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Fw: Future of grasslands impacted by current Farm Bill

I thought this might be of interest to many of you.  Suzanne T.


> -----Original Message-----
> From: Cindy Dvergsten [c*@fone.net] 
> Sent: Wednesday, September 26, 2001 1:24 PM
> To: general@lists.holisticmanagement.org
> Subject: Future of grasslands impacted by current Farm Bill
> 
> 
> 
> FYI:
> 
> For Immediate Release                             Media
> > Contact: Dell Rae Moellenberg
> > Sept 25, 2001
> > (970) 491-6009
> >
> > dellrae.moellenberg@colostate.edu
> >
> > Future of grasslands impacted by current Farm Bill
> >
> >     FORT COLLINS - Colorado's rolling plains are known
> > for miles and miles of buffalo grass, cactus and other
> > native vegetation that embodies the image of the West.
> > But some farm policy has encouraged landowners to plow
> > up the plains and convert that land into fields. The
> > new Farm Bill, now passing through legislative
> > branches, is making an effort to adjust the effects
> > that some policies have on grassland preservation.
> >     But grasslands aren't under pressure from just farm
> > policy; most states in the West, where the majority of
> > grasslands stretch across the nation, have become home
> > to millions of people who flock there for jobs, open
> > space and recreation.
> >     "North American grasslands have probably been
> > altered more by human impacts than any other ecosystem
> > on the continent," said Andy Seidl, Colorado State
> > University Cooperative Extension public policy
> > specialist.
> >     "The impacts come in varied forms, from
> > introduction of weeds that take over native grass to
> > urban sprawl, improper grazing management and
> > conversion to crops. Since 1850, about half of the 883
> > million acres of native grasslands west of the
> > Mississippi were converted to cropland or land cover
> > other than native grasses."
> >     Seidl co-authored a report this fall about Farm
> > Bill legislation that impacts grasslands. Seidl and
> > co-authors Neal Wilkins, Texas wildlife specialist;
> > Richard Conner Texas Agricultural Experiment Station
> > economist, both at Texas A &M; and Larry Van Tassell,
> > University of Idaho agricultural economist, found that
> > the federal government could protect and nurture
> > grasslands by including landowners in incentive
> > programs, possibly through a grassland reserve program,
> > or by revising policies that may provide incentives to
> > convert grassland to more intensive uses.
> >     The group's suggestions would take several impacts
> > into account before setting government policy that
> > affects natural resources. Often, grassland is
> > converted to a field because of a government payment
> > program for a commodity. It's often more profitable for
> > a farmer to plow up grassland than to not plow.
> > Expanded preservation incentives, for example, might
> > give landowners an affordable option to plowing up
> > native vegetation.
> >     Why is this cause for concern? Seidl explains that
> > grasslands cover a vast area of the nation and are an
> > important link in the quality of life in the United
> > States. Grassland is valued for wildlife habitat, open
> > space, food production and recreation. According to the
> > U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in 1996 more than 27
> > million people in states west of the Mississippi River
> > fished, hunted and watched wildlife, spending $37
> > billion on recreation.
> >     Grasslands also play an important role in soil
> > conservation and water quality. The quality of water
> > runoff from rain, for example, largely depends on how
> > the water is filtered by groundcover. Grasslands
> > prevent soil erosion, which pollutes water and steals
> > fertile topsoil, and increase sedimentation and
> > dissolve many solids, nutrients and pesticides before
> > water reaches human supplies.
> >     Grasslands directly impact human food supplies and
> > quality, adds Seidl. The main source of food for some
> > livestock is grassland. In fact, grassland makes up 95
> > percent of the land used to raise cattle in the western
> > states.
> >     And it's clear that people value grassland for
> > purely atheistic reasons. Land prices bordering open
> > space are 7 percent to 32 percent higher than lands not
> > bordering open space.
> >     This round of farm legislation has passed in the
> > House and discussions are underway in the Senate.
> > However, national security issues may delay those
> > discussions, and the bill may not reach President Bush
> > until sometime in early 2002.
> >     For a complete copy of the report by Seidl, Conner,
> > Wilkins and Van Tassell, visit
> > http://landinfo.tamu.edu/.
> > -30-
> > Colorado State University Cooperative Extension brings
> > the resources of the university to you. As part of a
> > nation-wide system, we call upon the latest research to
> > help Coloradoans learn more about healthy eating,
> > personal finances, community resources, agricultural
> > technology, food safety, dealing with changes in their
> > community, family relationships and managing small
> > acreages. Our youth development program annually
> > reaches more than 144,000 children in Colorado. Our 54
> > county offices, serving 57 Colorado counties, help
> > people use university expertise on the job, at home and
> > in their community.
> 
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