Director's Meeting

The Director's Meeting is held on the second Thursday of each month at the USDA Service Center in Bedford. The meeting starts at 6:00pm. Meetings are open to the public.

District Staff

Currently, the District’s office is staffed by the District Manager/Conservation Specialist, Agricultural TMDL Conservation Technician, and Administrative Assistant/Residential Conservation Technician. These individuals take care of the day-to-day business of the District and provide the technical assistance for programs the District administers. Training and continuing education are ongoing priorities for all of the District’s employees. Nutrient management, agricultural waste management, pesticide safety, prescribed burn, cultural resources, threatened and endangered species, water system design, stream crossing design, heavy use area and travel lane design, soils, integrated pest management, agronomic practices, grazing management, and conservation planning are just a few of the areas District staff receive continued education or maintain certification in.

District Directors

Chairman Richard Chaffin			Vice-Chairman Thomas Watson
County Representative John Hopkins			Appointed Director Scott Baker
City Representative Corey Crompton			City Representative John Morris
Associate Director Robert Dixon			Associate Director Homer Bauserman
Associate Director Denzil Barker

Thomas (Tommy) Watson

He has served as a Director since 2007 and prior to that served as Associate Director from 2001-2006. He is a native of Bedford County and the fourth generation to operate the family farm located below the Peaks of Otter. His family farm, Dawn Dairy, has been recognized as a Virginia Century Farm. Dawn Dairy has incorporated intensive rotational grazing, nutrient management, and no-till planting methods into its production system and received numerous awards for its outstanding production practices and stewardship of natural resources. Dawn Dairy has been the Roanoke River Grand Basin Winner of the Virginia Clean Water Farm Award presented by the Department of Conservation & Recreation, Division of Soil and Water. Tommy is married to the woman of his dreams, Cathy.

Scott Baker

In addition to serving as an appointed director for the POSWCD, Scott has been the agricultural extension agent for Bedford since 1997.  While his primary Extension responsibility is in the area of livestock agriculture, Scott also provides educational programs in horticulture through a network of trained Extension Master Gardeners, pest management and agricultural economic development.  He received degrees in Animal Science from Cornell University and Virginia Tech.  Scott is a native of Pennsylvania and married to Jan.

Corey Crompton

Corey represents the City of Bedford on the POSWCD, and was elected to the office for the 2008 - 2012 term. In his regular job, Corey is the Information Technology Manager for the City of Bedford municipal government. He started working for the City in 2003, shortly after he and his wife, Allison, moved to Bedford from Maryland. Prior to his employment with the City, Corey worked as a network and systems engineer and database analyst for numerous companies over 20 years including American Airlines, GE, USWeb, and Intuit Software. In his off hours, Corey enjoys playing guitar as a semi-professional musician, as well as renovating his 1896 house and working in his gardens. He is a 1984 graduate of the College of William and Mary.

The Peaks of Otter Soil and Water Conservation District programs, activities and employment opportunities are available to all people regardless of race, color, religion, gender, age, disability, national origin or political affiliation. The District is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer.
1031 Turnpike Rd., Bedford, VA 24523 (USDA Service Center) Phone: 540.586.9195 x4 Fax: 540.586.4638 poswcd@verizon.net