GRANT DISTRIBUTIONS FOR 2013

 

Commissioner Steve Troxler of the NC Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services selected WNC Communities during fiscal year 2013 to implement a competitive grant program consistent with the requirements of NCDA&CS and the TVA Settlement as authorized by the N.C. General Assembly. 

 

WNC Communities created the TVA Ag & Forestry Fund to focus on projects in the agriculture and forestry sectors, as well as achieve the objective of distributing the funds in a fair and equitable manner throughout 17 counties of Western North Carolina.

 

The first grant cycle drew 117 applications with over $4 million in requests.  Twenty projects totaling $578,450 have been selected leveraging over $1 million of in kind and matching funds.  The TVA Ag & Forestry Fund is pleased to announce the following projects for the first grant cycle of 2013: 

 

Project Title: Improving Profitability & Sustainability of Livestock Farms

Area Served: Buncombe County

Recipient: Buncombe County Soil & Water Conservation District

The Buncombe County Soil & Water Conservation District was awarded $13,500 to purchase a tractor-mounted, hydraulically driven post driver and a pull-behind weed wiper.  This equipment can be rented by local farmers who pasture livestock or produce hay for livestock.  Project goals are to increase sustainability and profits of livestock operations by reducing labor and energy costs, as well as increase awareness of good forage practices

 

Project: Compost Education Project

Area Served: Buncombe County

Recipient: WNC Farmers Market

The WNC Farmers Market was awarded $20,000 to purchase a state-of-the-art composting unit.  The unit will help reduce nutrient, pathogen and water quality concerns resulting from placing food and animal waste in landfills. This composting project will support regional educational efforts to teach livestock producers and others the value of converting manure and food wastes to valuable compost. 

 

Project Title: High Tunnel Greenhouse Incubator Project

Area Served: Cherokee, Clay & Graham Counties

Recipient: Cherokee County Extension Service

The Cherokee County Extension Service was awarded $35,500 to develop a high tunnel greenhouse incubator project.  The focus of this project is to reduce the area’s unemployment rate (13%-16% over the past four years) by training the local population to grow plants in high tunnels for food or ornamentals for profit.  High tunnel greenhouses are not heated and energy use is minimal.

 

Project Title: Tri-County Fertilizer & Lime Spreader Rental Program

Area Served: Clay, Cherokee & Graham Counties

Recipient: Clay County Soil & Water Conservation District

The Clay County Soil & Water Conservation District was awarded $17,000 to purchase a fertilizer-lime spreader.  The fertilizer-lime spreader will help farmers save time, energy and money by providing a rental program with a durable piece of equipment they can pull with their own tractor.  Improving Clay, Cherokee and Graham Counties’ soil, with the recommended applications of fertilizer and lime, will return these viable agricultural lands to successful row-crops, pastures and agri-forest lands. Energy costs will be reduced due to more efficient use of fertilizer at proper pH levels in the soil.

 

Project: Restoring Wildlife Habitat on EBCI Tribal Reserve

Area Served: Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians

Recipient: EBCI Fisheries & Wildlife Management

EBCI Fisheries & Management was awarded $50,000 to fund wildlife habitat restoration efforts on Tribal Reserve lands and to facilitate private landowner forest conservation efforts.  The EBCI forest habitat enhancement goals include restoring culturally important native plant communities, diversifying forest stands, managing exotic invasive species and promoting forest habitat elements beneficial to rare and culturally significant wildlife species. The project will be implemented on the EBCI’s Tribal Reserve lands in Jackson and Swain Counties.

 

Project: Pastureland Improvement – No Till Drill

Area Served: Henderson County

Recipient: Henderson County Soil & Water Conservation District

The Henderson County Soil & Water Conservation District was awarded $22,000 to purchase a no-till drill. Farmers in Henderson and Transylvania Counties can rent this equipment, which will lower the overall cost of farming.  The lime spreader will be used to achieve desired pH levels in the soil, reducing the use of fertilizer, while reducing the amount of nutrients in runoff to surface waters.  Energy costs will be reduced to more efficient use of fertilizer at proper pH levels in the soil.  

 

Project: Jackson & Swain Lime Spreader

Area Served: Jackson & Swain Counties

Recipient: Jackson Soil & Water Conservation District

The Jackson County Soil & Water Conservation District was awarded $16,000 to purchase a lime spreader.  Farmers in Jackson and Swain Counties can rent this equipment, which will lower the overall cost of farming.  The lime spreader will be used to achieve desired pH levels in the soil, reducing the use of fertilizer, while reducing the amount of nutrients in runoff to surface waters.  Energy costs will be reduced due to more efficient use of fertilizer at proper pH levels in the soil. 

 

Project: Lime Spreader & Storage Shed

Area Served: Mitchell & Yancey Counties

Recipient: Mitchell and Yancey Soil & Water Conservation Districts

The Mitchell County and Yancey County Soil & Water Conservation Districts were awarded $19,650 for the purchase of a lime spreader and storage shed.  Farmers in Mitchell and Yancey Counties can rent the lime spreader to correct pH levels of their soil.  The goal is to help improve native pastures without having to resort to more expensive means of pasture re-establishment.  Energy costs will be reduced due to more efficient use of fertilizer at proper pH levels in the soil.  

 

Project: Swain & Jackson Weed Wiper

Area Served: Swain & Jackson Counties

Recipient: Swain County Soil & Water Conservation District

The Swain County Soil & Water Conservation District was awarded $7,200 to purchase a weed wiper for rent to local farmers.  A weed wiper is a resourceful tool utilized to eliminate undesired species of weeds in a pasture or hayfield.  This equipment will provide many small, limited resource farmers in Swain and Jackson Counties with an economical and environmentally effective method for controlling noxious weeds.

 

Project Title: New Forestry & Climate Change Exhibits at the Cradle of Forestry

Area Served: Transylvania & Surrounding Counties

Recipient: Cradle of Forestry

The Cradle of Forestry in America Interpretive Association (CFAIA) was awarded $35,000 to create and install new interactive exhibits to educate the 40,000 annual visitors to the forest.  The goals for the exhibit include enhancing the public understanding of climate issues affecting the Southern Appalachians, present climate issues to visitors and encourage individual stewardship compatible with living in a changing climate.

 

Project: Pastureland Improvement Through pH & Herbicide Management

Area Served: Transylvania County

Recipient: Transylvania Soil & Water Conservation District

The Transylvania Soil & Water Conservation District was awarded $17,500 to purchase a bulk lime spreader and weed wiper herbicide applicator that can be rented by farmers.  This equipment will allow farmers to lower their expenses by being able to use a cheaper form of lime and less herbicide than they would traditionally use.  Due to the many small acreage farms in Transylvania and Henderson Counties, it is not economical for individual farmers to purchase this equipment.

 

Project Title: Converting Biomass to Useful Products & Biofuel

Area Served: Watauga & Mitchell Counties

Recipient: ASU Building Science Program

Appalachian State University was awarded $45,000 to develop an economical method for converting agricultural and forest biomass to biofuels and other useful products.  The biomass is converted close to its origin so process heat can be used to heat farm buildings, greenhouses, community buildings, or in industry.  By- and co- products produced through this method include; organic pesticides, soil amendments, animal deterrents and filter media.  By minimizing transportation costs and maximizing utilization of by- and co- products, the project aims to make heat and by- and co- product production profitable. 

 

Project: Refrigerated Truck for TRACTOR

(Toe River Aggregation Center Training Organization Regional)

Area Served: Yancey, Mitchell, Madison & Avery Counties

Recipient: Yancey County Government

Yancey County Government was awarded $43,500 to purchase a refrigerated truck.  The refrigerated truck will allow TRACTOR, a food hub center formed to serve farmers in Mitchell and Yancey Counties to deliver produce directly to stores and restaurants. 

 

REGIONAL PROJECTS

 

Project: Averting a Fish health Crisis in WNC

Area Served:  Regional Project benefiting Western North Carolina

Recipient: NCSU Department of Biology

The NCSU Department of Biology was awarded $42,650 to sample trout from 16 trout farms in Western North Carolina for the presence of Weissella sp, a pathogen that poses a significant threat to the rainbow trout aquaculture industry of North Carolina. The trout farms are located in Macon, Cherokee, Graham and Swain Counties.  A focus on vaccination as opposed to the use of antibiotics to control the disease, will lessen potential for ecological impacts in receiving waters.

 

Project: Breeding Pest Resistance into Fraser Firs & Hemlocks

Area Served:  Regional Project benefiting Western North Carolina

Recipient: NCSU Department of Entomology

The NCSU Department of Entomology was awarded $39,250 to breed and test adelgid-resistant Frasier firs and hemlocks for use in Western North Carolina forests, the WNC Christmas tree industry and the WNC ornamental tree industry.  Two exotic insect pests, the balsam woolly adelgid and the hemlock woolly adelgid, are threatening the forest ecosystems of Western North Carolina.  Grant funds will be used to support a new round of genetic testing and crossbreeding of firs and hemlocks and to orchestrate a symposium to bring together scientists, information and resources from North Carolina and elsewhere to solve this problem.

 

Project: Business Plan for Brewer’s Grain Alliance

Area Served:  Regional Project benefiting Western North Carolina

Project Location: Buncombe County

Recipient: WNC Brewers Grain Alliance

Fiscal Agent: Buncombe County Farm Bureau

The WNC Brewer’s Grain Alliance was awarded $20,000 to establish an entity that would work with local breweries, dozens of area livestock producers, transportation providers, researchers and others to match the growing supply of wet brewers’ grain with the demand for lower-cost livestock feed.  This business entity would be based in Buncombe County and serve the Western North Carolina counties.

 

Project: Foothills Pilot Plant Equipment & Sustainability Program

Area Served: Regional Project benefiting Western North Carolina

Project Location: McDowell County

Recipient: McDowell Economic Development Association

The McDowell Economic Development Association was awarded $34,700 for the purchase of an emergency back-up generator and freezer for Foothills Pilot Plant.  FPP is a U.S. Department of Agriculture and Food and Drug Administration-inspected small animal processing facility located in Marion.  The installation of this equipment will increase revenue for farmers, increase plant revenue and prevent catastrophic line stoppage and /or loss of cold storage capacity.

 

Project: Geothermal Chilling for WNC Farms

Area Served: Regional Project benefiting Western North Carolina

Project Location: Haywood County

Recipient: Haywood Community College

Haywood Community College was awarded $50,000 to fund a retrofit of a high-energy efficient geothermal heating ventilation and air conditioning system used in residential and agricultural applications.  The goals of the project are to develop a demonstration vegetable pre-cooling unit based on geothermal cooling, document the cost savings of geothermal cooling compared to traditional methods of pre-cooling, create a professional workforce development program on geothermal cooling and create an educational unit on geothermal heating and cooling within a HVAC curriculum certificate.

 

Project: Creating an Ag Simulator to Educate Youth

Area Served: Regional Project benefiting Western North Carolina

Project Location: Henderson County

Recipient: Henderson County Farm Bureau

The Henderson County Farm Bureau was awarded $25,000 to build an agricultural simulator that could travel to fairs, schools, 4-H Clubs, Future Farmers of America events and community gatherings to provide a virtual, interactive experience that emulates driving a tractor or combine, maintaining and harvesting crops and practicing farm and equipment safety.  The Ag Simulator will be housed and maintained at the Buncombe County Farm Bureau and will be available for use in Western North Carolina counties.

 

Project: Producer Development Program

Area Served:  Regional Project benefiting Western North Carolina

Recipient: Mountain Cattle Alliance

Project Location: Haywood County

Fiscal Agent:  Southwestern Commission

The Mountain Cattle Alliance was awarded $25,000 to develop a system where cattle will be collected at three to five rural collection points throughout Western North Carolina each Sunday afternoon, then transported to the WNC Regional Livestock Center for inclusion in the weekly sale each Monday.  Additionally, the Mountain Cattle Alliance will educate cattle producers on the importance of practicing Beef Quality Assurance practices. BQA producer information will focus on how to implement practices that add value to their livestock, such as feedstuffs, nutrition, medications, inoculation, animal husbandry and record-keeping.