While much of the debate over the farm bill has revolved around crop insurance and food stamps, one of the lesser-known provisions could limit the ability of the Environmental Protection Agency to enforce ecological regulations and could restrict access to information about farm pollution and agricultural runoff.
Farm regulations and environmental activism has been a source of contention in the agricultural community for the past several years. Upon taking office, President Barack Obama and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack have empowered the EPA and farm regulatory organizations to aggressively enforce environmental regulations. The EPA, for example, has enforced tougher runoff restrictions along Chesapeake waterways and has attempted to limit sediment pollution along the Mississippi River and in the Great Lakes.
This environmental enforcement on a local level could be jeopardized if the House farm bill passes, however. Buried amidst the standard farm subsidies is a provision that would prevent the federal government from sharing information about agricultural polluters, including large-scale corporate farmers. Without access to that information, state environmental regulators would have a difficult time tracking down polluters and limiting the degradation of local waterways.
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Written by: Justin Ellison / Farm Plus Staff Writer