOU would make a great addition to the collegiate’s day! We need 10 to 12 reviewers to accommodate the 80-100 students that we anticipate for this portion of the day – if you are interested, please contact Tom Hazelton and get your name on the list - IACCB@mycountyparks.com Additional information will be forthcoming to volunteers as we get closer to Winterfest 2016 in a couple of weeks!

   PRAIRIE RECONSTRUCTION INITIATIVE SYMPOSIUM – January 12, 2016 - Fergus Falls, MN Duplicating historic prairie conditions on plowed ground is impossible. Since most native prairie is gone, planting prairie is crucial. Some plantings have become complex native plant communities that have persisted a decade or more, apparently increasing in quality through time. Thriving populations of native bees, butterflies and other wildlife species affirm success by inhabiting them. But success stories like this are rare. Why are so many of our prairie plantings problematic? Invasive species often overtake them, diversity drops out through time, or many species simply fail to establish. What makes the difference between success and failure? Since the first Prairie Reconstruction Initiative Workshop in 2012, the Prairie Reconstruction Initiative Advisory Team (PRIAT) has worked hard to lay the foundation for understanding how to consistently achieve success in the important but difficult work of prairie reconstruction.

Prairie Reconstruction Initiative Symposium at Fergus Falls, MN Wetland Prairie Learning Center

At this symposium for professional prairie managers and biologists, you will hear about exciting retrospective research, field days, and database development projects undertaken by PRIAT. Leaders in the field of prairie reconstruction will share their experiences and views on what makes some prairie plantings thrive and some fail. In a closing session you will be asked to share your thoughts on important next steps in the process of learning to be consistently successful in prairie reconstruction. As a professional in prairie reconstruction, your voice is important. An agenda for the symposium is located in the “PRAIRIE INFORMATION” file in the IACCB Portal - In order to cater food, reservations must be made by January 4! If you need further information about details or to register for the workshop, contact Paul Charland at Paul_Charland@fws.gov

CHICKADEE CHECK-OFF ON YOUR IOWA TAXES?!?! All the money contributed through the chickadee check-off helps support the Wildlife Diversity Program at the Iowa DNR. This program has statewide responsibility for all the wildlife that can’t be hunted, fished or trapped from Peregrine Falcons to Poweshiek Skipperling butterflies. Please consider donating to the Chickadee Check-off this tax season and

supporting wildlife conservation in Iowa!  You can learn more about the program on their

website: www.iowadnr.gov/wildlifediversity  

DISTRICT 6 MEETING DRAWS VIBRANT ATTENDANCE! A cool blustery day on December 16th drew over 34 CCB and DNR employees to the District 6 meeting, hosted by Jones County in their Central Park Nature Center near Amber, IA. Participants were treated to two great DNR presentations on fish habitat, the District VI Fish Habitat Grant Review session, a scrumptious luncheon and the District VI Business Meeting. Pictures as numbered include: #1 – Paul Sleeper, Fisheries Biologist (DNR) presents his program on lake restoration and new trends in fish habitat structures; #2 – Brad Mormann, Director of Jones CCB welcomes attendees with an overview of Jones CCB; #3 – Brian Preston, Director of Dubuque CCB announces fish habitat award recipients; #4 – Dan Kirby, Fisheries Biologist (DNR) answers questions during his presentation on stream bank stabilization/habitat improvement; and, #5 – Daryl Parker, Director of Jackson CCB takes questions about their Fish Habitat Improvement Proposal in Jackson County. Thanks to Jones CCB for orchestrating and hosting another quintessential county conservation networking event! 

1

5 4

3 2

 

 http://www.mycountyparks.com/Jobs/Default.aspx  1. CRAWFORD Co. – Park Ranger 2. DALLAS Co. – Natural Resource Manager 3. CLARKE Co. – Executive Director 4. JOHNSON Co. – Mechanic 5. DICKINSON Co. – Naturalist 6. TEMPORARY POSITIONS – 12 opportunities

listed on website

Full Time Employment 

Seasonal/Part‐Time – Listed on website 

NESTLING IN ALONG THE MISSISSIPPI IN LANSING, IA

(Excerpted from a 11/28/15 article in the Cedar Rapids Gazette by Orlan Love)  With a focus on the driftless area, ground has been broken on the $3.3 million Driftless Area Visitor and Education Center, located on the south edge of Lansing along the Mississippi River. The three-story, 10,000 square foot building along the Great River Road will offer views of the river and bluffs from two observation decks. The main and upper floors will provide exhibition space for interpreting key driftless area features. Jim Janett, Director of the Allamakee County Conservation Board comments, “All the features tourists commonly see – the river, the bluffs, eagles, fall foliage and Native-American mounds – will all be tied together with many less often seen features, such as algific talus slopes, commercial fishing artifacts and steamboat era relics”. The Allamakee CCB is spearheading the project, with many local partners.

The driftless area, also known as the Paleozoic Plateau, covers about 24,000 square miles in Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois. The rugged terrain survived only because the most recent glaciers steered clear of the area, leaving it largely devoid of drift – the sand, gravel, rocks and clay left behind by retreating glaciers. “The driftless area is not a big secret, but a lot of people don’t know a lot about it,” said Allamakee Board of Supervisors chairman Larry Schellhammer, a longtime supporter of the project. Craig White, Executive Director of Main Street Lansing, added this about the project - “It is the most important development in Allamakee County in a long time!” The Northeast Iowa RC&D assisted the project in obtaining a $1.3 million National Scenic Byways grant. Schellhammer further added, “We want to be good stewards of the environment, and part of that is sharing it with others.” Following a ceremonial ground-breaking for the center on November 3rd, workers have completed the underground work on a geothermal heating and cooling system and are now working on footings and other site preparation for construction. With more than $2 million already committed, project leaders continue to raise money through grants and donations. The center will become the permanent home of an extensive array of artifacts documenting Lansing’s commercial fishing industry, as well as local ice harvests, clamming and clamshell button manufacturing. CONGRATULATIONS to the Allamakee County Conservation Board and their team of partners for their perseverance in getting this project steam-rolling ahead, we are all very much looking forward to experiencing this new county conservation/tourism gem along the Mississippi!

REAP GRANT REVIEW COMMITTEE POSITION APPLICATIONS – DUE 1/8/16 A quick reminder that if you are interested in the position on the REAP Grant Review Committee, your letter of application needs to be in no later than January 8th to IACCB at: IACCB@mycountyparks.com / 1775 Mackenzie Drive, Cedar Rapids, IA 52411 THANKS!

DISTRICT 2 REPRESENTATIVE BALLOTS DUE BY DECEMBER 31st One more quick reminder the your District 2 ballots for the board member representative to the IACCB Board of Directors are due in to IACCB no later than December 31st. We have received them from the following CCBs: Winnebago, Cerro Gordo, Butler, Bremer, Kossuth, Hancock, Chickasaw, Howard & Franklin – nine in, eight to go! Thanks for the assist!