Conservation Blogger

Message to Congress: Healthy lands, waters support a healthy economy
The Huffington Post    Share   
Mark Tercek, CEO of The Nature Conservancy, writes that despite the billions of dollars generated from agriculture (among other lucrative industries), there's a serious misconception in the way people think and talk about government funding for conservation. Tercek says that conservation investments sustain the valuable benefits that nature provides to people — safe and plentiful water supplies, coastal buffers from storms, reduction in pollution and support of agriculture and forestry. More

Ohio farmers battle sedimentation, nutrient runoff in creative ways
Farm and Dairy    Share   
Agricultural runoff and sedimentation into nearby water systems is nothing new in Fremont, Ohio. New data shows that the impact — large concentrations of harmful algal blooms just a few miles north in Lake Erie, where most of the water drains — is growing. A new device created by a farming family — a concrete trough or chute that's called an "instream sediment collector" — may help solve the problem. More

Agriculture must increase pace of food production
Western Farm Press    Share   
The world's farmers are increasing food production, but not at the pace needed to meet the needs of 9 billion to 10 billion people in 2050. That was the message the Global Harvest Initiative delivered at this year's World Food Prize Symposium in Des Moines, Iowa. GHI's Bill Lesher and Laura Barringer discussed the organization's findings during interviews at a media briefing. More

Agriculture foes use 'perfect storm' to target farm programs
Delta Farm Press    Share   
With farm commodity prices having hit record highs in recent years, and with the federal government facing record deficits, "in this fiscal environment, we have something of a perfect storm for opponents of production agriculture to target all of our programs for cuts," says Carlisle Clarke, agriculture liaison for Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss. The Obama administration, Clarke says, issued a proposal that would lop $33 billion from agriculture spending, coming from commodity, conservation and crop insurance titles. More

Paying farmers to protect habitat could save environment, cash
Canada.com    Share   
A research consortium is field-testing a revolutionary plan that would pay farmers and ranchers in British Columbia, Canada, to produce cleaner air, water and wildlife habitat alongside their food crops. The enhancements range from increasing the buffer zone between crops and waterways, livestock fencing around environmentally sensitive areas, replanting native plant species to encourage native wildlife and reforesting to capture carbon or shade salmon spawning streams. More


Federal program would offer annual payments for North Dakota wetlands protection
Grand Forks Herald    Share   
Farmers in the flooded Devils Lake Basin could benefit from a federal agricultural program designed to voluntarily protect wetlands and flooded agricultural lands. An appropriations bill recently released by a joint U.S. House-Senate conference committee includes $7.5 million for the program, according to Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., a member of the Appropriations Committee. The program allows producers and landowners to enter into 10-year agreements to voluntarily protect wetlands and flooded farmland in return for annual payments. More

From tragedy to action: USAID's environmental trajectory
USAID Frontlines    Share   
On the border between Ecuador and Colombia, communities of Cofan Indians are using improved cocoa-production techniques to reduce pressure to convert neighboring forests to agricultural lands. Three indigenous groups in this highly biologically diverse region participate in a program with the Government of Ecuador under which they receive annual payments for upholding conservation agreements. These conservation efforts are just one example of USAID's innovative environmental work around the globe. More

Increased agriculture regulations still to come from EPA
Southwest Farm Press    Share   
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency doesn't necessarily have farm interests lined up in its crosshairs, but it's not exactly ignoring agriculture as a target of opportunity either. "We've had it pretty good in agriculture for a long time," said Shannon Ferrell, assistant professor at Oklahoma State University, during the recent Rural Economics Outlook Conference. "EPA went after the low-hanging fruit first, the big polluters," Ferrell said. "Now, they're going after the rest." More

Iowa farmers complete 61,000-ton biomass harvest for cellulosic ethanol
Hoosier Ag Today    Share   
As part of the 2011 harvest, farmers around Emmetsburg, Iowa, have baled approximately 61,000 bone-dry tons of corn crop residue. The bales of corn cobs and light stover will be delivered to a biomass storage site in Emmetsburg, where POET's commercial cellulosic ethanol biorefinery will be completed in 2013. More

Minimal tillage makes a difference in dry areas
Voice of America    Share   
Since the dawn of agriculture, tilling the soil has been fundamental to farming. But today, experts say this age-old practice may do more harm than good in some places. That's why they've been telling farmers to throw away the plow. More




Conservation NewsBriefs is a weekly compilation of news stories of interest to SWCS members and stakeholders. The opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect official policy of the Soil and Water Conservation Society unless so stated. The products mentioned herein are not endorsed by the Soil and Water Conservation Society unless so stated.