From: "Niel Ritchie" <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Wed, 11 Apr 2001
Subject: LET'S MAKE THE GREEN GET RID OF THE BROWN -EDITORIAL

Farm Bill News ([log in to unmask])
Posted: 04/11/2001  By  [log in to unmask]
==============================
St. Louis Post-Dispatch - April 10, 2001

LET'S MAKE THE GREEN GET RID OF THE BROWN

BY: Gary Mast

THE RIVER

When Charles Dickens first saw the Mississippi River in 1842, he was
astounded, describing it as "an enormous ditch, running liquid mud at 6
miles per hour and obstructed everywhere by huge logs and whole forest
trees."

It's a classic description of unchecked soil erosion. We're doing better
than that today, not just with the Mississippi River, but also with smaller
rivers and streams throughout America, thanks to improvements farmers have
made in the way they manage their lands. We can do more, however.

Dickens lived in grimy old London, so he knew about stuff that flowed out
of factories and sewers into the River Thames. We'd call that
"point-source" pollution today. For the past half-century, American
industry, taxpayers and consumers have been paying to reduce pollution from
known points. And we've made great progress.

Now the attention is turning to so-called "non-point source" pollution.
It's the stuff that's in our rivers and streams, but it can't be pinpointed
to a specific site of entry. Sediment, fertilizer and pesticides from farm
fields are major contributors. Several governmental initiatives are working
to reduce the non-point source pollutants in streams.

Sediment loss may be the most serious pollutant. Sedimentation chokes
aquatic life, spoils streams for recreation and poses problems for water
treatment facilities. Manure, pesticides and fertilizer attached to soil
particles also enter the stream.

These pollutants can be reduced, and soil and water conservation districts
and the Natural Resource Conservation Service have been working with
farmers for half a century to implement sound practices on farms. Buffer
strips can be planted along streams. Trees can be planted to firm up river
banks. And grass can be planted in the waterways that drain fields.

Millions of acres of farmland have been converted to conservation tillage
or no-till. Instead of plowing and disking their fields every year, farmers
leave the stubble from the harvested crop to hold topsoil in place. Using
modern seed drills, they plant through the stubble. No-till, in combination
with other practices, greatly reduces farm field runoff.

Another technique is to plant a "cover crop" in the fall, after harvest.
This planting of rye or oats is done solely to hold topsoil in place during
the winter. When the cover crop is dead in the spring, seeds are planted
through it.

Such practices are costly or require special knowledge and commitment. In
the case of buffer strips, farmers must take productive land out of pro
duction. Cover crops involve time and purchase of seed.

Although all of society benefits if farmers take these steps, currently
only the farmer pays. Unlike point-source pollution, where a manufacturer
can pass along the increased environmental costs, farmers cannot. They have
no control over the prices paid for their commodities. In fact, farmers are
getting about the same price for a bushel of corn that they received in
1978, actually a few cents less. Compare that with the price increases for
pollution-controlled cars or electricity from environmentally regulated
power plants.

Society is demanding cleaner streams and purer water, and government is
responding with initiatives mandating improvements. The best way to reach
the goal is for the government to provide stewardship incentive payments or
"green payments." If a farmer converted his land to no-till, he would
receive a per-acre payment. The addition of buffer strips or grassy
waterways would trigger another payment. Planting a cover crop would be
another incentive. The program should also provide technical support and
reward farmers who already apply conservation practices.

Americans have spent billions to clean up industrial pollution, but little
has been done to help solve farm-related environmental issues. Americans
want the cheapest and safest food and the cleanest water possible. They
want wildlife to thrive in rural areas. Green incentives, provided through
the next farm bill, would involve everyone in achieving these goals. That's
as it should be. We are all in this together.

NOTES:
COMMENTARY Gary Mast, Millersburg, Ohio, is first vice president of the
National Association of Conservation Districts and a dairy farmer who uses
conservation practices.

Copyright 2001 St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Inc.
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