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Fawcett, Stuart win state award for conservation
by Gregory R. Norfleet · News · July 28, 2021
Two West Branch-area farmers on Monday accepted the 2021 Iowa Conservation Farmer of the Year Award from the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation and the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship.
The two agencies recognized Ken Fawcett, 72, and Kent Stuart, 57, at a noon luncheon at the Fawcett family’s Cold Springs Pond, about four miles east of town on Herbert Hoover Highway.
“We’re really pleased” to win the award, Stuart said.
Fawcett said it took them years of trial and error in their ongoing effort to reduce erosion on what the Natural Resources Conservation Service considers “highly erodible” land.
“To be recognized for these practices is rewarding,” Fawcett said.
Stuart and Fawcett both noted that Troy Vincent, Ken’s son-in-law, also provides significant help and owns some of the lands on which they farm.
Monday’s presentation was preliminary. The two will receive more formal recognition on Aug. 11 at the Iowa State Fair and the Iowa Soil and Water Conservation District Commissioners Annual Meeting in Ames.
As part of the award, the two will receive free use of a John Deere 6E Series utility tractor for 12 months or 200 hours, whichever comes first, a prize worth up to $12,000.
Neighbor John Black nominated the two. The nominations first go through a regional committee, which picks one to move on to a state committee, which then selects one winning application.
IFBF Environmental Policy Advisor Rick Robinson said the committee struggled to select a winner this year.
“We’ve seen a lot of good stories and this is another one,” he said.
Julie Kenney, deputy secretary of the Iowa Department of Agriculture, said the efforts by Stuart and Fawcett “are so important.”
“In the short time I’ve had to talk to (them), I can sense their pride, energy and passion,” she said. “I commend you for all you’ve done.”
She said the state will share their story with others and she encouraged them to continue to do the same by hosting more Field Days.
“Congratulations -- this is a big deal and a huge honor,” she said.
The uncle-nephew team started farming together in 1980.
Part of winning the award included their practice of opening up their farm to tours, sometimes to foreign representatives — some as far away as Russia, Denmark, and Sweden — to show how they implemented their practices.
“(Those tours) show what’s possible rather than just reading about it,” Stuart said.
Stuart and Fawcett own some of their acreage and rent the rest. They farm land owned by four different families. Fawcett said support from landlords — including family — of the rented property made it possible to implement many of their practices since some projects must stretch across multiple properties to work.
Mark See of Van Wall Equipment, thanked Sinclair Tractor for providing the John Deere tractor which comes with the conservation award.
He complimented the Fawcett family on how they used conservation practices to make Cold Springs Pond “a beautiful setting” compared to the convention halls usually used for previous presentations.
He called Fawcett’s and Stuart’s conservation work “very admirable,” especially since they implemented more practice than the award requires for consideration.
In a PowerPoint presentation that explained some of their efforts, they listed nine practices that worked for them: minimum tillage, started in the 1970s; no-till, started in the 1980s; Conservation Reserve Program land, 1980s; grade stabilization -- in the form of a pond -- 1985; riparian buffers, which included planing 20,000 trees, 1990s; contour buffer strips, 1990s; prairie restoration, 1990s; native grass and wildflower pollinator strips, 2016; and years of trying cover crops like rye, oats, tillage radishes and white clover.
“We strive to improve our land, and, in doing so, preserve our environment for generations to come,” read the presentation.
The conservation award began in 1952. The Fawcett family began farming in eastern Iowa in 1851, making the current family the fifth generation of farmers here.
“It’s probably 25 if you include Ireland,” Fawcett joked.
Fawcett noted that they often hire Bruce Barnhart, owner of Barnhart Custom Services, to implement some of the practices.
Cedar County Farm Bureau sponsored the lunch, which was provided by Iowa BBQ Company out of Mechanicsville.
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