Water runoff from farms has been a big issue recently, especially in areas that drain into the Mississippi River. Many farmers were previously unaware of how much nitrogen runs off of their farms and into rivers. Unfortunately, this caused a dead zone to develop in the Gulf of Mexico, which is where the Mississippi River runs into. Now, we have many policymakers who are trying to give blanket solutions on how farmers should run their operations. While these efforts are usually well-intentioned, every farm is different, so there isn?t a one-size-fits-all solution.
In order to prevent policymakers from telling farmers what to do with their farms, farmers need to be proactive in their soil and water conservation efforts and start making positive changes now. As part of that effort, the Iowa Corn Growers Association (ICGA) and the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) are trying to bring attention to different conservation methods that Iowa farmers can use. Wetlands are one of those tools that can be applied to a wide variety of farms. The ICGA hosted a Wetland Field Day on the farm of Mark Mueller, ICGA District 3 Director, to help farmers learn more and get them interested in soil and water conservation. Mueller said it?s all in an effort to get farmers to think about the water runoff from their farms.
Mueller talked specifically about how the wetlands work on his farm.
It?s incredibly important that farmers prove that they?re making progress towards better water conservation practices. Otherwise, Mueller said we?ll start seeing policies that probably won?t make producers so happy.
For more information, visit iowacorn.org.
