SPARC No-Till Coalition
USDA Guide to Achieving Energy Efficiency Through Conservation
Conservation practices such as no-till can save farmers 217 million gallons of fuel and up to $480 million per year, while other conservation practices such as irrigation water management can reduce diesel consumption by 80 million gallons and save farmers up to $180 million per year. In addition to energy savings, these practices provide obvious con-benefits to the environment. Key conservation practices include:
According to the Conservation Technology Information Center, a farmer can save at least 3.5 gallons of fuel per acre by going from conventional tillage methods to no-till, a conservation practice leaves the soil undisturbed from harvest through planting except for narrow strips that cause minimal soil disturbance. In November 2005 diesel prices, this amounts to $7.70 per acre in production cost savings. On a farm with 1,000 acres of cropland, these savings add up to 3,500 gallons of diesel fuel per year valued at $7,700.
Today’s time-pressed consumer is using his or her higher level of income to purchase more convenience, while looking for quality, variety, and value.
Communicating consumer preferences back through the food system to prompt the needed adjustments in a cost-effective manner becomes the challenge.
Serving today’s consumers is a challenge for both grocers and their suppliers. About 10,000 new food and beverage products were introduced in 2002. Retailers must decide which new products to make room for and keep on their grocery shelves.
A growing consumer segment cares not only about what’s produced, but how it’s produced. A proliferation of guilt-free, or eco-labels, on food products appeals to these consumers’ quest for products that make them feel good about themselves. Consumers pay a premium for an eco-label, which is seal or logo indicating that a food product had met a set of environmental or social standards. Examples include “dolphin-safe” tuna, “environmentally-friendly” pork, and the increasingly popular Fair Trade Certified coffee, which means that more coffee profit goes to small farmers.
The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) was reauthorized in the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Farm Bill) to provide a voluntary conservation program for farmers and ranchers that promotes agricultural production and environmental quality as compatible national goals. EQIP offers financial and technical help to assist eligible participants install or implement structural and management practices on eligible agricultural land. EQIP activities are carried out according to an environmental quality incentives program plan of operations developed in conjunction with the producer that identifies the appropriate conservation practice or practices to address the resource concerns. The practices are subject to NRCS technical standards adapted for local conditions. The local conservation district approves the plan.
Almost all counties have the no-till conservation cropping system incentive in their cost lists. There are few counties and conservation districts that have no-till on their ranking sheets and try to promote the use of no-till.
1. Reductions of non-point source pollution, such as nutrients, sediment, pesticides, or excess salinity in impaired watersheds consistent with TMDLs where available as well as the reduction of point sources such as contamination from confined animal feeding operations;
2. Conservation of ground and surface water resources;
3. Reduction of emissions, such as particulate matter, nitrogen oxides (NOx), volatile organic compounds, and ozone precursors and depleters that contribute to air quality impairment violations of National Ambient Air Quality Standards;
4. Reduction in soil erosion and sedimentation from unacceptable levels on agricultural land; and
5. Promotion of at-risk species habitat conservation.
Farmers are also banding together to control food production through more than one stage of production and marketing, usually through some level of processing. These so-called “new generation” cooperatives allow farmers to respond to consumer demands and capture returns from further processed products.
Market-based environmental stewardship is a new tool to achieve environmental goals. Such an approach can lead to implementation of more conservation practices and systems by providing added financial incentives. This is a wind for agriculture and the environment, but it will only be successful if science and technology tools are used in establishing and operating the market.
A recent article in the Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture publication Field Notes carried a story that can be found at the following link: http://www.kerrcenter.com/nwsltr/2006/spring/sparc_ing_change.htm
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