When I interviewed with the Idaho Soil and Water Conservation Commission last month, someone on the panel equated the conservation partnership in the recent past between local, state, and federal agencies to a three-legged stool: each leg of the stool is equally important to anyone planning on sitting down.
If you know anything about me, you know I’m big on locally led decision-making AND equally big on coordinating policy and projects between all levels of government. In order to do good things for the land you not only need willing landowners, you need strong conservation partners. Strong partners make for solid seating.
[California's unwillingness or inability to sustainably fund local on-the-ground efforts has been an insurmountable problem and will likely be for some time: the legs of the stool are there, though just barely. Conservation efforts in Idaho benefit from annual general fund allocations (to the Soil and Water Conservation Commission, the largest portion of which is rolled directly down to local districts), special conservation account funds, contributions from federal and other state agencies, and matching funds from counties.]
While the fellow at my interview said use of the three-legged stool analogy is not so common any more, we’re working to bring it back. Compared to what I’ve seen in other states (not naming names, just sayin’…), Idaho doesn’t have so far to go.
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