Inspiring Personal Responsibility for our Environment and Natural Resources.

The Prince William Soil and Water Conservation District (PWSWCD or District) is focused on protecting and enhancing our water and soil resources by providing leadership in the conservation of soil, water, and related resources to all Prince William County citizens through technical assistance, information, and education.

Services

Agriculture

  • Free Technical Assistance for Traditional Ag. and Horse Farms

  • Conservation Plans

  • Nutrient Management Plans

  • Soil Sampling

  • State Cost-Share/ Tax-Credit Programs

Youth Education

  • Conservation Capsules (Classroom Education)

  • Farm Field Days

  • Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience (MWEE)

  • Arbor Day

Water Quality

  • Adopt-A-Stream

  • Water Quality Monitoring

  • Floatables Monitoring

  • Plastic Pollution

Home Owners

  • VCAP

  • Gardener's Gold

  • Pollinators Corner

Want to show support for water quality projects? Then check out the Chesapeake Bay License Plate! Click here for an application.

Is This a District Question?

We get lots of questions every day and we want to make sure you are guided in the right direction!

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  • For services the District provides, click here. This will tell you who from District staff can help you out!

  • For services the District does not provide, click here. If your question is not on the list, contact any of us and we'll do our best to help!

  • Got questions, but not in Prince William County (or City of Manassas)? Click here for information on how to contact your local soil & water conservation district!

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Latest Newsletter - Summer 2021

Annual Report for FY 2020: 
July 1, 2019 - June 30, 2020

Calendar: Board Dates and Upcoming Events

Hot Topics
News
Click on the orange link below for more info.

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Interested in Volunteering? Click here!

 

VASWCD Photo Contest

The Virginia Association of Conservation Districts (VASWCD) is having their annual photo contest. The topic this year is Conservation through the local lens. For more information, or to submit your photo, please visit VASWCD's website by clicking here. Submission deadline is July 30, 2021.

Scenic Mountain College Transparent
 

12th Annual Occoquan River Cleanup

Volunteers Needed!

The 12th Annual Occoquan River Cleanup will be on Saturday, September 11th, 2021 from 9am-2pm, with a rain date of September 18, 2021.

The Prince William Trails & Stream Coalition (PWTSC) is looking for experienced kayakers, canoeists, jon boaters, and pontoon boaters to sign up for this major on-the-water conservation effort.  Some kayaks and canoes will be available for loan provided by Penguin Paddling at Hooes Run and by the Prince William County Parks and Recreation Department at Lake Ridge Marina. The clean-up ranges from Cedar Run/Broad Run, through Lake Jackson, and from the base of Lake Jackson Dam to Hooes Run (south of Lake Ridge Marina).

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For more information or to register, click here. For the official flyer, click here.

 

Market Maker from Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE)

As more and more people want to buy their food fresh and locally, Market Maker is an upcoming way to connect farmers with their customers. Market Maker is an online portal where customers can search for farms, farmer's markets, specific agriculture products, etc. that are near by. Farms can also sign up on the portal so customers can better find them. Market Maker is free for both farmers and customers.

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For more information on Market Maker, go to: https://ext.vt.edu/agriculture/market-maker.html.

 

Virginia Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts (VASWCD) Education Videos

Being unable to hold public events at this time, the VASWCD has compiled a YouTube channel for kids and adults containing videos across the state on a wide variety of topics including Agriculture Best Management Practices, Watersheds, Septic Systems, Soils, and more!

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Check out their channel by clicking here!

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Did you know we also have a YouTube channel? Check out our channel by clicking here! (New videos recently added!)

Computer Monitor
  • YouTube
 

Become a Certified Water Quality monitors in Biological Monitoring!

Are you interested in becoming a Certified Water Quality monitors in Biological Monitoring? If so, visit: https://www.iwla.org/water/stream-monitoring/upcoming-water-monitoring-workshops/online-certification to start your online identification training!

Please ensure to fill out this registration form: https://forms.gle/NRir3RFUiX1pDkNK6 so that the Izaak Walton League of America (IWLA) can follow-up on your progress. After your online training, please e-mail Veronica Tangiri to start on Part II: Field Practical Test and complete certification.
 

Virginia Agriculture Cost Share (VACS)

​Cost Share funding is available from the District! These funds provide financial assistance for agricultural landowners and operators to implement best management practices on their properties in order to improve soil and water quality. If you have a natural resources concern on your farm, now is the time to talk with district staff about developing a plan to address these concerns! We can provide cost-share funding for practices to address:​

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  • soil erosion on crop and pasture land

  • exclude livestock from waterways

  • implement nutrient management plans

  • adopt new precision nutrient application technology

  • establish tree plantings or vegetated buffers along streams

  • plant cover crops

  • construct manure storage facilities

  • construct feed lots/sacrifice areas

In order to qualify for cost-share, your farm must meet the following:

  • Property has/had a water quality concern (e.g. livestock has/had access to a waterway, no manure storage system, no cover crops when main crops aren’t growing)

  • Property must have at least 5 consecutive acres

  • Property has been in agriculture production for the past 3 years (previously was 5 years)

  • Property has produced at least $1,000 worth of agriculture products/year (agriculture products include crops, hay, and livestock, such as cattle, equine, sheep, goats, llamas, alpacas, etc. Horses solely for personal use are not considered as agriculture products.)

  • Property is located in Prince William County (if your farm outside of Prince William, contact your local soil and water conservation district; to find your district, click here.)

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If you feel you have a need to implement these practices on your farm, or have any questions about the cost-share program, please contact us:

(571) 379-7514

Jay Yankey - jayyankey@pwswcd.org

Mike Miller - conservation@pwswcd.org

Duane Mohr - conservationtech@pwswcd.org

Nicole Slazinski - nicoleethier@pwswcd.org

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For more information on our specific cost-share programs, click here.

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If you're already doing everything you can on your farm to best protect the soil and water, consider signing up for a voluntary practice! Contact Nicole Slazinski - nicoleethier@pwswcd.org for more information.

 
 

Nutrient Management: An Important Message for Producers

The 2025 Chesapeake Bay cleanup goals are here, and we need every farmer's help! We need documentation of implementation of every nutrient management plan in Prince William County. Here's what you can do to help:

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  • Work with your nutrient management planner to develop a plan that can be implemented easily

  • Keep application and yield records

  • Put in place a record-keeping system so you can justify application and yield data.This must include required elements such as dates, field locations, loads, bales, bushels, gallons of manure, tons of litter, etc.

  • Share this record-keeping system with your planner.

  • Update your plan as changes occur on the farm.

  • Be prepared at the end of the growing season to evaluate how well you were able to follow your plan.

 

If you have questions, please contact your nutrient management planner:

(571) 379-7514

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You can also call the DCR Warrenton Regional Office at 540-351-1501 or
540-351-1570. For more information, click here.

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Below are some record-keeping sheets to further assist you:

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Calendar

The Board meets monthly at 8033 Ashton Avenue, Manassas,Conference Room B (due to COVID, all public meetings have been moved to 12801 Hazelwood Dr, Nokesville, VA 20181 until further notice). Citizens may have a voice in local natural resources issues by attending these meetings and taking part in District programs.

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For a .pdf version of our calendar, please click here.

Please note: The 2021 calendar may change; it is a draft and hasn't been officially approved by the BOD at this time.

TRC = Technical Review Committee (reviews conservation plans, cost-share practices, VCAP, etc.)    BOD = Board

Freedom of Information Actl
Rights of Requesters and the Responsibilities of the Prince William Soil and Water Conservation District under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act: The Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), located § 2.2-3700 et. seq. of the Code of Virginia, guarantees citizens of the Commonwealth and representatives of the media access to public records held by public bodies, public officials, and public employees.
To request records from our District, direct your request to the FOIA Officer, Jay Yankey. He can be reached at 8850 Rixlew Lane, Manassas, VA 20109, phone (571) 379-7514, email jayyankey@pwswcd.org.
 

Prince William Soil & Water Conservation District, 8850 Rixlew Lane, Manassas, VA 20109

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