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Maintaining
Land in Production Must be the Focus of the Conservation Title of the
Farm Bill, NCGA Asserts (7-31-01)
In testimony before
the Senate Agriculture Committee today, National Corn Growers Association
(NCGA) President Lee Klein of Battle Creek, Neb., said the conservation
title of the next farm bill "should focus more on conservation
practices of land in production, rather than conservation programs that
take land out of production."
In general, NCGA
supports voluntary, incentive-based conservation programs that have
been incorporated in previous farm bills. That's because NCGA's grower-leaders
recognize that conservation practices must have flexibility to adapt
to local variances in production practices, climate, soil type and numerous
other factors that vary from farm to farm.
Klein's testimony
echoed these priorities: "NCGA is interested in new conservation
programs that assist growers in maintaining and/or undertaking new conservation
practices in their farming operations," he testified. "It
is important that these programs be implemented on ground that is in
production and will not become a set-aside program."
Reaffirming corn
growers' commitment to good environmental stewardship, Klein praised
the approach to conservation taken by the Conservation Security Act,
which recognizes that farmers are facing changing state and federal
laws.
"The Conservation
Security Act is unique in its approach because it recognizes an important
part of conservation practice adoption across the farming community,
which is, that growers need financial and technical assistance in management
of their operations based on conservation principles," Klein stated.
NCGA is committed
to working with Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) and other members of the
Senate Agriculture Committee on developing a conservation title as a
part of the full farm bill.
Read
Lee Klein's full testimony.
Last
reviewed July 31, 2001
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