Resolution: Great Lakes Commission Support for Reauthorization of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Farm Bill)
Adopted on October 04, 2006

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Whereas, the 110th Congress is expected to reauthorize the Farm Bill, or Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-171); and

Whereas, authorities under the Conservation Title of the current Farm Bill are very important to help improve Great Lakes water quality by protecting wetlands, and reducing soil erosion and nonpoint source pollution; and

Whereas, the Farm Bill authorizes a specific Great Lakes regional conservation program, the Great Lakes Basin Program for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control, which has been a successful federal-state partnership improving Great Lakes water quality for more than a decade; and

Whereas, conservation programs under the Farm Bill provide technical assistance and financial incentives to land owners to help them mitigate the damages caused by erosion and nonpoint source pollution, which, if not mitigated, can reduce water quality, cause off-site impacts, degrade the environment and negatively impact the economy; and

Whereas, reducing sedimentation and erosion through Farm Bill programs can be an effective tool to help reduce the need for dredging to maintain navigation depths in Great Lakes tributaries; and

Whereas, the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration cited the Farm Bill as an important conservation management tool for improving habitat, protecting wetlands, reducing nonpoint source pollution and controlling soil erosion from agricultural lands; and

Whereas, Farm Bill conservation programs are important to accomplish the goals of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, which is currently being reviewed by the governments of the United States and Canada.

Therefore, Be it Resolved, that the Great Lakes Commission acknowledges the progress that has been made to conserve and protect the soil, land and water resources of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River region through the current and past Farm Bill conservation programs and applauds the leadership of the U.S. Congress that is committed to continuing this progress by reauthorizing the Farm Bill; and

Be it Further Resolved, that the Great Lakes Commission supports strengthening the Conservation Title of the Farm Bill in order to further protect and improve Great Lakes water quality; and

Be it Further Resolved, that the Great Lakes Commission supports the need for Farm Bill programs that further the restoration goals of the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration and the Great Lakes Governors; and

Be it Further Resolved, that the Great Lakes Commission supports the reauthorization of the Wetland Reserve Program (WRP), the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP), the Forestry Incentives Program (FIP), Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP) and the Farmland Protection Program (FRP) as examples of programs that are valuable to the protection of land, soil and water resources in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence basin; and

Be it Further Resolved, that the Great Lakes Commission urges Congress to reauthorize the Great Lakes Basin Program for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control as a specific Great Lakes program to improve water quality through the reduction of erosion and sedimentation; and

Be it Further Resolved, that the Great Lakes Commission urges Congress to provide adequate funding for the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resource Conservation Service to provide technical and financial assistance to carry out environmental, natural resources and water quality protection programs under the Act; and

Be it Finally Resolved, that the Commission commits to working with its member states, the Council of Great Lakes Governors, the environmental and conservation community and other partners under the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration to ensure that the interests of the Great Lakes are adequately served and supported under the reauthorized Farm Bill.

Adopted by the Great Lakes Commission at its Annual Meeting, October 04, 2006, in Duluth, Minn.