During the Dust Bowl crisis in 1935, Congress passed Public Law 74-46, recognizing that “the wastage of soil and moisture resources on farm, grazing, and forest lands . . .is a menace to the national welfare,” and established the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) as an agency in the USDA. (In 1994, the name of this agency was changed to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, indicating a broader scope of the agency’s mission.) To supplement this effort and to provide a local level of administration, the Standard State Soil Conservation Districts Law was passed, providing for the organization of “soil conservation districts” as governmental subdivisions of States. Franklin D. Roosevelt described the program in a letter to each state governor.
In Virginia, Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCD) are authorized through the Code of VA 10.1, Chapter 5. Districts in Virginia are self-governed subdivisions of the State, and are comprised of one or more localities. Each SWCD is governed by locally elected Board of Directors, ensuring that they remain a local influence with local people, local decision-making, and local programs. Districts encourage participation in voluntary programs, and are neither a regulatory or enforcement agency.
There are over 3000 SWCDs in the U.S., covering about 98% of the country’s land area. Districts accomplish their missions through partnerships and leveraging of local, state and federal resources.
What is a Soil and Water Conservation Distra?
Farmer & sons during dust storm, 1936. (Arthur Rothstein, photographer, April, 1936, Library of Congress)
During the Dust Bowl of the 1930s—a time when massive dust storms damaged farmland and made it hard to grow food—Congress recognized that the wastage of soil moisture resources on farm, grazing, and forest lands was a serious threat to the nation’s welfare. In 1935, it took action to protect our natural resources by passing Public Law 74-46, which created the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) as an agency in the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).
In 1994, the agency's name was changed to the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to reflect a broader mission: protecting not just soil, but also water, air, plants, and animals. To make conservation more effective at the local level, Congress also passed the Standard State Soil Conservation Districts Law. This law provided for the creation of governmental subdivision of the state known as soil conservation districts—local organizations that work directly with communities to engage in conserving soil resources and preventing soil erosion. President Franklin D. Roosevelt supported the effort and described the program in a letter to each state governor.
In Virginia, these groups are known as Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCDs) and are authorized under Code of VA 10.1, Chapter 5. Each District in Virginia is a self-governed subdivision of the state that is comprised of one or more locality. They are led by a locally elected board of directors, ensuring that they remain a local influence with local people, local decision-making, and local programs. Districts encourage participation in voluntary programs and are neither a regulatory nor enforcement agency.
Today, there are over 3,000 Soil and Water Conservation Districts across the United States, covering about 98% of the country’s land area. These districts accomplish their missions by building strong partnerships and leveraging resources from local, state, and federal programs.