Down on the Farm: July 2007
At Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever we put a great deal of effort into bringing the concerns of America's conservationists, sportsmen and women to Washington D.C. Of particular note has been our work to strengthen the conservation programs within the Federal Farm Bill. The Farm Bill addresses land use practices on over 50 million acres of America's most environmentally sensitive lands; including the 39.2 million acres making up the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). CRP has been the nation's most successful conservation program in history. Since it's inception in 1982, it has prevented soil erosion, improved water quality, created habitat for pheasants, quail, ducks, and a myriad of other wildlife species, and stabilized rural farm economies. This year is a critical year for conservationists and wildlife as the 2007 Federal Farm Bill is debated. Down on the Farm will be a monthly up-date on the status of conservation in that debate.
Dave Nomsen
Vice President of Governmental Affairs
Quail Forever & Pheasants Forever
Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever are part of a broad coalition of this country's hunting, fishing and conservation organizations that this week welcomed many of the conservation provisions included in a Farm Bill proposal advanced by Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson.
The proposal shows that the Chairman clearly understands two things, the importance of the Farm Bill's Conservation Title to America's fish and wildlife, and the importance of fish and wildlife to America's citizen-conservationists. Points of interest in the Chairman's proposal include:
- An encouraging sign was the chairman's show of support for two existing Farm Bill conservation programs that are close to losing both their funding - the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) and the Grasslands Reserve Program (GRP). Peterson's proposal provides $1.6 billion to re-establish WRP and would add 5 million acres to GRP.
- The underlying bill in the Chairman's mark reauthorizes the Conservation Reserve Program at its current level of 39.2 million acres.
- The Open Fields provision included in Chairman Peterson's proposal would help fund state-managed, voluntary sportsmen's access initiatives, often called "walk-in" programs. The Chairman's proposal would provide funding of $20 million a year for these programs. Walk-in programs are great not just because they provide for improved public access to private lands, but also because in most cases they require that those lands be managed to optimize their value to fish and wildlife.
- The Chairman's mark also includes provisions to limit crop insurance payments on newly converted prairies.
We look forward to continuing working with the coalition, the Agriculture Committee, Chairman Peterson and the House in creating a Conservation Title that contains the critical conservation programs that improve our wildlife and other natural resources.
If you have story ideas, dog photos, pre-1980 hunting photos and requests for future On The Wing consideration, please send correspondence to ahauck@pheasantsforever.org.
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