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Senate Approach Would Speed Payments to Nevada Farmers for Farmland Conservation
Fate of Funding Hangs on Key Farm Bill Negotiations
Nevada’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 $6.3 million in unfunded applications from Nevada 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 Nevada
Farmers, ranchers, and private foresters can and want to take practical steps to enhance water supplies, wildlife habitat, and long-term soil productivity. However, according to USDA, roughly three out of four who seek assistance for most conservation programs are turned away because of lack of funds. A reoriented Farm Bill can help meet a broad array of challenges.
Cleaner Rivers and Lakes: In Nevada, 47.3 percent of surveyed rivers and streams and 17.1 percent of surveyed lakes have been classified as impaired.
Efforts to increase funding for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) in the next farm bill would help more Nevada farmers adopt practices to reduce the level of sedimentation, nitrogen and phosphorus runoff into Nevada waters. The current backlog of EQIP funding in Nevada is $4.5 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 Nevada watersheds. Although soil loss is declining, Nevada still loses approximately 3.2 million tons of soil per year from cropland. Through the CRP, farmers can retire highly erodible land without incurring economic costs.
Safer Drinking Water: Pesticide use in Nevada is 177,000 pounds per year and nitrate use is 12,000 tons per year. Through USDA technical assistance and EQIP, Nevada farmers could implement practices to reduce the use of these chemicals and prevent them from contaminating Nevada's water bodies and source drinking water areas.
Protected Working Landscapes: Every year, Nevada loses an average of 4,600 acres of prime farmland per year to development and suburban sprawl (USDA/NRI). 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. Converting prime farmland to housing developments and parking lots means lost production, open space and wildlife habitat. Unfortunately, funding for the federal program has not kept up with the interest coming from farmers nationally. Only one out of ten farmers who applied were accepted into the program over the last four years. If the Farmland Protection Program was adequately funded in the next farm bill it would help protect the natural resource base and open space in Nevada for future generations.
Enhanced Wildlife Habitat: Nevada farmland is home to many species of game and non-game wildlife, including turkey, deer, antelope, pheasant, quail and grouse. Nevada farmers and ranchers are not currently enrolling in the Conservation Reserve and Wetlands Reserve Programs because they are not well-suited for the state because of its higher land values. Program improvements included in H.R. 2375 would make the program more economically competitive in Nevada and allow farmers to enroll partial fields and buffers instead of taking whole fields out of production. Farmers are volunteering for the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program to enhance wildlife habitat on their working farm and ranchland. 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.
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