Thursday, December 30, 2004

Good News on the Sustainable Agriculture front from, uh, yes, I've checked it again, the Bush Agriculture Department.

Kansas is proving ground for federal conservation program

Seems in 2002, Bush signed into law the Conservation Security Program, a "voluntary program that provides financial and technical assistance to promote the conservation and improvement of soil, water, air, energy, plant and animal life, and other conservation purposes on Tribal and private working lands." My only question is, how much did Monstanto pay to have them wait this long?

Still, all my sarcasm and bitterness aside, this is apparently a good program, under which farmers who have been doing the right thing all along can be rewarded for their actions. Proof, I suppose, that even when guided by corporate schills, the beauracracy can churn out a good program every now and then. I'm sure this didn't originate in the White House, anyway.

Of particular interest is the inclusion of rewards for no-till practices, which improve soil tilth and reduce erosion. And, as anyone who has visited my organic gardening site knows, healthy soil makes healthy plants that are disease, drought, and pest resistant.