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The Nevada National Guard's Agribusiness Development Team is set to deploy this weekend to work in Afghanistan for one year.
The guardsmen will travel to Camp Atterbury, Ind., for additional soldier skills training before flying to Afghanistan sometime in August.
The ADT includes more than 60 soldiers and airmen who will share their agricultural knowledge and expertise with the Afghans. Many of the guardsmen performing the agricultural duties either live in the Fallon-Fernley or are former residents.
The team has about a dozen agriculture specialists who were recruited based on their background in irrigation, pest management, animal husbandry, forestry and veterinary science. About 50 percent of the soldiers and airmen will form a security force for the team.
The team's commander is Col. Johnny Isaak and the sergeant major is Command Sgt. Maj. Greg Cook, both from Carson City. The officer-in-charge of the agricultural team is Lt. Col. Bart O'Toole of Fallon.
For the past 60 days, guardsmen have tapped into the resources of Cal Poly Pomona, the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension in Reno and a Fallon dairyman and veterinarian.
O'Toole said the ADT will show techniques to Afghan and help them become more productive farmers.
“We'll take a system that works up here, simplify it, and take it to them,” O'Toole said.
During the time the ADT will be in country, O'Toole said guardsmen will show the Afghans better methods to increase milk productivity, to improve livestock productivity, to take better care of their animals and to develop methods of increasing their harvest.
When several members of the ADT trained in Fallon, they learned more about dairy industry from Eric Olsen, and then spent time with Dr. David Faught, a local veterinarian who specializes in large animals.
The team members were also instructed in the basic combat tasks needed deployment and they also completed additional training geared toward their specialized occupations. Members of the team's security forces focused on marksmanship skills and the agriculture experts focused on cooperative training with several private companies and California and Nevada schools.
The team is set to return to Nevada in July 2011.
This is the first Agribusiness Development Team in Nevada Guard history. Other National Guard states that have deployed ADTs include Kentucky, Missouri and Kansas.
The guardsmen will travel to Camp Atterbury, Ind., for additional soldier skills training before flying to Afghanistan sometime in August.
The ADT includes more than 60 soldiers and airmen who will share their agricultural knowledge and expertise with the Afghans. Many of the guardsmen performing the agricultural duties either live in the Fallon-Fernley or are former residents.
The team has about a dozen agriculture specialists who were recruited based on their background in irrigation, pest management, animal husbandry, forestry and veterinary science. About 50 percent of the soldiers and airmen will form a security force for the team.
The team's commander is Col. Johnny Isaak and the sergeant major is Command Sgt. Maj. Greg Cook, both from Carson City. The officer-in-charge of the agricultural team is Lt. Col. Bart O'Toole of Fallon.
For the past 60 days, guardsmen have tapped into the resources of Cal Poly Pomona, the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension in Reno and a Fallon dairyman and veterinarian.
O'Toole said the ADT will show techniques to Afghan and help them become more productive farmers.
“We'll take a system that works up here, simplify it, and take it to them,” O'Toole said.
During the time the ADT will be in country, O'Toole said guardsmen will show the Afghans better methods to increase milk productivity, to improve livestock productivity, to take better care of their animals and to develop methods of increasing their harvest.
When several members of the ADT trained in Fallon, they learned more about dairy industry from Eric Olsen, and then spent time with Dr. David Faught, a local veterinarian who specializes in large animals.
The team members were also instructed in the basic combat tasks needed deployment and they also completed additional training geared toward their specialized occupations. Members of the team's security forces focused on marksmanship skills and the agriculture experts focused on cooperative training with several private companies and California and Nevada schools.
The team is set to return to Nevada in July 2011.
This is the first Agribusiness Development Team in Nevada Guard history. Other National Guard states that have deployed ADTs include Kentucky, Missouri and Kansas.
