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Senate Approach Would Speed Payments to Pennsylvania Farmers for Farmland Conservation
Fate of Funding Hangs on Key Farm Bill Negotiations
Pennsylvania’s considerable – and growing – farmland conservation needs on private lands have gone chronically underfunded for years. That could all change as a handful of Senators and Representatives decide whether or not to adopt the Senate’s $4.3 billion annual investment in farmland conservation programs during final farm bill negotiations this month.
Currently, there is over $30 million in unfunded applications from Pennsylvania farmers who want to implement conservation practices on their land that would protect farmland and enhance drinking water sources and wildlife habitat.
These programs, which pay farmers to take steps to boost conservation, provide a range of benefits to rural communities while boosting family farm incomes – particularly among smaller struggling family farm operations.
New analysis by EWG shows that the Senate’s approach to boosting funding for farmland conservation programs would immediately get much needed assistance to more farmers in the state than the House bill. In comparison, by waiting until 2007 to ramp up farmland conservation programs, the House bill would fail to meet the growing demand for farmers who want to reduce their farm’s impact on local rivers and streams, enhance wildlife habitat and prevent sprawl from consuming more farmland. And, the longer farmers and communities have to wait to enroll in conservation programs, the more expensive it will be for taxpayers to address conservation problems.
In short, adopting the Senate’s conservation strategy will help more farmers, provide benefits to society and save taxpayers money.
Meeting Environmental Challenges with Agriculture Conservation Programs in Pennsylvania
Cleaner Rivers and Lakes: In Pennsylvania, 34.2 percent of surveyed rivers and streams have been classified as impaired. Agriculture is one of the leading causes of nonpoint source pollution in Pennsylvania, causing nutrient loading and sedimentation.
Efforts to increase funding for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) in the next farm bill would help more Pennsylvania farmers adopt practices to reduce the level of sedimentation, nitrogen and phosphorus runoff into Pennsylvania waters. The current backlog of EQIP funding in Pennsylvania is $24 million. Increased funding for the Conservation Reserve Program, especially for grass and tree buffers near to water bodies, in the next farm bill would also help reduce agricultural pollutants in many Pennsylvania watersheds. Although soil loss is declining, Pennsylvania still loses approximately 21 million tons of soil per year from cropland. Through the CRP, farmers can retire highly erodible land without incurring economic costs. The Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) is helping Pennsylvania substantially reduce nitrogen and sediment deposition from agricultural activities to the Chesapeake Bay watershed
Safer Drinking Water: In Pennsylvania, 600 drinking water systems serving 91,841 people exceeded EPA's nitrate threshold from 1995 through 2000. And 9 percent of shallow wells, failed to meet the EPA threshold as well. Pesticide use in Pennsylvania is 8.9 million pounds per year and nitrate use is 108,000 tons per year. Through USDA technical assistance and EQIP, Pennsylvania farmers could implement practices to reduce the use of these chemicals and prevent them from contaminating Pennsylvania's water bodies and source drinking water areas.
Protected Open Space and Working Landscapes: America's most profitable agriculture takes place near population centers. More than half of the value of American agricultural production comes from counties in and around urban areas. Every year Pennsylvania loses an average of 18,000 acres of prime farmland per year to development and suburban sprawl (USDA/NRI). Converting prime farmland to housing developments and parking lots means that it is lost for meeting future food needs as well as for open space. Presently, there is a $6.5 million backlog of farmers wanting to enroll their land into the Farmland Protection Program -- a program that should be adequately funded in the next farm bill to help protect our natural resource base and our open space for future generations. By increasing FPP funding to $500 million per year, the state's contribution to farmland protection would be doubled.
Enhanced Wildlife Habitat: Pennsylvania farmland is home to many species of game and non-game wildlife, including deer, turkey, pheasant, rabbits, fox, owls and several endangered species. Although Pennsylvania farmers have enrolled over 93,000 acres in the Conservation Reserve and Wetlands Reserve Programs, lack of funding has created a backlog of farmers who want to enroll additional land in the programs. Farmers are also volunteering for the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program to enhance wildlife habitat on their working farmland. Currently, 68 applications from farmers and ranchers totaling $136,000 are unfunded in Pennsylvania. Proposals to increase funding for these programs in the next farm bill would ensure that all farmers and ranchers who want to retire highly sensitive land for wildlife habitat or adopt new practices to create habitat can do so.
Healthier Food Supply: Many Pennsylvania producers are moving towards organic production, with 6,288 acres of farmland and 223 acres of rangeland now growing organically. Since organic food is one of the fastest growing segments in the U.S. food industry, Pennsylvania could create a healthier food supply and farm economy by increasing organic production. Proposals to include organic transition payments in the next Farm Bill would help those Pennsylvania farmers who want to switch to organic farming.
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