Ohio Mixed Bag: H2Ohio goes over 2 million acres

Columbus — Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) Director Brian Baldridge announced recently an additional 500,000 acres of cropland are now enrolled into H2Ohio, bringing the total enrollment to 2.2 million acres statewide.

Initially, H2Ohio incentives for producers were available in the northwest part of the state, specifically in the Western Lake Erie Basin (WLEB). In this area, 2,600 producers are actively implementing best management practices (BMPs) on more than 1.8 million acres of farmland.

In April, DeWine announced a statewide expansion of producer incentives, making the initiative available for the first time to producers who farm outside of the WLEB. For this first round of statewide enrollment, ODA offered enough funding and resources to enroll a new 500,000 acres outside of the WLEB. More than 525 producers in 51 additional counties fulfilled the 500,000-acre goal.

Today, more than 3,000 producers have enrolled 2.2 million acres of cropland in H2Ohio.

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SSSF Holds Record-Breaking Shoot In Ohio

Marengo, Ohio — The 2023-2024 season for the Scholastic Shooting Sports Foundation’s (SSSF) youth development programs has concluded with another record-breaking national championship event.

Hosted at the Cardinal Shooting Center in Marengo, Ohio, the annual youth shooting sports competition once again set the mark for the largest shoot in Cardinal Center history. Between the SSSF’s clay target and action shooting youth programs, 40 states were represented at the national championships, which saw over 3 million rounds safely fired without incident.

Action shooting sports participation continues to grow throughout the nation for young athletes and had a strong showing at the SSSF’s Scholastic Action Shooting Program (SASP) National Championship. Once again in 2024, the SASP broke the world record for the largest action shooting event in the world, all by youth athletes.

With over 2,600 entries, athletes safely fired over 565,000 rounds of ammunition in competition without incident, along with side matches, sponsor demos, and practices tallying in additional hundreds of thousands of rounds. SCTP participation surged as well with over 3,100 athletes and over 9,000 event entries during the twelve-day event schedule.

This marks the largest national championship the SCTP has ever conducted, with over 2 million White Flyer targets being thrown in competition, side matches, and practice.

Delaware Site Of Wetland Project

Ashley, Ohio — As part of Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s H2Ohio initiative, the Ohio DNR (ODNR) recently celebrated the O’Donnell Wetland Restoration and Treatment Train project.

Two wetlands were restored, and five others were enhanced as part of the project. The wetlands will create a treatment train, filtering the water while capturing sediment, phosphorous, and nitrogen from nearby farmland drainage.

The project impacts 250 acres in the Delaware Wildlife Area in Ashley, Ohio. The wetlands will connect to Delaware Lake through a pump, water control structures and water distribution channels.

In addition, the project protects habitat for both wildlife and plants. Sandhill cranes, an endangered species in Ohio, have been spotted at the project site.

“This conservation project covers all bases,” said Ducks Unlimited Senior Regional Biologist Russ Terry. “We restored and enhanced 250 acres of wetlands that will provide habitat for waterfowl and other wildlife, expanded and improved public recreation opportunity, and positively impacted the water quality in Delaware Lake.”

Event Highlights Little Beaver Creek

Liverpool, Ohio — The Ohio DNR (ODNR) and river enthusiasts of all ages recently gathered together to celebrate Little Beaver Creek Stream Life Day. The day was dedicated to free, family-friendly demonstrations, including wading in the river to learn about aquatic critters. Along with all of the fun, it was also a day of celebration for Little Beaver Creek’s 50th anniversary as a scenic river.

The event was put together by the ODNR Division of Natural Areas and Preserves (DNAP) along with other ODNR divisions including Forestry, Parks and Watercraft, and Wildlife and staff from the H2Ohio Rivers Program. Stream Life Day gave visitors a chance to learn more about the Little Beaver Creek State Wild and National Scenic River as well meet the ODNR professionals who work to protect and conserve this important natural resource.

Little Beaver Creek, which flows through some of Ohio’s wildest and most scenic areas, was designated as a wild river on Jan. 15, 1974. The waterway features fast flowing rapids, quiet pools, and swift flowing tributaries. The Little Beaver also supports diverse wildlife with 63 species of fish, 49 mammal species, 140 types of birds, and 46 species of reptiles and amphibians. It also hosts Ohio’s largest population of endangered hellbender salamanders.

Cleveland Benefits From New Interior Funds

Washington, D.C. — The Department of the Interior recently announced $46.7 million in funding through the Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership (ORLP) program for the redevelopment or creation of 10 local parks in Tucson, Arizona; Porterville, California; Des Moines, Iowa; Kansas City, Missouri; New Brunswick, New Jersey, Garner and Raleigh, North Carolina; Cleveland, Ohio; and Houston, Texas.

This brings the total nationwide investment of ORLP grant funding in 2024 to nearly $127 million. The Department previously announced a $21.9 investment in March 2024 and $58.3 million in November 2023.