For the second year, DCA will recognize a chicken grower who goes above and beyond to make his or her farm environmentally responsible and compatible with neighboring properties with the George 'Bud' Malone Environmental Award. This award shines a spotlight on Delmarva chicken growers who integrate vegetative environmental buffers and other conservation measures, ensuring their farms are sustainable and are good neighbors. The winner of the award also receives a $500 prize from DCA. You can nominate a farm for the award by acting before June 23.
The award is named for Bud Malone, who had the foresight to begin our nationally recognized vegetative environmental buffers program, and who remains involved in DCA and Delmarva's chicken community. This program has resulted in the planting of thousands of trees, shrubs and grasses on family-owned poultry farms on Delmarva and led to improved relations between farm owners and neighboring property owners. In 2022, the Malone Award was presented to John and Linda Brown, who own L & J Farm in Harrington, Del.
Applications will be accepted from a grower, his or her family, friends, flock supervisors or state or federal agencies. Which means, growers, you can self-nominate, or you can nominate a fellow grower whose farm you admire! To be nominated, a grower must be a DCA member at the $150 level or above.
Practices to be considered include:To apply for the George 'Bud' Malone Environmental Award, print and complete this form, and send it to DCA's communications manager, James Fisher, by June 23, 2023. DCA staff may contact the owners of nominated farms to schedule a visit and identify and verify the practices listed on the application. Applications will be submitted to the Grower Committee Chairperson for review. The Grower Committee will make the final determination of the winner at its September meeting.
DCA will recognize the award recipient at a grower event in October with a plaque, a news release promoting the grower's accomplishments, and may nominate the recipient for US POULTRY's Family Farm Environmental Excellence Award.
Submit an application by June 23 to:
James FisherDCA has been awarded a $192,000 grant from the state of Delaware to operate a cost-share program funding installation of two kinds of vegetative environmental buffers on Delaware broiler farms: hedgerows of warm-season grasses near tunnel fans and sidewall fans, and pollinator-friendly plantings. DCA is providing a $262,235 match over the three-year course of the grant. A cost-share program is now available to eligible DCA members that covers 90 percent of the costs of technical assistance, installation, and reporting for these types of buffers. The grower's cost to take advantage of the cost-share program will be the remaining 10 percent.
Because of Delaware's and the EPA's water-quality priorities, eligibility for the cost-share programs is limited to farms in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, the Delaware Inland Bays, and certain areas of the St. Jones River (Delaware Bay) watershed. To qualify, an applicant must be in good standing as a DCA member, at the $150 level or higher, prior to DCA staff providing on-farm technical assistance for these best management practices (BMPs).
To apply, growers will fill out this application form. DCA staff will complete a planting design showing BMP location and estimated plant quantities and materials, and we will also assist the applicants in locating contractors to provide estimates on BMP installation.
Growers must submit invoices to DCA staff for installed BMPs on a timely manner to initiate the final inspection on completion as well as to start the payment process. Growers will be obligated to maintain the installed BMPs for their intended purpose of treating a documented resource concern for a period of 10 years. If the installed BMPs are destroyed in any manner, they will be reinstalled at the owner's expense. DCA staff will perform annual and semi-annual inspections to verify the conditions of the BMPs during the first five years.
Repayment of cost-share funds to DCA will be required if any of the following occur:The cost-share program began in 2022 and is now open for applicants. If you have questions about the cost-share program, contact us at dca@dcachicken.com.
