Proposed Recipient: Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service

Address of Recipient: 600 John Kimbrough Blvd., Ste 509, MS 7101 College Station, TX 77843-7101

Amount of Request: $3,518,500.00

Project Description and Statement of Public Benefit: This community project would focus on using the agricultural sciences and principles of conservation planning to provide federally mandated, state sanctioned and approved pesticide applicator certification (pre-licensing) training to Texas Veterans, their eligible family members and agricultural producers in District 6. In addition, the project would provide hands-on, science-based training to improve understanding and management of soil health among veterans, adult farmers, ranchers, and Extension personnel.

The project would introduce participants in the use of portable soil testing kits recently designed by Texas A&M AgriLife Research through a USDA-NIFA grant. These portable testing kits are ready to be assembled and deployed. District 6 is proposed for a pilot project for veterans and agricultural producers on the curriculum, training, and distribution of the portable soil testing kits.