Matt Lohr, who has served as the only appointed chief of USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service during the Trump administration, is leaving USDA. In an exit interview with Agri-Pulse, the departing chief of USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, Lohr says he expects the agency to finalize four major conservation program rules this fall, including those for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program and the Conservation Stewardship Program. The rules will make changes required by the 2018 farm bill. Lohr, who told employees he’d be leaving Aug. 15 to manage his farm in Virginia full-time, says the agency will be in good hands with incoming Acting Chief Kevin Norton. One of his final acts as Chief was to convene a stakeholder conference call which LICA participated in.
