1990 Farm Bill Forum 



Proceedings 



Wire's position on some of the issues: 

 Wire believes that federal and state govern- 

 ments often claim jurisdiction over our national 

 resources, particularly water. Therefore, we 

 believe the national water policy should recog- 

 nize the rights to administer indi\ndual water 

 laws and manage water resources within states, 

 and that the ix)licy should respect rights estab- 

 lished by interstate water compacts adopted by 

 respective states and ratified by Congress. 



We also supjx)rt programs that allow landown- 

 ers, the Soil Consen'ation Ser\ice, area water 

 agencies and conserv-ation districts to establish 

 voluntary management practices on ag lands 

 and waters of the nation, and that funding be 

 revoK-ing (payback) fund programs. 



Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution significantly 

 impacts water quality, which includes both 

 natural and manmade contributions and the 

 types of nonpoint sources that need to be 

 controlled, and the means for effectively 

 implementing these controls vary significantly 

 from state to state. Therefore, we oppose 

 mandatory federal control of NPS of p>ollution, 

 with compliance deadlines and far-reaching 

 cross-compliance implications. We believe this 

 would be counter productive to accomplishing 

 the goals of the Clean Water Act. Mandated 

 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) inter- 

 vention in the efforts of states to address their 

 NPS problems would be highly disruptive and 

 an abridgement of state primacy. Therefore, we 

 support continued state leadership in control- 

 ling NPS of pollution on a flexible basis consis- 

 tent with the needs of the individual states. 

 Before any new federal authority of programs is 

 mandated, we urge that existing programs 

 should first be examined for adequacy, particu- 

 larly from the funding standp>oint. 



In reference to wilderness, we believe that 

 millions of acres of land in the United States 

 have been set aside for wilderness study 

 without consideration for energy needs or 

 economic impacts. Use of these areas, should 

 they become wilderness, would be limited to 

 the young and able-bodied because of the re- 

 strictions against motorized access, rather than 

 the way these lands have previously been man- 

 aged under the multiple-use concept, which 

 benefits both producers and recrcationists. 



Montana Chiptar, toD and Watsr Contst^aOon Society 



35 



Therefore, we oppose the sotting aside of any 

 area of land not meeting the criteria of "true 

 wilderness" and we urge that multiple-use be 

 continued. 



As many of us in America are professional 

 farmers, we want to be good stewards of the 

 soil and practice the best conservation methods 

 pK)ssible. After all, our livelihood depends on 

 this practice, not only for ourselves, but for 

 future generations. Aftcrall, "we realize that all 

 new wealth is generated from the land." There- 

 fore, we urge the best conservation methods be 

 employed, as we do not condone the misuse 

 and ultimate destruction of this fragile land. 



Wire supports and will work toward the goal 

 of requiring companies who create hazardous 

 wastes to recycle and reuse waste on-site. We 

 oppose all hazardous waste sites be located in 

 rural areas. 



Since recreationists have access to streams 

 flowing through private lands, we believe 

 entering lands without landowners' permission 

 is trespassing. We supp>ort legislation that will 

 remove the burden of liability and damages 

 from private landowners. 



Noxious weeds are costing U.S. producers and 

 consumers millions of dollars every year. We 

 strongly request federal government agencies 

 and /or bureaus establish a more effective 

 program in coordination with state and private 

 weed control efforts and provide the necessary 

 funding to carry this through. 



Salinity is also a problem in Montana. One only 

 needs to fly along the Milk River, or visit the 

 Bowdoin Wildlife Refuge just east of Malta, to 

 realize what a grave problem salinity is in our 

 state. I have no idea how many livestock, fish 

 and wildlife are lost to this contamination, or 

 how many human health problems arise out of 

 the elevated levels of nitrates and selenium that 

 are caused by saline seep. If this can be con- 

 trolled by planting alfalfa, and other deep- 

 rooted plants, we should be promoting this 

 practice. If farmers are having this problem in 

 their fields, they should be allowed to plant 

 these deep rooted plants and not lose their crop 

 bases, or payments that they would normally 

 receive under the farm program. 



Auguit28, 1889 



