When Tom Vilsack took over as secretary of Agriculture early this year, one
of the agency's new responsibilities outlined by Congress was the Omnibus Public
Land Management Act of 2009. Almost 30 million acres around the United States
were afforded protection in a range of authorizations. How sad that Iowa's
natural areas were omitted from this bill.
Our Loess Hills are a gem, but
presently there is no national or state plan for preserving them. Why do Utah,
California and the state of Washington receive federal support for protection of
their natural landscapes, but Iowa is left out?
Congress in the same bill established the National
Landscape Conservation System. The last native prairies of Iowa, a state whose
agricultural bounty derives directly from the fruitful prairies that once
covered the state, are holding on by a thread waiting for political leadership
in obtaining the national resources we need to conserve this threatened
landscape.
Wouldn't it be great for Vilsack to see Iowa's treasures included in the protections afforded by the next public-lands bill that comes out of Capitol Hill?
Wouldn't it be great for Vilsack to see Iowa's treasures included in the protections afforded by the next public-lands bill that comes out of Capitol Hill?
- Jim Redmond, Sioux City