Harkin Seeks a Conservation Center to Farm Bill

March 28, 2001

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) wants conservation to be the "heart" of the next farm bill. But farmers have to be economically enticed into putting more conservation practices into their farming operations, he added. Harkin was one of several speakers Tuesday at a conference on "Fixing the Farm Bill" sponsored by Schnittker Associates, Santa Ynez, CA, and The Center for International Agricultural Finance at Iowa State University.

Harkin said farmer-centered conservation should be approached much like preventive medical care: the best approach is to prevent damage to natural resources now rather than have to spend billions more later when more damage has been done in the absence of workable conservation programs.

He called for an expanded Conservation Reserve Program to at least 40 million acres, about 4 million more than now is allowed into the program. He noted that only one in five applicants for the Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) was awarded a contract.

Harkin, who is the ranking Democrat on the Senate Agriculture Committee, has introduced a "conservation security" proposal that calls for compensating farmers for voluntarily putting conservation practices into place on their farms. It would be open to all producers, not just those who grow the "major" crops.

The more the farmer was willing to do to conserve land and other natural resources, the greater would be the compensation – up to $50,000 a year for a complete program. Harkin also said the next farm bill should address income support but not for "producing more or tearing up more land."