Cookie cutter conservation only works in research journals…Recently, my wife, Peggy shared a TIME® Magazine interview with me from the “Lab Girl.” In the interview, the Lab Girl said, “There are things that all scientists know are the reality in science, and the longer I am in this business it was driving me absolutely crazy not to say something. It’s not enough for me to be frustrated. It’s time to talk about it. I have learned that nothing gets readers so fired up as saying something everyone knows is true.” Well I agree, so here it …
Revisiting a Basic Standard of Care
A while back, I posted Be the Expert and asked for your feedback on the Environmental Working Group's (EWG) argument for a basic standard of care in regards to soil and water conservation. To meet the basic standard of care, EWG argued that every farmer should be required to adopt a set of 4 mandatory conservation practices:grassed waterwaysfilter strips along all water bodiescontrolled access of livestock to all water bodiesno application of manure to frozen, snow-covered, or saturated groundWhen I published that blog post, I promised at some …
Cheaper Conservation
Today, nobody questions whether new technology is getting cheaper. But that was not the case back in 1992, when I returned to Iowa State to earn my MBA. In preparation for my new endeavor, I decided to purchase my first personal computer. I bought a sleek, new Gateway 386 computer for the low price of $1,382.95. Sure it was no Red Ryder BB gun, but for a computer, it was a beauty. I distinctly remember my older brother Bob telling me it was more computer than I would ever need.Shortly after buying it, I remember attending one of my MBA classes …
The Conservation Cop
Last month, I attended a conference where the topic of “more regulations in agriculture” was a reoccurring theme. Sitting in the audience, I began to notice my hands were getting sweaty and I started to feel anxious. It took me awhile to realize I was having a flashback to events that occurred years ago. I was recalling those days when I was responsible for enforcing “Conservation Compliance”.For those of you who think the front line of environmental enforcement is a cakewalk, think again! Certainly, a few of my colleagues reveled in the power, …
4Rs… More Than Just a Nice Slogan
Recently I wrote a blog post entitled 4Rs Are Not Enough and heard from numerous 4R supporters that my analysis was not an accurate depiction. Lara Moody asked if she could set the record straight with additional 4R insight. Ms. Moody is the Senior Director of Stewardship & Sustainability Programs at The Fertilizer Institute (TFI) and is responsible for directing development and delivery of outreach and education tools to promote 4R Nutrient Stewardship. Thanks for continuing the dialogue on this important issue. It Begins with the …
Good for Minnesota. They got it right!
Recently Governor Mark Dayton, of Minnesota, signed into law, a statewide program that will require an estimated 110,000 acres of farmland to be seeded down to buffer strips for water quality. In short, the law establishes new perennial vegetation buffers of up to 50 feet wide along rivers, streams, and ditches that will help filter out phosphorus, nitrogen, and sediment. As I delve more into this law, what I find most remarkable is that this bill ultimately provides for flexibility in the width of the filter strip. According to an online …