Wind Erosion Research Unit Funding in Question June 16, 2006
Posted by ieca in Legislative Update.trackback
U.S. President George W. Bush released his proposed FY 2007 budget on February 6, 2006. The USDA-ARS Wind Erosion Research Unit (WERU) in Manhattan, Kansas was not included in this budget. This means that the proposed funding for wind erosion research at Manhattan for 2007 is $0.00. Unless Congress re-instates the WERU budget, wind erosion research in Manhattan will cease, as early as October 1, 2006.
The Wind Erosion Research Unit has been located in Manhattan since 1947 and collaborates closely with Kansas State University. This laboratory was started in response to the Dust Bowl of the 1930's. WERU responds to the needs of customers through basic research, improving control strategies, transferring science-based knowledge to land managers, and developing erosion prediction technology like the Wind Erosion Prediction System (WEPS). This state-of -the art wind erosion model, developed exclusively at WERU, allows farmers and other land managers to develop best management practices for controlling soil erosion by wind and is the only model to give estimates of fine particulates, which play an important role in air quality standards. Wind erosion accounts for almost half of all erosion, and costs estimates exceed $20 billion annually in the U.S. alone. The Wind Erosion Research Unit is an integral part of a national strategy for combating wind erosion both nationally and internationally.
Why would the government cancel funding for a project which would help America save the $20 billion which wind erosion costs? What can be done to not shoot ourselves in the foot over this?
Will our generation be known as those who had little regard for our natural resources and were not willing to spend to conserve these resources? Soil, one of the most basic of these resources, is vital to all living things. If we squander our soil we will become poor indeed. This type of research benefits not only the US but all nations. In so doing it promotes mutual cooperation and peace. Instead of cutting programs like this we should be spending more on them. What good will all our genetically modified crops do if we do not have good soil in which to plant them and yet look at how much is spent on such genetic research and other “technological advances”.
As one who lives in the Midwest, let’s not be so hasty to forget about the devastation of the dustbowl era. Dought conditions happen every year, some years are much worse than others. The monster dust storms of the past that ravaged our beautiful prairie landscapes were due to a combination of drought and uneducated farming practices which caused wind errosion of the soil. How can we be sure it will not happen again if we do not invest in a program which both studies the reasons why wind errosion of the soil occurs and educates farmer and land managers on how to prevent it?
Rob and Terry June 22,2006
We need to invest in our R & D that is what makes America strong. Wind erosion is very important area. We are ignoring the dust bowl of the thirties as if it will never occur again. We need to spread advice about to farmers and to make them aware.
This is certainly no pork program. When I read about frivolous items in our national budget, I have to wonder who’s running our government. We’re not as much an agricultural society as we once were, but looking at the issue as a global one, shouldn’t we be the leaders in researching and educating the rest of the world about the poor farming practices that lead to the Dustbowl? If only the special interest groups with the biggest budgets for lobbying are able to fund programs, what will it take to bring us back to the basic idea of sustaining crops? It sounds like this unit in Kansas is a drop in the bucket of our national budget, a bargain at ten times the price.
For those of you who are asking what we can do:
1) The IECA Government Relations Committee is preparing a letter to appropriate members of Congress on behalf of the organization as a whole. This letter has been submitted to the IECA Board of Directors for approval at the July Board meeting.
2) If you are a U.S. citizen, you can write directly to your members of Congress expressing your views on this topic. You can find contact information for your two Senators at http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm and you can find contact info for your Representative at http://www.house.gov/writerep/. I suggest you read over our tips for effectively working with Congress before sending a letter!
Also, we invite all interested members of IECA to participate on the Government Relations Committee. Committee work can involve everything from helping to formulate IECA’s policy on current issues to preparing letters to send to legislators to doing background research on topics of interest. If you would like to be involved, please send an email to committee chairman John Peterson or staff liaison Becky Milot-Bradford.
Does anyone know where I can find out about the amout of funding the United States Govt. puts toward erosion research?