About

The mission of Buchanan Soil & Water Conservation District is to take available technical, financial, and educational resources and administer programs designed to encourage individual responsibility to conserve, improve, and sustain our soil and water resources for future generations.

Buchanan Soil & Water Conservation District Offers free technical assistance to landowners in the county with land management, drainage, wetlands, soils information, best management practices and other land resource problems.

The BSWCD District Commissioners consist of local farmers and landowners who are elected to their position. Every month, the district meets to discuss various issues, including local cost-share budgets, new conservation plans, CRP approvals, and district budgets. The commissioners work in close contact with the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship- Division of Soil Conservation and Water Quality (IDALS-DSCWQ) to disperse cost-share funds for various practices. The district is in charge of the list and rules for all state cost-share practices.

The district also approves all CRP contracts within the District for the USDA NRCS. This is another way that the USDA assures the funding they give these projects goes to help conservation resources.

The district, along with the Buchanan Co. FSA committee and other local committees, has set up priorities, cost-share rates, and a ranking system for the EQIP Program. Practices for EQIP range from waterway construction and pasture management to wildlife habitat, wetland restoration, and hoop building for crops.

Every February the Buchanan Soil and Water Conservation District has to do an Annual Report. To view the report, please contact us.

District Commissioners

Sean Dolan  |  Chair

Dale Priebe  |  Vice-Chair

Tim Halligan  |  Treasurer

Cameron Cocking  |  Co-Treasurer

Becky Lindsay

Linda Walthart  |  Assistant Commissioner

Julie Althaus  | Conservation Assistant

District Staff

Evan Ronnebaum  |  District Conservationist  | evan.ronnebaum@ia.usda.gov

Vacant |  Soil Conservationist

Julie Althaus |  Conservation Assistant  |  julie.althaus@ia.nacdnet.net

Jim Brown  |  780 Hr Technician  |  JamesM.Brown@ia.nacdnet.net

Candice Williams  |  Conservation District of Iowa (CDI) Administrative Support Clerk  |  candice.williams@ia.nacdnet.net

2026 Meeting Dates

The Commissioner's FY is from July 1 thru June 30.

All meetings are held on the 4th Tuesday of the month at 2:00 p.m. Unless otherwise noted, the meetings will be at the USDA Office in Independence.

  • July 23, 2025
  • August 26, 2025
  • September 23, 2025
  • October 21, 2025
  • November 25, 2025
  • December 23, 2025
  • January 2, 2026 Organizational Meeting
  • January 27, 2026
  • February 24, 2026
  • March 24, 2026
  • April 28, 2026
  • May 26, 2026
  • June 23, 2026

Meeting Minutes