My name is Megan Garland, and I am a rising senior majoring in Environmental Science with an emphasis in the biosphere at the University of Arizona. My interests are in using a holistic approach to understanding the impacts of climate change on ecosystems, and how these impacts can be mitigated.
This summer I am interning with the NRCS - Natural Resource Conservation Service - at the WestTech Center in Portland, Oregon.
Goals:
- Gain a better understanding of NRCS and government work
- Set and develop career goals
- Be open to learning and taking any opportunities
Week 1
The first week started out with a lot of meet and greet where I got to learn a lot about the NRCS as well as what kinds of jobs I could pursue in this line of work. By the end of the week I had thoroughly refined my introduction of myself and my interests, and improved in my ability to ask questions. My main takeaway from this week was just how important networking and forming connections is to a career in the government. Thursday was the first planned field trip of the summer, and me, my co-intern and boss toured the SWCD office in Clackamas. It was really interesting to see a property and begin navigating what property owner interactions look like. I also got training in SVAP2 (Stream Visual Assessment Protocol 2), and was able to complete an assessment of a stream located on the property. Afterwards I wrote a trip report to summarize what was discussed regarding the property and their resource concerns. Overall I got my footing at the office and gained some new skills and a lot of new information.
Week 2
During Week 2 I received my government computer and email which made every process a lot more efficient. I also continued to meet people who worked in the office or were connected to NRCS in some way. NRCS works with a lot of other government agencies such as Fish and Wildlife Services or the Forest Service since it is helpful to collaborate with different experts for projects. As I was getting more adjusted to the internship, the goals of these meetings shifted from learning about NRCS as a whole to learning how my particular interests fit in with the different projects and opportunities provided through the government.
This week I went on two different field visits. The first was a visit to the Mt. Hood SNOTEL site which monitored the precipitation and snow depth of an area. Here we viewed the tools used to collect and monitor the data: a long upright tube to collect precipitation, and a snow pillow to measure the weight of snow and height in a given spot. Both are filled with a bit of antifreeze so that the tools don’t freeze which could affect the data, and the main objective of Matt Warbritton, the SNOTEL worker, was to change out the antifreeze and ensure that the site was in good working order.
The second visit was to the Duyck Wetland Restoration Easement, which was located off the Tualatin River in Beaverton, Oregon. We were there with Kathy Pendergrass, a plant materials specialist, to evaluate the quality of the vegetation on the site. Kathy was looking for a diverse set of plants with native species present. We walked all along the easement site, and Kathy wished there was a little more diversity among the plant species, but was overall satisfied with the results. The easement was first seeded in 2011/2012, so the results were from 12-13 years of management.
Week 3
Week 3 primarily consisted of field visits with Wednesday being a day off due to the national holiday, Juneteenth. The first visit was to the South Fork Bull Run SNOTEL site where a couple of soil scientists and a SNOTEL employee worked together to install soil moisture probes. This was an all-day event as a soil pit needed to be dug and soil samples taken, a shallow trench needed to be dug for piping to connect the probes to the data collection tools, and the probes needed to be carefully installed into the side of the soil pit. I learned a lot about the soil sampling process including how to take a clod sample for bulk density testing, which turned out to be a lot more difficult than I had anticipated. I also found out that it could take up to a year to receive the bulk density data due to there being only one lab for the nation. Assisting in digging the trench provided a lot of insight into the manual labor aspect that can come with a lot of field work oriented jobs in the government.
The second field visit was to the Plant Materials Center in Corvallis, OR. Here I got to learn a lot about seed collection efforts for native and/or endangered plants that can be used by NRCS planners when addressing resource concerns. I also got to view an attempt at using a combine to collect lupine seeds, which turned out to be less successful than desired for this type of plant. My favorite part of the visit was weeding one of the fields as it was a cool opportunity to help out as well as talk to the center’s employees about their work. Towards the end of the visit there was also discussion of possibly coming back and helping around the center some more.
The last field visit was to a community garden closely tied to a hospital and managed by a nonprofit: Growing Gardens. Through this visit I got to observe and learn more about NRCS - landowner interactions. The interactions were quite different from previous since the land was urban and on a much smaller scale than some of the other places, and so the landowners had different needs and resources. Seeing how a piece of land could really benefit a community by providing education, respite, and connection, and seeing how NRCS could help increase or improve those benefits was very inspiring.
Week 4
Week 4 started off with an intern and new hire webinar where people all across the country working for the USDA were able to hear from workers who were already well established in their careers. It was a great opportunity to hear their stories and get advice on how to advance and make the most out of our careers. It turns out that a lot of employees got their start as interns in their late teens/early twenties. One of the key takeaways from the webinar was that I should never turn down new opportunities in terms of projects because you never know what valuable experience you could gain from something that might be out of your comfort zone. Another key takeaway that seems to be overarching in this internship is that networking is critical, so it’s always important to make connections and put yourself out there. Overall it was a really helpful event to attend.
During this week I also completed my government vehicle driving certificate for a short trip to the NRCS Salem Field Office. This field visit involved learning about soil health and easements as well as some of the projects this specific office worked on, which included a lot of irrigation systems. On the way back from the field office, I had the opportunity to visit the Ankeny National Wildlife Reserve. This place had a lot of interesting information about some of the native vegetation, wildlife, and bees.
Lastly, I started a project that involved conducting literature reviews on a list of carbon models in order to identify the pros and cons of each as well as potential gaps in the models. I was able to receive this opportunity by communicating with my supervisor about my interests and she saw how they aligned with a project that needed to be started. My supervisor and I sat down and discussed the desired project outcomes and formatting, and I am currently in the process of working on it.
Week 5
For Week 5 I got to spend Monday-Wednesday back at the Plant Materials Center in Corvallis. I ended up staying at a hotel in Corvallis to avoid a 1.5-2 hour commute to the center everyday. As mentioned in Week 3 there was talk of me and a few other interns coming back to help out more with tasks such as weeding and seed collection and we were able to make that happen. The extended time working at the PMC really gave me a feel for what it takes to run one of these centers. Each day was filled with a lot of labor: weeding one field after another and harvesting buckets of seeds, but it all felt very rewarding. I loved seeing the progress of a tidy crop row or knowing that each seed collected could be used to help restore native vegetation, and to top it off the PMC had a great workplace culture. Everyone was so dedicated to the goals of the center, and they passed the time out in the fields talking and playing little word games as they worked. I really enjoyed my time there and would definitely consider working or volunteering at any plant materials centers in the future. There is even one located in Tucson, north of the University.
(Unfortunately I was too focused on work to remember to take pictures)
Week 6
I spent Week 6 in Redmond Oregon for a state-wide intern camp. It was very hot this week, partly due to a heatwave, but also due to the fact that Redmond is on the other side of the Cascades, a mountain range that divides west and east Oregon. The Cascades allow for the orographic effect (aka rain-shadow effect) to take place in which any air that rises over the mountains becomes hot and dry on the other side due to physical processes that occur with the changing elevation. Having lived in Tucson most of my life I felt relatively prepared for the heat, but it still had its drawbacks as most of the activities planned were outside, and although I can tolerate the heat, it is still not easy to learn through the discomfort.
The first day we started off with introductions and going over the schedule for the week, and ended with a demonstration of the impacts of both wind & water erosion on soil. The wind erosion demonstration involved a small pan of soil with a leaf blower mechanism aimed towards it to simulate wind. Through this I was able to clearly see the different types of wind erosion, suspension, saltation, and creep and how it may impact soil health. A wind barrier was then placed in the pan and the difference it made in protecting the soil was immediately apparent, which really drove home how effective NRCS’s practices can be. The water erosion demonstration also proved the effectiveness of the practices by comparing water runoff and absorption using different cover crops. The first pan held bare soil as a control to compare the others to, the second had a basic layer of some type of hay, the third mimicked a grassland system, and the last a forest system. In the end the last pan had the least runoff and most absorption.
Day 2 we traveled to the Warm Springs Reservation to visit the Museum At Warm Springs, which held a lot of information regarding the history and culture of the Confederated Tribes who lived there. I appreciated the chance to learn the history of the indigenous communities at Warm Springs from the communities themselves. After the museum visit we traveled to a farm to hear about their resource concerns and what practices were in place at this property. Here I got more exposure to landowner interactions as well as what NRCS practices look like implemented in the field.
Day 3 started off with a trip to the OSU COAREC, Central Oregon Agricultural Research Extension Center, where we got a tour of the property and then had a presentation on a variety of crop & seed topics. I found the section on plant genetics and the measures taken to ensure no unintentional cross breeding occurs to be really interesting. After, we traveled to the National Grassland Conservation Easement. Here I learned more about soil profiles, soil texturization, and plant ID. I have yet to take any classes on plant ID, but I thoroughly enjoyed this experience and hope to take classes in the future. It feels rewarding to be able to know the names of plants, general information about their species, and their ecological impact/niche.
Day 4 was spent at a conservation easement off of the Deschutes River where I was able to complete another SVAP2 and learn about the Forest Wildlife Habitat Evaluation Guide. It was great being out in the easement surrounded by the trees and river. It’s not something I’m able to really experience in Tucson.
The last day was spent with a couple of guest speakers and a guest panel of experienced NRCS workers who all provided insightful information. The first speaker presented on the cultural resource aspect of NRCS, what that entails and how some cultural resources, such as projectile heads, were created. The diversity of potential career paths in the agency is a major draw for me. The second speaker presented on irrigation and what it meant to be an irrigation engineer. Engineering is not something I am very knowledgeable in, but it is a big component of NRCS’ work. It’s good to get learning opportunities on this subject when I can, not necessarily for my own career-use but to provide context to NRCS’ practices, and what it means to actually implement them. The guest panel answered any and all questions that me and all the other interns present had about their careers and experience with NRCS or other government agencies. A few of my key takeaways were that NRCS is really good at allowing for work/life balance, networking will get you far and wide in your career, and that’s it good to take as many project opportunities that you comfortably can, especially early in your career.
Week 7
Week 7 consisted of two field visits and project work in between. The first visit was to Clear Branch Dam, a longstanding, complex rehabilitation project that my boss has put a lot of hard work into over the years. I got to learn a lot about the overflow ramps, hydroelectric power contribution made by the dam, glacial till issues causing lateral seepages, and the community aspect of the dam’s recreational use. Aside from the recreational use, the dam also supports the community’s economy. There are a lot of fruit based farms (the “Fruit Basket”) that get their irrigation water from Clear Branch Dam, which heavily supports the economy in the area. If the dam were to be decommissioned there would be a high negative impact on the local community, and other impacts on those who get their fruit from the farms or portions of their electricity from the dam. Hearing the positive impacts on the community slightly changed my perspective of dams. Previously, I had a little bit of a negative view due to some of the negative impacts dams have on fish migration, but learning about the benefits as well as the technology to assist fish passage caused me to see from perspectives I had not before. Overall, I had a great experience at the dam and enjoyed the opportunity to take in more information about the engineering aspects of NRCS.
The second visit was a trip over to Tillamook to two different dairy farms. Tillamook seems to be known for their dairy products all over Oregon. A lot of my coworkers told me I needed to try the cheeses and ice cream from there, and I’ve seen restaurants in Portland advertise or even charge extra for Tillamook cheese in their food. After trying cheese and ice cream (separately) at a local dairy shop, I can confirm that it’s worth the praise! In regards to the dairy farms, the first one was a free stall type of farm where the cows were all located under a shelter in different large pens. There were some cool pieces of technology at this farm such as a multi-stall, rotating milking station, spinning brushes for cow scratches, a manure cleanup system, and a food pusher that would make the food more accessible to the cows. I really appreciated how dedicated the farmer was to the care and happiness of his cows. The second farm was quite different from the first as it was a pasture based setup. Instead of having their food portioned out, the cows ate in the pasture and would rotate different pastures on a 3 week basis. It was specifically 3 weeks due to the amount of time the grass needed in order to grow to full capacity. It was cool to see that the farmer had this process down to a science. Although the two farms had very different systems set up, it was clear that all the cows were well taken care of, and that the farmers were dedicated to their work. I really enjoyed this opportunity to see the animal side of agriculture, and meet a lot of cute, hardworking cows!
Week 8
There were no field visits for Week 8, but I ended up busy working on finishing up my project and preparing for a mini-presentation of my internship. The mini-presentation was Wednesday over Teams, open for anyone in the office. I used my website as my presentation as it already had all the pictures and summaries of what I did. Other activities of this week included saying my goodbyes to my coworkers, reflecting on what I’d accomplished this summer, and setting goals for how I could use my experience in the future. Overall this was a great experience that I would highly recommend for anyone looking for an internship. I gained a lot of confidence in myself, knowledge about government work as well as resource conservation efforts, and I got to make connections with lots of amazing people!