Water and Soil - Engaging with Farmers
Author: Klaus Mager Issue: 2022-06-01
Water and Soil - Engaging with Farmers
Saving the Planet
by Klaus Mager
[Klaus also discussed this on the 2022-05-26 OGM Check in Call (YouTube) – ed.]
Water and Soil are intricately linked; 70% of all water even on a global level is used for agriculture, and those resources have been poorly managed . For example, the US is irrigating nearly 58 million acres of crops, using an estimated 87 million acre-feet of water for irrigation. The water comes from overdrawn aquifers (Ogallala aquifer) and rivers (i.e. the Colorado river). Corn is being grown on land the size of California, and used for animal feed (40%), biofuels (33%), and hydrogenated corn syrup (10%).
The usage of water in the US is alarming and clearly unsustainable. Also a factor is the pollution of water caused by the runoff of nitrogen from synthetic fertilizer and animal manure, phosphorus nutrients, and pesticides used on crops. These enormous amounts of chemicals sprayed on fields do not bind with the soil, and over 50% of it runs off the field and into groundwater, rivers, lakes, and seas, root cause for algal blooms creating dead zones in lakes, rivers, and oceans.
Nitrogen pollution is a growing issue for drinking water, and for the health of aquatic life. Yet the industrial form of agriculture that has evolved over the last decades has destroyed the natural fertility of soil and therefore depends on fossil fuel based chemical inputs.
There are several options to reduce or even eliminate the use of chemicals, all of which require adaptations most commonly referred to as regenerative agriculture.
“Regenerative Agriculture” describes farming and grazing practices that, among other benefits, reverse climate change by rebuilding soil organic matter and restoring degraded soil biodiversity – resulting in both carbon drawdown and improving the water cycle.
These adaptations need to be customized at farm level, considering types and condition of soil, access to water, local climates, and socioeconomic realities. They require funding to pay for expertise, changes in types of equipment, temporary loss of yields and access to markets.
The US government has developed a range of programs mostly embedded in the Conservation Programs portion of the farm bill to pay farmers for specific actions. Program examples are Pollinator protection (CRP), Biodiversity (CSP), Watershed Repair (EQIP), Soil Organic Matter. Other sources of funding must come from State and Local sources.
The challenge is to combine these programs into a farm specific, statistical modeling based approach that seeks as an outcome an increase in soil carbon and soil organic matter. Farmers operate within a complex system, with multiple components that affect the behavior and growth of plants. With so many factors in play, any change in how farmers manage their land can present multiple what-ifs. The Conservation Stewardship Program embedded in the farm bill may be most suitable to support this approach, and there are a host of non-profit and for-profit groups engaged in this space as well.
We need a discussion to focus on community based initiatives that support our local farmers of all sizes and types of crops to shift into regenerative practices that restore soil back to health, repair watersheds and increase biodiversity. It requires engaged citizens seeking practical examples how to help farmers gain the support they need to apply for funding and access to resources. Food and food security is fast becoming a real issue for all of us.
Related:
- Klaus Mager (author)
- 2022 (year)
- Topics: Climate and Environment, Regenerative Systems and Agriculture, Bioregionalism and Place-Based Practice