I am posting this for Peggy -- Jane Clark > >Date: Thu, 13 Dec 2001 18:38:22 -0600 > >To: Iowa Topics > >From: Peggy Murdock <[log in to unmask]> > >Subject: Pew Ocean Commission - Patty Judge > > > >Patty Judge, Iowa's Secretary of Agriculture, was the keynote speaker at > >the luncheon. She spoke to the Commission members, telling them about > >Iowa's history and programs that are being implemented here. The full > >report is attached. > > > >Peggy Murdock Pew Oceans Commission Luncheon Patty Judge Patty Judge, Secretary of Agriculture, gave the luncheon address. Iowa is an agricultural state. The reason people crossed the Mississippi and settled here was to farm. They developed a county system, dividing the state into 99 counties each 30 miles square with the county seat in the middle. This would allow people to drive to the county seat conduct their business, buy supplies and drive back home in their wagons in time for chores. There are less than three million people in the state and Iowa has always relied on agriculture as the staple of the economy.. At first there were small farms. The development of the tractor led to larger farms which were sustainable into the '50s. The larger the machinery got the larger the farm became, finally moving to commodity production. However, all native Iowans have roots in the farm and most can remember having a few cows and hogs and selling eggs and cream in town, but as farmers got larger they stopped doing that because the couldn't make money. The state began to look more urban because it took less people to farm. It is still a commodity state but kids grow up not knowing much about farming. At a recent event she couldn't get kids to tell what theyu got from sheep. The closest guess was cotton. Now more people in Iowa are living off the farm than on. Rural people are facing change, but the place of agriculture in the economy has not changed. Iowa is the leader in the nation in the production of corn and soybeans. Twenty five percent of all the hogs in the U.S. are raised and slaughtered in Iowa. No other state does agriculture with the intensity of Iowa. Iowa's agricultural revenue is close to eleven billion dollars. Only two states rival Iowa in dollars created by agriculture and both have quadruple the land mass. Iowa is at a crossroads because of low commodity prices. It has become dependent on export. Low prices lead to even more production. Decisions about the State and the future of agriculture will have to be made quickly. Iowa will have to go forward and embrace the future. This is not easy for us. She told an anecdote about her father telling her she must resist change at all costs. We need to learn lessons from the past but move forward. There is room for all of us, we need to be about problem solving rather than doom prediction, to learn to farm in a manner that conserves the soil and protects the water for future generations. She talked about three programs: first, wetland construction, the nutrient management program and a 13 year ag drainage and well demonstration project in north central Iowa. This is a phenomenon you don't find anywhere else. It was originally a marshy, swampy area with the richest black earth, but it was not very deep. At the turn of the century they devised system to dig wells right down into an aquifer. Everything that drained off the filed drained down into the aquifer. They decided this wasn't smart and are now trying to close them. It isn't as simple as just closing them up because the farm will revert to marsh and they have to provide alternative drainage. There is a problem with the EPA over this because when they close it becomes farmed wetland and they have to mitigate the issue Iowa also has an integrated livestock and farm management program that costs $850000. They have improved management practices for nutrients and have water quality protection through soil and water districts. The main mechanism for removing phosphorus is sediment. Iowa has led the nation in cost share investment to reduce sediment movement. It has spent $173,000,000 and this program is currently funded at $750,000,000. We are not clueless although it may appear that way. We do understand that we have a problem and we are looking for solutions. We didn't get into the mess in a day or a week and will look for positive results through voluntary programs. Farming is something we are not ashamed of. Today's farmers and tomorrows farmers are well educated, well trained, well equipped and are interested in changing the world. They know hey have an impact on the environment and are looking for new ways to do things. There were questions from commission. What would enable faster pace and is that desirable? Answer: A faster pace is desirable. The problem is going to be man power and dollars. Three years ago there was no clean water initiative in this state. We've got to have the federal dollars because this is expensive and farmers don't have any money. When you take land out of production you have to pay farmers for that. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To get off the IOWA-TOPICS list, send any message to: [log in to unmask]