Albert Troutman Jr.

Albert Troutman, longtime member and former chair of the Moore County Soil and Water Conservation Board of Supervisors, is the new president of the North Carolina Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts.

Troutman, who previously served the state association as vice president, took office during the annual meeting held last month at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville.

This week he is in Reno, Nev., for the national association meeting.

The board of supervisors is an elected body that administers the Moore County District conservation program.Nowell Brown presently chairs the county board.

Albert Troutman, a member of the Moore SWC District Board of Supervisors, illustrated the use of natural resources by cutting into an apple, representing the world.He cut it down to a sliver of peel to represent the percentage of the world available to raise food, about 4 percent.

His apple illustration followed a video on world population, featuring a digital display marking population increases from the year 0001 A.D. to a projection of 2030, from the Roman Empire to the future modern age.

"Our natural resources are increasingly valuable," Troutman said.

Troutman said that about 40 percent of the world's land is rocky, steep, shallow or wet and unsuitable to raise crops.Other land is in desert, polar cap and mountains, and much of the remaining land on earth is covered by highways, shopping centers, hospitals and other structures.

He showed the sliver of apple skin as the percentage of the world available to feed six billion people, a figure likely to double by 2030.

Albert Troutman Jr., a member of the Moore Soil and Water Conservation District Board of Supervisors and state president, is a member of the commission, and he likes the concept.

"It turns the material into fertilizer that you can use on pasture, grassland or cropland," Troutman told The Pilot.

Troutman said it might not be suitable for all crops, but plenty of crops would benefit from this type of natural fertilizer.He said it would not work with tobacco, for example, because the mixture contains too much nitrogen.It would work well on pasture, grains, gardens and other crops.

The program closed with the presentation of door prizes and brief comments by Albert Troutman, longtime chairman of the conservation board and now president of the State Association of Conservation Districts.Board member Billy Maness, Holder and Troutman shared the door prize duties.

Albert Troutman of Pinebluff, as retiring president of the association, acted as host for the annual meeting.He was honored at an opening day reception.

The event attracted such government and agriculture leaders as former Gov.
...
In a closing message to the association, Troutman told the state's conservation leaders that acts of nature mean that a more serious attitude is being adopted toward water conservation and resource management.

"This past year has been a year of big changes for conservation districts and for many individuals," Troutman said."We can control some of these changes, and others just happen.For example, Mother Nature gave us a record drought, then a fall season of record rainfall and finally a hard hit with the recent record ice storm.As a farmer, I have been sorely tested by these challenges."

Troutman said the new Farm Bill offers "tremendous opportunities," but districts may be called on to change their methods of delivering services.With help from the association, districts can take full advantage of these changes, he said.

"At the same time, the state and local governments are in severe budget shortfalls," Troutman said."Our approach to this financial crisis can mean more opportunities for districts.We can help local governments meet many regulatory mandates and provide good natural resource management in a cost efficient way."

Troutman encouraged delegates to take advantage of the availability of state, regional and local officials during the course of the four-day meeting.He also recommended that supervisors talk to each other and share ideas about better ways to carry out conservation programs.

"Our association is strong and solid," he said."We had success in Washington getting some new resources, our foundation has succeeded in finding new resources, and we held the line on many governmental cuts.We are a results-oriented organization.I have been proud to be your president."

Troutman has served on the Moore Soil and Water Conservation District Board of Supervisors for a number of years and is a former board chairman.

In addition to Brown, the board includes Vice Chairman Albert Troutman, Secretary-Treasurer Larry Holder and members Billy Maness and Billy Carter.

A longtime district board member, Albert Troutman, was recognized for his service to the cause of conservation, and the conservation districts of North Carolina marked their 70th birthday.
...
Lynn Sprague, chief of the District Program, state Division of Soil and Water Conservation (SWC), announced that Troutman has been inducted into the North Carolina Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts Hall of Fame.
...
Troutman is a former chairman of the Moore SWC board and continues to serve as a board member.He chaired the N.C. Soil and Water Commission for a number of years and is a former president of the Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts.
...
"Albert Troutman does things because they need to be done."

Sprague recalled the year when Troutman drove his tractor through a field on his farm near Addor and carved out a conservation message in the crop rows.
...
"He's a farmer, a conservationist, a craftsman," Sprague said of Troutman.
...
Troutman and Jeanette Fuller, district secretary, presented trophies to winners of the school contests.