2026 VERMONT AGRICULTURAL WATER QUALITY PARTNERSHIP (VAWQP) ANNUAL MEETING
Tuesday, March 31, 2026
Killington Grand Hotel, 228 E. Mountain Road, Killington
This year’s annual state-wide Vermont Agricultural Water Quality Partnership meeting at the Killington Grand Hotel will once again provide the opportunity to network with others working in the water quality field.
2026 VAWQP Annual Meeting Registration
Conservation and technical assistance professionals are invited to convene at the Killington Grand Hotel on March 31, 2026 to review on-going water quality improvement efforts, hear from leaders on a variety of important topics, and network with colleagues. This event is organized by the Vermont Agricultural Water Quality Partnership and hosted by the Vermont Association of Conservation Districts (VACD). Lunch will be provided.
Registration fee: $75; includes breakfast, lunch, and parking.
Registration closed March 11th. For questions or to be added to the wait list, please contact Julia King.
Agenda
9:00 - 9:30 am - Meet, Greet, Network
Coffee and refreshments provided
9:30 - 9:45 am - Welcome and Introducing the Day
9:45 - 10:35 am - Keynote: Vermont Farmland Conversion: What's at Stake
American Farmland Trust’s Farms Under Threat research, including a special new analysis, shows farmland in Vermont is being lost at a rate higher than projected. We’ll frame the state of farmland conservation and housing efforts in Vermont, and then take a deeper dive into what’s behind farmland conversion trends in Vermont. For solutions to this issue check out the morning breakout session, Vermont Farmland Conversion: What We Can Do About It.
Speakers: Stacy Cibula, Associate Conservation Director, Vermont Housing & Conservation Board and Jamie Pottern, Senior New England Program Manager, American Farmland Trust
10:35 - 11:00 am - Break
11:00 - 11:50 am - Breakout Session 1
1-A Vermont Farmland Conversion: What We Can Do About It
Following the keynote address about farmland conversion trends in Vermont, this workshop will allow participants to hear from practitioners about what is being done to address it, including statewide and regional planning and conservation efforts. There will be time to brainstorm innovative solutions that go beyond traditional conservation. You’ll leave the workshop with some tangible actions you can take to address the problem.
Panelists: Sam Smith, Farm Business Director, Intervale Center, Mike Winslow, Assistant Director & Transportation Planner, Addison County Regional Planning Commission, Al Karnatz, Project Director, Vermont Land Trust, and Ben Gabos, Program Coordinator, Water Quality Program, Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets.
Facilitators: Stacy Cibula, Associate Conservation Director, Vermont Housing & Conservation Board and Jamie Pottern, Senior New England Program Manager, American Farmland Trust
Location: Oscar I
1-B Workshop: Utilizing GIS & UAV in Your Conservation Work
Join us for an introductory workshop where we’ll explore the basics of ArcGIS Pro and how it can be used to support conservation efforts. We’ll start with an overview of ArcGIS Pro fundamentals, covering how to set up your project, organize layers, and access data through the Portal within ArcGIS Pro and VCGI. We’ll also introduce cloud-optimized formats like Cloud Optimized GeoTIFFs (COGs), demonstrating how these can streamline data access and improve project efficiency.
Additionally, the UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) team will showcase some of their recent work, giving you a glimpse into how UAV technology can enhance conservation practices. While we’ll only be scratching the surface, you’ll gain a sense of how UAV imagery can be integrated into your projects by using GIS and the potential it holds for future applications. We’ll wrap up the session with an open Q&A, offering you a chance to ask questions, share feedback, and discuss how these tools can be applied to your ongoing conservation initiatives.
Speakers: Luc Burnier, GIS/UAV Technician, Vermont Association of Conservation Districts, Shannon Harty, GIS/UAV Technician, Vermont Association of Conservation Districts, and Matthew Marcelino, GIS Specialist, Vermont Association of Conservation Districts
Location: Gateway I + II
1-C Disaster Resilience Pre Planning
What can we do ahead of time to plan for natural disasters? Hear from the Winooski NRCD about their local fund pool that focused on upstream land owners and projects that can have downstream impacts. Explore how the value and function of restored wetlands build resilience to flooding and drought.
Speakers: Cassidy Gale, Wetlands Easement and Restoration Specialist, Vermont Association of Conservation Districts, Dan Koenemann, District Manager, Winooski Natural Resources Conservation Districts, Kyle Medash, Supervising River Corridor & Floodplain Manager, Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, Department of Environmental Conservation, Rivers Program, and Shannon Pytlik, River Scientist, Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, Department of Environmental Conservation, Rivers Program.
Location: Northstar I
1-D Regenerative Agriculture
In December, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) launched the NRCS Regenerative Pilot Program, a farmer first, outcomes-based approach to conservation designed to return the agency to its core mission – helping people help the land. Learn more about how NRCS is investing $700 million to specifically support regenerative agriculture and how you can support producers through this process.
Speakers: Diana Dellinger, Assistant State Conservationist – Programs, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Brandon Carpenter, Acting State Resource Conservationist, Natural Resources Conservation Service
Location: Northstar II
11:50 am - 12:30 pm - Lunch & Networking
Lunch Buffet will be open from 11:50 am – 12:50 pm
12:30 - 1:20 pm - Turning Stones: Discovering the Life of Water
Speaker: Declan McCabe, read bio here.
Lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, and even rain gutters teem with life you can easily observe. With an investment of less than $20 you can see many more of our fellow travelers. Declan McCabe, an aquatic ecologist and professor of biology at Saint Michael’s College, discusses and shares photographs of the stunning and fascinating organisms found in Vermont’s waterways.
Vermont’s analog to the rising sea waters described in The Light Pirate has been increased rainfall due to the additional moisture in the atmosphere. Declan’s book includes discussion of a tipping point in the mid 1990s resulting in more intense storms, particularly in fall. The talk will include strategies to minimize stormwater impacts and ways to live with the expectation of additional flooding.
1:20 - 1:35 pm - Break
1:35 - 2:20 pm - Breakout Session 2
2-A Viability of Farms Panel
Panelists: Silene DeCiucies, Farm Business Planner, Center for an Agricultural Economy, Kate Wettergreen, Agricultural Programs Manager, Franklin County Natural Resources Conservation District, Liz Gleason, Program Director, Vermont Farm & Forest Viability Program, Vermont Housing and Conservation Board
Facilitator: Marli Rupe, Agricultural Water Quality Section Chief, Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, Department of Environmental Conservation
Location: Oscar I
2-B Wetland Mapping Review
Lions, tigers and bears, oh my! Old wetland maps, new wetland maps, executive orders and wetland mapping, act 121 and continued wetland mapping…when did it or will it happen and what does all this talk about wetland mapping actually mean for our types of projects.
Speaker: Zapata Courage, District Wetlands Ecologist, Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, Department of Environmental Conservation
Location: Northstar I
2-C Disaster Recovery
Whether it’s a flood or other natural disaster, what are the next steps we can take to help land owners and agricultural producers? Hear about how important that first contact after a disaster hits can be in building relationships with the community. Learn more about the Disaster Assistance Programs available from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Speakers: Nina Gage, Assistant Director, Water Quality Division, Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets, Taylor Johnson, Conservation Specialist, Caledonia County NRCD, Eileen Powers, Agricultural Program Specialist for Conservation, Farm Service Agency
Location: Gateway I + II
2-D Dam Removals 101
Want to learn more about dam removals and what’s happening on the ground in Vermont? Join us as we review recent projects including Franklin County NRCD’s Trout Brook Reservoir Dam removal and four years of monitoring data from Johnson’s Mill Dam removal. Speakers will share lessons learned and things to look out for including design components, permitting, funding resources, and partnerships.
Speakers: Karina Dailey, Science and Restoration Director, Vermont Natural Resources Council, Corrie Miller, Aquatic Organism Passage Restoration Specialist, Lake Champlain Basin Program, Lauren Weston, District Manager, Franklin County Natural Resources Conservation District
Location: Northstar II
2:20 - 2:35 pm - Break
2:35 - 3:30 pm - Closing Reflection: The Valley Brook Restoration Project
A decade in the making, this project began with Farm Team coordination and technical and financial assistance for a small dairy & sugaring operation with marginal croplands and numerous water quality challenges. Ultimately, local and regional partners, including the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board, worked with the landowner to pursue and execute a successful farm retirement effort complete with a 165-acre conservation acquisition and comprehensive restoration of the property.
Speakers: Patrick Hurley, Project Manager, Memphremagog Watershed Association, Sarah Damsell, Executive Director, Orleans County Natural Resources Conservation District, and Ben Gabos, Program Coordinator, Water Quality Program, Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets
3:30 pm - Farewell and Thank You!
MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE MEETING & PARTNERSHIP
The Vermont Agricultural Water Quality Partnership (VAWQP) is dedicated to collaborating with and supporting agricultural producers and land stewards in their efforts to improve water quality. VAWQP is comprised of the agencies and organizations that signed the Lake Champlain Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in January 2012, and resigned in 2018 and 2024. The Partnership seeks to accelerate improved water quality by collaborating to provide outreach, education, technical and financial assistance directly to agricultural producers and land stewards with respect for each partner’s vision, role and capacity. The MOU partners currently includes USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, USDA Farm Service Agency, Vermont Association of Conservation Districts, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, University of Vermont Extension, Vermont Agency of Natural Resources Department of Environmental Conservation, Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets, Vermont Housing and Conservation Board and Lake Champlain Basin Program.
The VAWQP meeting will provide an opportunity for leadership and staff on the front line of Vermont’s clean water efforts to review progress towards and discuss strategies for improving the state’s waters as required by Act 64, Vermont’s Clean Water Law. Opportunities at the meeting to network with regional partners will support more effective and targeted focus of effort in order to accelerate improvements in water quality around the state. Presentations by a diverse group of water quality specialists and other natural resource professionals will highlight new and innovative approaches to addressing water quality concerns.