Ag News
Herbert Hodges receives state award for conservation efforts
Posted on Dec 18, 2024 at 12:09 PM
Herbert Hodges of Swainsboro has been named the 2024 Conservationist of the Year by the Georgia Association of Conservation Districts (GACD) for his outstanding contributions to natural resources conservation.
Hodges is an ordained minister and a strong conservation advocate. He helps connect minority landowners to resources in order for them to achieve their conservation goals.
Over the years, the Hodges family has hosted many groups to teach climate resilient land management techniques that reduce wildfire risk, sequester carbon emissions, and provide for a healthier and more diverse wildlife population. With assistance from the Natural Resources Conservation Service's (NRCS) Environmental Quality Incentives Program and the Conservation Stewardship Program, 390 acres of longleaf pine were established with firebreaks to allow future prescribed burning, with more longleaf planting planned this winter. To maintain and improve low-lying bottomlands and stream crossings, water bars were installed to help combat soil erosion and sediment loading.
Hodges has worked with a consulting forester and other professionals to reach his family’s goals for their land. Keeping the family estate intact has benefited the native wildlife, too. A sustainable population of the state's threatened gopher tortoise has been documented. Along with tortoises, aggregate species like the Eastern diamondback rattlesnake have been observed.
In 2021, he partnered with National Wildlife Federation (NWF) and NRCS Georgia to transform his farm into a “model farm” and provide mentorship to fellow landowners, specifically minority landowners. He has hosted several “Learn and Burns” with the NWF, NRCS, Pine Country RC&D, Georgia Forestry Commission and the Ohoopee River Soil and Water Conservation District.
“As farmers, it is our duty to be good stewards of the land that we are so blessed to work each day. This obligation is owed to our future generations,” said GACD President Jake Ford. “It’s great to see the spotlight on someone who is committed to conservation and sustainability. We congratulate Mr. Hodges on this honor and wish him luck as he competes to represent Georgia for the national Friend of Conservation award to be announced soon.”
Hodges worked closely with NWF, NRCS, The Longleaf Alliance, the GA Heirs Property Law Center, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and many other groups to develop a first-of-its-kind curriculum titled “Longleaf and the Landowner”, a three-day Longleaf Academy tailored to the minority landowner experience and history. 2024 has become an impactful year with additional workshops conducted, and NWF is working with Hodges to expand the mentorship program to additional states based on the success of his program in Georgia.
Hodges has sat on several panels with NWF and the U.S. Forest Service to share his experiences as a historically underserved landowner, as well as his experience as the first “Longleaf for All” Landowner Mentor. USDA-NRCS featured Hodges and his family accomplishments in the January 2024 publication of “Fridays on the Farm”, titled “Lifetime of Leadership and Longleaf Conservation.”
Hodges is committed to long-term sustainable forestry and wildlife management for himself, his family, and landowners in the community and region. The Hodges family farm serves as a demonstration site for other landowners, training and motivating that will inspire others.
“Herbert Hodges has worked tirelessly with his family, friends and other forest landowners to improve Georgia’s longleaf pine landscape,” said Georgia NRCS State Conservationist Terrance O. Rudolph. “This recognition is well deserved, and while we celebrate him this year, his dedication should be remembered for generations to come.”
GACD’s Conservationist of the Year award is chosen in conjunction with Georgia’s USDA-NRCS and recognizes producers who are conducting exemplary conservation work on their land and have demonstrated a strong commitment to soil and water conservation through stewardship, outreach and community interactions. Herbert was nominated for this award by the Ohoopee River Soil and Water Conservation District.
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