As we have every four to eight years for nearly 250 years, the country is preparing for a change in leadership. This month, we’ll see new appointments, a new agenda, and new policies. During this transition, there has been a lot of talk about how our food is grown and the impact it has on our environment.
What doesn’t change is farmers’ dedication to protecting the resources they’ve been entrusted with. Nowhere is that more apparent than in the advancements made to reduce runoff in the water farmers rely on to grow the food that feeds the nation.
You don’t have to look far to see success in water quality improvements. Take the findings of the Hypoxia Task Force, for example. The task force is a partnership of 12 states, five federal agencies, and a representative for tribes. It works collaboratively to reduce nutrient pollution in the Mississippi-Atchafalaya River Basin and the extent of the hypoxic zone in the Gulf of Mexico at the mouth of the Mississippi River.
The most recent congressional report released by the Hypoxia Task Force shows voluntary efforts to reduce nutrient loads by farmers and agricultural organizations have had impressive success. Farmer efforts have reduced agricultural nitrogen loads in the Mississippi-Atchafalaya River Basin by 26% for a net total reduction of 23% relative to the baseline. This progress allowed the Hypoxia Task Force to meet its interim target of reducing nitrogen loads by 20% by 2025.
These advances are possible because of partnerships fostered by groups like the Agricultural Nutrient Policy Council. Since 2010, the ANPC has been working together with state and federal agencies, members of the scientific community, farm organizations and industry, and farmers themselves to share new ways of reducing nutrient loss.
Over the course of three very different administrations, the council has successfully and unreservedly worked with agency heads, political appointees, scientific organizations, and more to serve as a conduit to keep information, data, and research flowing in both directions.
With our partners, the council works to bridge the gap between farmers and stakeholders and lawmakers and governmental agencies to help farmers reduce nutrient loss and improve water quality.
But there’s more to be done.
With an incredible amount of variation in farmland and production practices in the more than 1.2 million square miles in the MARB, solid industry partnerships and collaboration with agency and governmental representatives are necessary in achieving nutrient loss reduction while producing food, feed, fuel, and fiber for our nation and the world.
As more appointments in the new administration are made daily, and as we move closer to the inauguration, we’re excited to foster agency partner relationships with whom we’ve worked in the past and the new appointments and elected officials walking through the doors for the first time, to continue improving the nation’s water quality.
Courtney Briggs is the president of the Agricultural Nutrient Policy Council.