Transmitted herewith is the annual report required by Sec. 7(c) of the Soil and Water Resources Conservation Act of 1977 (P.L. 95 - 192).

The Soil and Water Resources Conservation Act of 1977 (RCA) requires the Secretary of Agriculture to appraise the condition of the soil, water, and related resources on the nonfederal lands of the Nation and to develop a national soil and water conservation program for assisting landowners and land users in their future conservation activities on these lands.

The first appraisal, completed in 1980, was based primarily on the Department of Agriculture's 1977 National Resources Inventory. The 1977 Inventory provided a solid foundation for the appraisal and program.

The first program report, A National Program for Soil and Water Conservation, was completed in 1982. It set national conservation objectives and priorities, focused corrective action on areas of the country with the most critical problems, and strengthened the existing partnership among local and State agencies, organizations, and the Federal government for dealing with resource problems. Guided by this program, the Department of Agriculture has concentrated more technical and financial assistance than ever before in areas with the most serious problems of soil erosion and dwindling water supplies.

The Department of Agriculture has been reshaping its conservation programs using the 1980 appraisal and 1982 program as its blueprint. We look forward to steadily increasing gains in the fight against soil erosion and other resource problems in the years ahead.

Sincerely,

Ronald Reagan

Note: This is the text of identical letters addressed to Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr., Speaker of the House of Representatives, and George Bush, President of the Senate.

The report is entitled ``Annual RCA Progress Report, National Program for Soil and Water Conservation, Fiscal Year Ending September 30, 1983'' (United States Department of Agriculture).