"Jim and Val Hebbe's commitment to no-till and other conservation efforts that benefit soil and water is exemplary," said Brent Haglund, Sand County Foundation president. "Their on-the-farm practices and off-the-farm leadership make them shining examples of Wisconsin's agricultural community."

Jim Hebbe has been implementing conservation practices for 25 years and has shared his ideas with other farmers as the Green Lake County Conservationist since 1984.

He and his wife, Valerie, raise 1,100 acres of corn, soybeans, wheat and alfalfa in central Wisconsin. In addition to no-till planting all of the crops, he has worked to develop numerous conservation systems that complement each other and lead to less erosion and more residue cover on the land.

The farm includes land with a significant slope draining into a Class 1 Trout Stream. A water and sediment basin was constructed to help control and reduce field runoff into the stream. Native prairie grasses were planted in a field that borders the creek. Twenty-five acres of evergreen trees were planted on a farm with light and sandy soil.

In 1985, he helped develop conservation standards for the Farmland Preservation Program participants to control soil erosion to sustainable levels.

The Leopold Conservation Award, named in honor of world-renowned conservationist Aldo Leopold, is now presented annually in eight states to private landowners who practice responsible land stewardship and management.

The Hebbes were one of the finalists for the Leopold Conservation Award. The other finalists included Justin and Lynn Isherwood of Portage County, Steve and Pat Kling of Jackson County, and Mark and Jan Riechers of Lafayette County. Each received $500 for their conservation efforts.

The first two recipients of the Leopold Conservation Award under the Sand County Foundation and Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation partnership were the Bragger family from Buffalo County and the Koepke family from Waukesha County.

The Leopold Conservation Award in Wisconsin is made possible through the generous support of The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, American Transmission Company (ATC), Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation, Rural Mutual Insurance Company and Farm Credit.  FG

—From Sand County Foundation/Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation news release