From: Debbie Neustadt To : Iowa-Topics The Sustainable Agriculture Coalition puts out a weekly newsletter. This weeks newsletter mentioned Conservation Security Program (CSP) and Iowa. This is a program that instead of paying farmers to growth a commodity it pays them to use conservation practices. The Coalition complied some facts about the program. It mentions Iowa several times. Here are excerpts from that newsletter. A few highlights: * The US average per farm per year CSP contract value was $11,421 for the 2005 enrollment, with a range of just over $1,000 in Connecticut to nearly $30,000 in Georgia. * The US average per acre per year payment rate was $13.83 in 2005, with east coast states generally near the top of the range and Plains and Mountain states generally near the bottom of the range. * Nebraska and Iowa led the way in percentage of total farms in the watershed that enrolled in the program, with both approaching 20 percent, compared to the national average of 5 percent. * Oregon topped the list for percentage of total acres in the watershed enrolled in the program at 35 percent, with Iowa, Arkansas and Michigan all near 20 percent, compared to the 10 percent national average. CSP Cheating Controversy Continues: The case of 15 Washington state farmers accused of submitting altered soil test results in order to qualify for the CSP continues to make headlines in northwest papers. Washington state NRCS emphasizes that no evidence of widespread cheating has been found. The 15 are subject to repayment of all contract funds plus a 20 percent penalty payment. The problems were uncovered during routine spot checks. Fourteen of the 15 cases have been appealed by the farmers involved. Some may argue that the test results were not fudged but rather it's a matter of differing interpretations of the data. To date, no similar problems have emerged in any other states. -- ><((((º>`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸.·´¯`·...¸><((((º> Deborah Neustadt Des Moines, IA Sierra Club Water Committee, Chair Wildlife and Endangered Species Committee, Member Iowa Chapter, Executive Committee Member, Political Chair - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sign up to receive Sierra Club Insider, the flagship e-newsletter. Sent out twice a month, it features the Club's latest news and activities. Subscribe and view recent editions at http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/