Henry A. Wallace Institute for
Alternative Agriculture
9200 Edmonston Road, #117
Greenbelt, MD 20770
(301) 441-8777
E-mail: hawiaa@access.digex.net
Table of Contents
Agriculture Major Contributor to Poor Water Quality 1
Public Service Ads Will Promote Sustainable Ag 2
Applications for Berg Fellowships Due Feb. 16 3
George Washington: One of the First Composters 3
Author Assails Failure to "Conserve Biological Riches" 3
EPA Programs Will Assess Health Risks to Children 4
Nitrogen-Fixing Legumes Becoming "More Attractive" 4
Positions 4
Resources 5
Upcoming Events 5
AGRICULTURE IS MAJOR CONTRIBUTOR TO POOR WATER QUALITY, SAYS EPA
Nearly 40 percent of U.S. water bodies surveyed in 1994
remain too polluted for fishing, swimming, and other uses -- and
agriculture is one of the five major sources of that pollution,
according to a new report by the EPA. The survey represents 17
percent of the nation's rivers, 42 percent of its lakes, and 78
percent of its bays and estuaries.
National Water Quality Inventory: 1994 Report to Congress,
released last month, is the result of a biennial assessment of
the nation's waterways. Its findings include:
* Causes of water pollution: The five leading causes of fair
to poor water quality include excess nutrients, especially
nitrogen and phosphorus compounds from fertilizers, manure, and
detergents; and sediment and siltation, or the suspension and
deposition of small sediment particles in waterbodies, usually
from eroding land, plowed fields, and other sites.
* Sources of water pollution: Agriculture is one of the five
leading sources of fair to poor water quality in rivers, streams,
lakes, ponds, reservoirs, and estuaries.
* Rivers and streams: Agriculture generates pollutants that
degrade aquatic life or interfere with public use of 134,557
river miles, or 60 percent of river miles with fair to poor water
quality. It is the leading source of pollution in those river
miles. The 49 states and tribes which reported on their rivers
and streams said that nonirrigated crop production impaired the
most river miles, followed by irrigated crop production,
rangeland, feedlots, pastureland, and animal holding areas.
Overall, 64 percent of the rivers and streams surveyed had good
water quality, and 36 percent had fair to poor water quality.
* Lakes, ponds, and reservoirs: Agriculture generates
pollutants that degrade aquatic life or interfere with public use
of 3.3 million lakes acres, or 50 percent of the lake acres with
fair to poor water quality. It is the leading source of
pollution in those lake acres; nutrients are the leading
pollutant of those waters. Overall, 63 percent of lakes, ponds,
and reservoirs surveyed had good water quality, and 37 percent
had fair to poor quality.
* Great Lakes: Agriculture is the sixth leading source of
pollution in Great Lakes Shoreline miles with fair to poor water
quality. The Great Lakes states reported that the leading causes
of fair to poor water quality include pesticides, affecting 21
percent of polluted shoreline miles; nonpriority organic
chemicals, affecting 20 percent; and nutrients, affecting 6
percent. Overall, 3 percent of the Great Lakes Shoreline miles
surveyed had good water quality, and 97 percent had fair to poor
water quality.
* Estuaries: Agriculture pollutes 3,321 square miles of
estuarine waters, or 34 percent of the estuarine waters with fair
to poor water quality. It is the third leading source of
pollution in those waters; nutrients are the leading pollutant of
those waters. Overall, 63 percent of the estuaries surveyed had
good water quality; 37 percent had fair to poor water quality.
* Wetlands: Agriculture is the leading source of degraded
wetlands, according to 13 states which reported sources and
causes of wetlands degradation. These states listed sediment as
the most widespread cause of degradation impacting wetlands;
other causes included pesticides and nutrients.
* Ground water: Among the sources of ground water
contamination most frequently reported by states were
agricultural activities; the most common contaminants included
nitrates, pesticides, and petroleum compounds.
Copies of National Water Quality Inventory are available
from the EPA's Water Resource Center at (202) 260-7786.
PUBLIC SERVICE ADS WILL PROMOTE SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has
launched a public service announcement campaign to promote
sustainable agriculture directly to farmers. The radio
announcements feature several farmers discussing their reasons
for switching to sustainable agriculture techniques, and include
a toll-free number operated by Appropriate Technology Transfer
for Rural Areas to call for more information. With funding
provided by the Wallace Genetic Foundation, the announcements are
being provided to 750 farm-oriented radio stations in 26 states:
Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana,
Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi,
Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North
Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas,
Virginia, and Wisconsin. The campaign is designed "to link
farmers who have been thinking about making a transition to
sustainable farming with knowledgeable experts who can help them
implement those changes," according to CSPI. In a national
opinion poll conducted last year for CSPI, more than 80 percent
of consumers said they want farmers to reduce the use of chemical
pesticides and fertilizers on food crops, even if that means a
small price increase at the supermarket (see Alternative
Agriculture News, June, 1995). For more information, contact
CSPI, 1875 Connecticut Ave., NW, #300, Washington, D.C. 20009;
(202) 332-9110.
APPLICATIONS FOR BERG FELLOWSHIP DUE FEBRUARY 16
Applications for the Norman A. and Ruth A. Berg Fellowship,
established by the Soil and Water Conservation Society to provide
the opportunity for young conservation professionals to learn
about the national policy-making process and improve their skill
in advocacy, are due February 16. Approximately 15 Fellows will
be selected to participate in a day-and-a-half forum in
Washington, D.C., on conservation policy and how natural resource
professionals can influence policy-making, appropriations, and
rule-making processes. The forum will be held in late December,
1996, or early January, 1997. Fellows will meet during the SWCS
annual conference in Keystone, Colorado, in July to discuss the
forum program. For more information, contact Berg Fellowship,
SWCS, 7515 Northeast Ankeny Road, Ankeny, IA 50021-9764; 1-800-
843-7645; e-mail swcs@netins.net
GEORGE WASHINGTON: ONE OF OUR COUNTRY'S FIRST COMPOSTERS
Few Americans know that George Washington was "one of the
nation's first dedicated composters" and an experimenter of
sustainable farming techniques, according to BioCycle (December,
1995). At his farm in Mount Vernon, Virginia, "George Washington
placed a high priority on careful management of the land and its
resources," writes author Robert Arner. "By saving organic
material and adding animal manure, he increased crop production.
Washington rejected traditional farming practices of his day,
such as shallow plowing that caused erosion of the topsoil, as
'misguided, destructive, and wasteful.'" Washington's diary
contains references to a composting experiment, which he explored
because he was "driven by hardships and depleted land," according
to the article. An interactive exhibit now at Mount Vernon,
which portrays the way the estate was farmed in the 18th century,
shows how Washington experimented with crop rotation, and worked
with different crops, organic fertilizers, and soil amendments.
He also had a dung repository, which may have been one of the
first dedicated composting buildings in the country.
AUTHOR ASSAILS GOVERNMENT FAILURE TO "CONSERVE BIOLOGICAL RICHES"
An outbreak of gray leaf spot on last summer's corn crop was
a "tragic consequence of the government's failure to conserve and
use its biological riches," according to an op-ed piece in The
Washington Post (December 6, 1995) by Paul Raeburn, author of The
Last Harvest (published by Simon & Schuster, New York, 1995).
Citing the gray leaf spot outbreak and a disease which has caused
a 50 percent loss for some potato growers, Raeburn writes, "These
preventable epidemics are the direct consequence of the striking
uniformity of American crops....The millions of corn plants just
harvested in the Midwest were nearly as alike as identical twins
-- alike in size, shape, color and, sadly, in vulnerability to
gray leaf spot." The nation's 400,000 seed samples, stored in
seed banks, "are some of the biological riches that could be used
to broaden the agricultural gene pool and prevent future
epidemics," according to the article. But "the USDA's
Agricultural Research Service, which is charged with the
stewardship of the seed collection, has been hamstrung by budgets
that don't give it enough money to do the job....When the seeds
disappear, any disease-resistance genes they carry are gone
forever."
EPA PROGRAMS WILL NOW ASSESS HEALTH RISKS TO CHILDREN
A new agency-wide policy at the EPA will "ensure for the
first time that risks to infants and children are considered
consistently and explicitly as a part of all risk assessments
developed for Agency decisions and policies," according to the
EPA. Many EPA programs currently consider children's health
issues in assessing overall risks from environmental hazards, but
the new policy makes that practice consistent throughout the
Agency. "Exposures to toxic substances can affect children's
growth and development, and many harmful substances can be more
easily absorbed by children's immature body tissues," according
to the EPA. "Children eat and drink more fresh produce and tap
water, milk and juice per unit of body weight than most adults,
creating more potential for exposure to contaminants and
pesticides."
NITROGEN-FIXING LEGUMES BECOMING "MORE ATTRACTIVE," SAYS THE
FURROW
Whether they are grown as companion crops or rotation crops,
"nitrogen-fixing legumes are becoming more attractive to profit-
conscious farmers," according to an article in The Furrow
(December, 1995). Legumes convert nitrogen from the air into
forms plants can use through a process called symbiotic nitrogen
fixation, which refers to a beneficial relationship between
legume plants and a type of soil bacteria called rhizobia,
according to the article. Grouped in nodules on legume roots,
the rhizobia convert or "fix" atmospheric nitrogen; any nitrogen
the legumes don't use, is returned to the soil for use by the
next crop in the rotation. "Major efforts to better utilize this
valuable trait are a fairly recent development," says the
article, describing the work of researchers and farmers in Iowa,
Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Illinois who have planted hairy
vetch, berseem clover, red clover, birdsfoot trefoil, white
lupin, medics, and soybeans.
POSITIONS
Northeast Organic Farming Association-N.J. seeks applicants
for a part-time position as administrator of the Organic
Certification program; for complete job description, contact
Emily Brown Rosen, NOFA-NJ, 31 Titus Mill Road, Pennington, N.J.
08534; (609) 737-6848.
Oregon State University, Department of Horticulture, seeks a
Faculty Research Assistant, Integrated Farming
Systems/Agroecology; for an application, contact Viki Freeman,
Dept. of Horticulture, OSU, Ag and Life Science Bldg. 4017,
Corvallis, OR 97331-7304; (541) 737-5475; or Dr. John Luna, (541)
737-5430; e-mail lunaj@bcc.orst.edu
University of Idaho, Department of Biological and
Agricultural Engineering, seeks an Assistant Professor of
Biological and Agricultural Engineering; contact Dr. Behzad
Izadi, Dept. of Biological and Agricultural Engineering,
University of Idaho, Moscow, ID 83844-0904; (208) 885-6562; e-
mail behzad@uidaho.edu
RESOURCES
Report on Caretaking is available free with a self-
addressed stamped envelope sent to The Caretaker Gazette, 2380 NE
Ellis Way, Suite C-16, Pullman, WA 99163.
"Pesticide-Induced Disruptions of Agricultural Ecosystems"
is available from the California Policy Seminar, 202 Milvia St.,
#412, Berkeley, CA 94704; (510) 642-5514.
Proceedings of "Agriculture and People...Building a Shared
Environment," held at the University of Nebraska Agricultural
Research and Development Center, are available from
ARDC/University of Nebraska at Lincoln, Rte. 1, Box 63A, Ithaca,
NE 68033-9731.
UPCOMING EVENTS
January 31, "Future Trends in Animal Agriculture -- Ohio at
the Agricultural Crossroads: the Nation's Choice" will be held in
Columbus, OH; contact David Brubaker, Future Trends, 145 South
Spruce St., Lititz, PA 17543; (717) 733-2238; e-mail
dbrubak@aol.com
February through May, organic inspector training courses
will be held in Sutton, Quebec; Summerville, TN; Sante Fe, N.M.;
Brandon, Manitoba; Ann Arbor, MI; and Chile; contact Independent
Organic Inspectors Association, Route 3, Box 162-C, Winoma, MN
55987; (507) 454-8310.
February 7-9, International Conference on Air Pollution from
Agricultural Operations will be held in Kansas City, MO; contact
Carole Seifert, Office of Extended and Continuing Education, Iowa
State University, 102 Scheman, Ames, IA 50011; (515) 294-1400; e-
mail x1seifer@exnet.iastate.edu
February 9-10, "Growing Markets, Adding Value, Sustaining
Farms," the Fifth Annual Farming for the Future Conference of the
Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture, will be
held in University Park, PA; contact Farming for the Future, 306
Ag Administration Building, University Park, PA 16802; (814) 865-
8301.
February 17, the 14th Winter Conference of the Northeast
Organic Farming Association of Vermont will be held in
Plainfield, VT; contact NOFA-VT, P.O. Box 697, Richmond, VT
05477; (802) 434-4122.
February 18-20, the annual California Farm Conference will
be held in Visalia, CA; contact Jeannette Warnert, Public Info.
Ag & Natural Resources, University of California's Kearney
Agricultural Center, (209) 225-5611.
February 19-20, Great Lakes Grazing Conference will be held
in Battle Creek, MI; contact Ben Bartlett, Michigan State
University Extension, (906) 439-5880; or Bill Bivens, MSU
Extension, (517) 788-4292.
February 22-24, 1996 North American Farmers' Direct
Marketing Conference will be held in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.;
contact Charlie Touchette, Conference Coordinator, (413) 527-
6572.
February 24, Nebraska Sustainable Agriculture Society Annual
Meeting will be held in Columbus, NE; contact Cris Carusi, NSAS,
P.O. Box 736, Hartington, NE 68739; (402) 254-2289.
February 26-27, "Urban Conservation 2000," a conference to
evaluate urban erosion control and water management innovations,
will be held in Seattle, WA; contact Soil and Water Conservation
Society, 7515 Northeast Ankeny Road, Ankeny, IA 50021; (515) 289-
2331 or 1-800-THE-SOIL.
February 27-March 2, Third National IPM Symposium/Workshop
will be held in Washington, D.C.; contact Carol Kramer,
USDA/ERS/NRED, 1301 New York Ave., NW, Washington, D.C. 20005;
(202) 219-0453; e-mail ckramer@econ.ag.gov
February 29-March 2, Pacific Northwest Farm Direct Marketing
Association Trade Show will be held in Eugene, OR; contact FDMA
Trade Show, P.O. Box 3366, Salem, OR 97302; (503) 373-9650.
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