|
My role, as Director of the Nebraska Department of Agriculture, is to do my best to
<br />promote and protect agriculture in this great state. In my promotional role, I can tell you that our
<br />producers here raise some of the finest quality, safest food you'll find in this nation, and maybe
<br />even in the world. And we don't just raise a little, we raise a lot. Our 50,000 producers are at or
<br />near the top nationally in a number of categories, including cattle, corn, soybeans, alfalfa meal,
<br />great northern beans, grain sorghum, and the list goes on. These products eventually become your
<br />steaks, your pork chops, your snack foods, your morning cereal.
<br />Water is the key to unlocking the source of this bountiful food supply. In Nebraska, we
<br />are fortunate to be blessed with nearly 24,000 miles of rivers and streams, and underground
<br />aquifers, making it possible to irrigate 8.1 million acres of cropland. To some extent, in my
<br />opinion, irrigation equals food security.
<br />So, when I think about the Endangered Species Act and how it is being implemented in
<br />Nebraska, I must say that I do have some concerns for our farmers and ranchers, for their
<br />communities and counties, and even for the state as a whole. I say this, because roughly one in
<br />every four Nebraskans depend on agriculture for employment, so anything that negatively affects
<br />the water supply to our producers, also has the potential to ripple through our entire economy.
<br />The impact of the Cooperative Agreement and the critical habitat designation for the piping
<br />plover, depending on how they are finalized, could be substantial.
<br />For example, in the Platte Valley, where much of the good irrigated ground is selling for
<br />between $1,500 to $1,800 an acre, the inability to irrigate forces farmers to revert to dryland
<br />practices. The possibility of corn reaching 225 bushel yields drops to 50 bushels per acre or
<br />below because the region simply does not get enough rainfall to produce a corn crop. In many
<br />instances, farmers will be forced to fallow ground, which means they'll only get a crop once
<br />every two years. This can translate into lost income, lost jobs, lost tax revenue. And crop farmers
<br />may not be the only ones feeling the pinch under these circumstances. What about the fertilizer
<br />and seed corn dealers, the elevators? They depend on a thriving agriculture industry, so whatever
<br />affects farmers, also affects these industries. What about our livestock producers? They also
<br />figure into the picture because in Nebraska, we feed roughly 40 percent of our feed grains to our
<br />own livestock.
<br />On another note, the difference between property tax values on irrigated land and on
<br />dryland could potentially make huge dents in revenues. These are monies that are relied on by
<br />county governments and school districts, entities that cannot afford loss of income in these lean
<br />budget times.
<br />My concerns are not without basis. Of the top 10 corn producing counties, all but
<br />Chase County have a Platte River connection. Regarding the top 10 soybean producing counties,
<br />six border the Platte. Of the major hay producing counties, three - Dawson, Lincoln and
<br />Scottsbluff - have Platte River ties and another three - Cherry, Sheridan, and Dawes - have a
<br />Niobrara River connection, an area being scrutinized as piping plover habitat.
<br />-1-
<br />
|