More responses to the Farm Bill:
“Farm Bill Flubs” from the Cato Institute;
“With US Farmland Maxed Out…” from National Geographic;
“WWF says Farm Bill is missed opportunity.…” WWF.
“ Germination of Conservation Fortunes in the New Farm Bill Remains Uncertain” from Wildlife Management Institute.
The Comprehensive Review of Farm Bill Benefits to Wildlife reviews the impacts of USDA Conservation Programs on wildlife habitat and populations from 1885-2000. Much of the document focuses on grassland birds because the vast majority of the enrolled acres are in grass practices, and most of the available research is on birds. There are chapters specifically on waterfowl & CRP, grassland birds & CRP, and grassland birds & buffer practices. The Southeast and Midwest each get their own chapter. There are chapters on Swampbuster, WRP, WHIP and EQUIP. The list of authors is impressive – Pete Heard, Douglas Johnson, Louis Best, just to name a few. The highlight of the document is an extensive annotated bibliography. Fifteen years of ag-wildlife research in one volume. The individual chapters are available HERE. The chapters by Burger, Ryan, and Best are central texts in my Ag-Wildlife course.
In 2005, the NRCS in conjunction with the Wildlife Society produced two additional reviews.
The first one – Fish & Wildlife Benefits of Farm Bill Conservation Programs – covers the first half of this decade. Some chapters from the 1985-2000 document are present in revised form (e.g., Johnson, Grassland Bird Use of CRP in the Great Plains; Burger, The CRP in the Southeast; Reynolds, The CRP and Duck Production in the US Prairie Pothole region). There are also several new chapters on the CREP, the Grassland Reserve Program, and the Conservation Security Program. This update lacks the annotated bibliography of the first document. Individual chapters are available HERE. Hard copy can be be purchased from the Wildlife Society.
The second one – Fish & Wildlife Benefits of Farm Bill Conservation Practices – organizes the reviews by particular types of conservation practices, which can be useful from an objective-oriented planning perspective. Chapters include ones on cropland conservation practices, grassland establishment, agricultural buffers, grassland conservation practices, wetland establishment practices, and effects of conservation practices on aquatic habitats and fauna. The final chapter summarizes ways of “Using Adaptive Management to Meet Conservation Goals.” Individual chapters are available HERE. Hard copy can be be purchased from the Wildlife Society.
Three reviews of the Farm Bill from the Wildlife Management Institute, FarmPolicy.com, and the Wildlife Management Pro.
“…buried deep in this monster bill are what could be the seeds of change.” FarmPolicy.com summarizes the new Farm Bill. Many of these seeds of change may be good for conservation.
Objective-driven conservation planning just got easier! ArkansasHabitat.org is a fantastic website organizing Farm Bill conservation options by objective (for example, Managing Cropland for Habitat or Restoring Wetlands). One click on an objective takes you to the appropriate practices with pictures, descriptions and – most importantly – potential sources of funding and NRCS practice standards. The information is specific to Arkansas, but the Farm Bill information is relevant to all states.
Accessibility – A+; Price – FREE; Ease of Use – A. You know my students will use this site next semester!
CP33 – Habitat Buffers for Upland Birds – is a relatively new practice available through continuous sign-up Conservation Reserve Program. Specifications for the buffers were designed with northern bobwhite and other grassland birds in mind. A big plus is that economic research suggests these buffers are profitable for the producer, too.
Listen to 4 farmers tell their own story (click image below) about incorporating CP33 Habitat Buffers into their farming operations (courtesy Forestry & Wildlife Research Center at Mississippi State University).
