In 1941, the Wyoming Legislature enacted the Wyoming Soil Conservation Act which enabled ranchers and farmers to organize and develop solutions to local agricultural problems involving soil, water and erosion. The Act created the State Soil Conservation Committee which assisted supervisors of soil conservation districts. The first Soil Conservation Districts to organize in Wyoming were Big Piney, Pinedale, Star Valley, and Nowood

In 1945 individual districts formed the Wyoming Association of Conservation Districts, and in 1947 the state association met and approved a constitution and by-laws. The Association seeks to help districts stay informed on natural resource issues, obtain state and federal cooperation, and promote conservation education. Today the WACD continues to provide leadership for the conservation of Wyoming’s soil and water resources through a responsible conservation ethic

*The Wyoming Natural Resource Foundation is a sister organization to the WACD. The Foundation was established in 1993 (by members of conservations districts and the state association) to provide a mechanism to expand WACD’s natural resource conservation programs throughout Wyoming. Its mission is to assist conservation districts with programs addressing the conservation, maintenance, improvement, and development of land, water, soil, trees, vegetation, wildlife, open space, and other renewable natural resources