Virginia DCR (Soil & Water Conservation Districts)

New VACS Video Series Helps SWCDs Promote Cost-Share Conservation Practices

Now that the program year is in full swing, Virginia’s Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) is highlighting its Virginia Agricultural Cost-Share (VACS) video series — a set of resources Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCDs) can use to help local farmers understand conservation practices and cost-share opportunities.

The series includes 17 videos (full YouTube playlist) split across a few themes: five walk through specific best management practices (BMPs) and their benefits, while the rest feature Virginia farmers sharing firsthand experience putting those practices to work on their own operations. As DCR puts it, farmers often trust information that comes from their peers — so pairing the practice-overview videos with real producer stories gives outreach staff and small farm operators alike a more grounded picture of what implementing a BMP actually looks like.

BMP Overview Videos

Farmer & Operation Spotlights

SWCD-Focused & Educational Videos

Program Overview

How to Use These Resources

DCR suggests a few practical ways to put the series to work:

  • Website: Embed videos on VACS program pages so producers exploring conservation options have a clear, visual explanation of each practice.
  • Social media & newsletters: Share videos through social posts, e-newsletters, or email outreach campaigns.
  • Events: Play videos at producer meetings, workshops, and fairs as conversation starters before discussing local cost-share opportunities.

Videos can be embedded directly from YouTube (embedding instructions). SWCDs that want downloadable MP4 files can email pcmo@dcr.virginia.gov to be added to DCR’s Teams file-sharing group.

Source: Read the original newsletter at Virginia DCR (Soil & Water Conservation Districts) →