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COMMON GROUND VOL. 11 NO. 4 MAY /JUKE 2000 4? " a e ,..f fi. .'g',�i .ta:y , d • ui4�"r.- `� . t"g � 4 �f . _ �:} ' •. ; ^7 n a • c-'i .+��-,.: S.f V�,.., ,._ - 'u>; i y- 'k. K - -3 :.J = �,t _ -.� x`4: S, .�t':`rt^ , �+x •�� ` � . '�`' '`�-.�?�--5: � . � °Si��c'z�, •{ _ Conseiving We Americans must deepen our com- them the resources they need to keep their mitment to the conservation of private land . operations economically and environmen- PrivateAlthough we 've controlled most soil erosion tally sustainable . By empowering farmers, on fragile lands, we 're no longer reducing we attack conservation problems before they Landoverall erosion. Urban sprawl is swallowing begin. The benefits : competitive rural econo- up some of our best farm and forest land, mies, cleaner water, restored wetlands, bet- Forest land is more fragmented . Wetland ter flood control, healthier habitat and more losses have accelerated . Irrigation is mcreas- ecotourism . If we don't make modest invest- ing in the East, boosting competition for wa- ments at first, we 'll spend a billion dollars ter in cities, which also are losing tree cover . down the road on a water filtration plant to We could blame inadequate federal fix a problem that spun out of control . funding. On a per-acre basis, the federal Environmental waste doesn't respect government spends just $ 1 on private land property lines . As a farmer controlling am* - conservation for every $5 we spend on pub- mal waste or a suburban homeowner apply- , lic land management. But the insufficient ing garden fertilizer, how you manage your funding reflects the American attitude to- property affects your community' s quality ward land . In 1935, galvanizing people to of life . We mustn't forget we are the trustees embrace a national conservation strategy of the American landscape . It' s not ours to was easier. We felt more connected to the keep . It's ours to hold for a brief time and land . Americans spent their entire lives in pass on in better shape . is published bimonthly as a one place . Now we are a nation of travelers We have to muster the will to do the IN service to the conservation and re-locators, people who live in one place right thing . That' s what Americans did a community by but came from another . Instead of land be- century ago . In 1908, President Roosevelt The Conservation Fund ing an integral part of our lives, it just hap - convened a Conference of Governors de- Chairman Patrick Noonan pens to be the place where we live right voted to conservation issues . He later wrote : John F. Turner now . Television and the Internet also helped "It is doubtful whether, except in time of President break our bond with the land . war, any new idea of like importance has Mike McQueen To craft new conservation solutions, we ever been presented to a nation and ac- Editor have to tap the power of grass-roots activ- cepted by it with such effectiveness and William deBuys ism. The greatest commitments and the most rapidity, as was the case with this conserva- Jack Lynn Editorial Consultants innovative conservation plans are percolat- tion movement when it was introduced to Meg West ing from the bottom . up . Nearly three-guar- the American people by the Conference of Art Director ters of anti-sprawl ballot measures passed in Governors . „ The challenges we face today For address corrections and 1998 . New Jersey voters committed $ 1 bil- re uire us to revisit our commitment to con- information; contact: q lion over a decade to protect state farmland. servation. I believe that, just as in 1908, the April Berry The proximity of farmers, ranchers and leadership must come from the top . Circulation Manager The conservation Fund foresters to the land makes them our most From a speech given Dec . 7 in Ames, Iowa, Arlington, gt N. Kent St., Suite 1120 conscientious land stewards . We must give by Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman. Arlington, VA 22209 703 /525-6300 COMMON GROUND routinely grants permission for reprints . Address editorial correspondence and reprint queries to: COMMON GROUND 940 Stillwater Lane a Earlysville, VA 22936 804/ 973-7324 coground@aol. com o COMMON GROUND is available r u on the World Wide Web at http: //www.conservationfund.org 14Ira Printed on recycled paper. - aE a 0 .o U the � In t N