Illinois' conservation efforts have taken a big hit as the state's newly passed budget has cut $4 million from conservation funding, according to an article in FarmProgress. This budget cut will impact the state's ability to achieve its Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy goal set for 2025.
What's happening?
In early June, Governor JB Pritzker of Illinois passed a budget of $53.1 billion for the state, resulting in the funding for Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCD) being nearly cut in half, as per FarmProgress. The budget cuts directly impact the salaries of SWCD technical workers, who serve as liaisons between federal funding and farmers.
"If agriculture brings so many dollars into the state, why would you want to then impact its long-term sustainability and ability to make an economic impact?" Michael Woods, Executive Director of SWDC, reported to FarmProgress.
Why is conservation funding in Illinois important?
The budget cut to Illinois' conservation funding is crucial because it happened just a year before the state's Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy (NLRS) deadline. "The NLRS goal is a 45% reduction in both nitrogen and total phosphorus loads, with interim targets set at a 15% nitrogen decrease and a 25% total phosphorus decrease by 2025," reported FarmProgress.
Nitrogen and phosphorus are nutrients farmers use to support their produce. However, when there is an excess of the two, it can get washed away by rain and run off into water systems, according to the EPA. Too much nitrogen and phosphorus in water can lead to the growth of harmful algal blooms, which can disrupt aquatic ecosystems.
Because Illinois is about 75% farmland, reducing excess nutrient loss is essential in conserving biodiversity. However, the recent budget cuts are now putting a strain on the workforce tasked with monitoring and mitigating harm from nutrient loss. "The state took a hammer away and gave us a zip tie," Woods noted to FarmProgress.
What's being done about the budget cuts?
Despite the budget cut, Woods of Illinois' SWCD is still optimistic and "says they'll have to be creative in funding their staff," as per FarmProgress. Although the short-term budget cuts interrupt long-term conservation goals, it does not mean they are impossible to achieve.
Illinois is one of many places trying to tackle pollution from nutrient loss. Minnesota just cleaned up major lakes after making efforts to reduce runoff. In the U.K., the Wye and Usk Foundation is working with poultry farmers to address the harmful runoff caused by phosphorus-rich chicken waste in rivers.
Both of these examples have succeeded thanks to collective community action stepping in where politicians fall short.
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