Tysdal appointed to state board

David Tysdal was recently appointed to the Wyoming Natural Resource Foundation Board of Trustees at the organization’s state meeting in Casper at the beginning of December. Tysdal has served on the Weston County Natural Resource District board for eight years, and he has been the chairman for two years.

Entities such as the local resource districts and the Wyoming Natural Resource Foundation are important to manage natural resources, Tysdal said. 

“I think our natural resources should be top priority. … We have to take care of them if they’re going to take care of us in the future,” Tysdal said. 

The foundation, whose two main areas of focus are education and community conservation, is involved in river and stream restoration and forest health, among other things.

“The Foundation was proud to sponsor the Trout Run Fishery enhancement project in Saratoga.  In November 2019 the Foundation awarded a $16,000 grant to the Star Valley Conservation District for the Lower Swift Creek Stream Restoration and Stabilization Project,” the foundation website states. 

The foundation is also involved in efforts to treat pine beetle-affected areas in the Black Hills National Forest and private lands through its support of the mitigation work being done by the natural resource districts of Crook and Weston counties, according to wynaturalresourcefoundation.com. 

The State Fair Living Legacy program, which deals with trees at the state fairgrounds in Douglas, and the State Fair Pathway to Water Quality program are also projects of the foundation. 

The foundation offers scholarships, among other educational projects. 

Tysdal said the local district does a number of things with resource management, including providing services to landowners and residents of Weston County. The district does cost share on projects, is involved with forestry planning, pasture management and other projects. 

“We try to promote natural resources in Weston County and provide services to the landowners and residents of Weston County who are within the resource district,” Tysdal said. 

Caleb Carter, WCNRD district manager, said that he has appreciated having Tysdal on the local board. 

“He brings a lot of leadership to the board, and I think he brings a real interest in being active in our natural resource management,” Carter said. “I think that he also has good insight into a lot of the challenges that agriculture is facing.” 

Carter said he’s excited to have Tysdal on the state foundation board because it’s important to have representation from across the state. Tysdal will have the opportunity to bring awareness of challenges faced specifically in the northeast corner of Wyoming, Carter said.

It furthers conservation all around to have specific areas and needs represented, according to Carter. 

The existence of local conservation districts is equally important, Carter said, so that each district can communicate with federal programs what the area it represents really needs and what challenges need to be addressed. While the district has some of its own funding and programs, it also partners with other federal programs and agencies such as the Farm Service Agency. 

“Having these local boards is really crucial because they help to really drive and develop how these programs are operated on a local basis, how funding is allocated on a local basis. … It’s really important to have that locally led conservation,” Carter said.

Those local conservation efforts are exemplified in both the local districts and in having representation from around the state on boards such as the Wyoming Natural Resource Foundation. 

“One of the other benefits of having David on the Wyoming Natural Resource Foundation board is that that money really is designed

to come back to the individual county conservation districts, and … just having him on that board and being aware of the challenges we’re facing also helps better allocate those funds (and) meet those needs and challenges,” Carter said.