Report Finds More Farmers Than Funding For Conservation Programs

Thousands of farmers seeking federal financial and technical help to reduce polluted runoff, restore wildlife habitat, and combat sprawl are being rejected due to inadequate funding of federal conservation programs, according to a report released today by Environmental Defense. The report, Losing Ground, is based on US Department of Agriculture (USDA) data and is available at www.environmentaldefense.org.

“Thousands of farmers and ranchers want to be better stewards of the land, but the federal government is turning them away when they seek technical or financial assistance,” said Scott Faber, water resources specialist for Environmental Defense.

Key findings of Losing Ground include:

• Half of the farmers and ranchers seeking technical assistance to improve tillage practices or install streamside buffers are rejected due to inadequate funding;

• Three-out-of-four farmers seeking federal financial assistance to restore lost wetlands and woodlands, use less water, or manage manure better are also rejected due to inadequate funding;

• More than 2,700 farmers hoping to restore more than 560,000 acres of wetlands are currently being turned away due to inadequate funding;

• Thousands of farmers in the path of sprawl offered to sell their development rights to USDA but were turned away due to inadequate funding.

“Farmland and ranchland cover 55% of the American landscape, dramatically impacting water quality, food safety, wildlife habitat, and the pace of sprawl, ” said Faber. Federal spending for USDA conservation programs must be increased to meet demand from farmers and ranchers for financial and technical assistance, and to address many of these pressing environmental challenges.”