The Southern Plains Grasslands Summit is set to make its Oklahoma debut in Alva from May 27-29, 2026, serving as a critical hub for landowners facing the rapid spread of invasive species. This landmark event, hosted at the newly completed Salt Fork Event Center, aims to equip producers with the technical and financial tools necessary to protect Oklahoma’s rangelands. Farm Director KC Sheperd sat down with Trey Lam, Executive Director of the Oklahoma Conservation Commission, and Kay Decker to discuss how this summit will address the “green ice age” threatening the state’s agricultural productivity.
The Economic Toll of the Eastern Red Cedar
A primary focus of the three-day event is the aggressive expansion of the Eastern Red Cedar, a species that is fundamentally altering the Oklahoma landscape. Trey Lam noted that the state is currently losing ground to this invasive brush at a staggering rate.
“What we’ve found is that the life and productivity of these grasslands has really been affected, and it’s a huge economic and environmental impact on the state of Oklahoma,” Lam explained. “It’s only getting worse by the brush is growing at a 7% percent rate expansion per year, so the whole state is under kind of what we call a green wave, of kind of like a green ice age where eventually we’re going to lose a huge economic driver for the state”.
The physical impact on the land is immediate and devastating, particularly regarding water resources. Lam pointed out that these trees act as massive straws, sucking the life out of the soil.
“Basically the trees, where they’re dense, they capture the water as it falls. A lot of it doesn’t make it to the ground,” Lam said. “And then what does, they’re an evergreen so they pull water out of the ground on a continuous basis and basically, when you measure the soil moisture underneath these trees, it’s pretty close to zero”.
Comprehensive Programming for Producers
Kay Decker detailed the extensive curriculum planned for the summit, which is designed to provide actionable intelligence for cattlemen and conservationists alike. The programming is divided into three specialized tracks: Ranching and Working Lands, Wildlife and Biodiversity, and Conservation Resource Management.
“We’ve got a wide variety of speakers coming, presenters,” Decker stated. “Dr. Trey Malone from Purdue University… is going to talk to us about farm business strategies in an age of noise using AI to help make decisions where everything sounds and feels urgent”.
The summit will also feature deep dives into state-level policy and historical land changes.
“At noon, we are having a panel discussion with Trey Lam, representative Mike Dobrinski from Okeene, and Adam Ray… They’re going to talk about the legislation that has been passed for the Terry Peach Watershed and Eastern Red Cedar Program,” Decker noted. “Then we’ll follow that with a talk from Dr. Karen Hickman from OSU… she’s going to talk about Eastern Red Cedar through the generations and how that has changed the landscape and the productivity of their property”.
Field Tours and Community Integration
The event concludes with hands-on field tours on May 29, allowing participants to see conservation success stories firsthand. One tour will visit the Salt Plains Wildlife Refuge, while another focuses on legacy ranches in Southern Woods County.
“One of those ranches has been practicing conservation and a variety of strategies for over 30 years,” Decker shared. “And the other one has been much more recent in its approach to conservation, but they’re doing some great things nonetheless”.
Even the local community is getting involved, with the Alva Beer Company creating a custom “Grasslands Beer” for the social mixer held in a historic International Harvester building. Decker emphasized that the summit is designed to be accessible to all producers.
“I do have some scholarships available for producers; all they need to do is give me a call or send me an email and I’m happy to work with them on that,” Decker added. “We are offering continuing education credits through Northwest Tech Center here in Alva for credit in ranch management and conservation strategies”.
Registration for the Southern Plains Grasslands Summit is available online through the Woods County Economic Development website.
