Thread by @DanMoilanen

1/ Listening to @npratc right now, and their story about how @GovRicketts condemning @USDA’s #30by30 is deeply troubling, especially right now with where we are in agricultural/conservation trends. A thread from someone in the conservation field who works closely with USDA:

2/ It’s obvious that many farmers are skeptical of the Federal government going onto their land, this is precisely why Soil and Water Conservation Districts (CDs) were created. CDs are LOCAL units of government, with local publicly-elected boards of directors who manage them.

3/ Local leaders will always better understand the natural resources needs in their community over the Federal government. Landowners/farmers will always trust local govt over the Fed. govt, and it’s precisely this foundation of trust that makes the CD platform so effective at…

4/ delivering conservation practices on private land. @GovRicketts claim that #30by30 is a land grab, is unfounded, given that the majority of these federal programs are managed by local CDs, who have zero interest in acquiring/managing/paying taxes on private land.

5/ @GovRicketts spreading misinformation, when time when soil conservation is SO critical is incredibly problematic. All one has to do is go back and look at the history of the #DustBowl. Farmers tilled the hell out of their fields w/o cover cropping during a HISTORIC drought.

6/ As a result, there were farmers who lost EVERYTHING. It cost the U.S. billions of dollars (in 2022 $) in lost profits and lost workable land. This was a terrible crisis that came at the worst time in the 1930s, the height of the Great Depression. Sound familiar to 2020-2022?

7/ Due to changes in land use policies, and technological developments, farmers once again are using excessive tillage without cover cropping, during a time of record high temperatures and drought. This is a recipe for disaster! #DustBowl #30By30 @npratc

8/ I flew over the Great Plains / NE last Sept, after the corn harvest. I was stunned. The amount of brown fields w/o any green cover crops was deeply troubling, & well over 90%. The status quo has us on track for a 2nd #DustBowl b/c we’ve gotten away from the lessons of the 30s.

9/ @GovRicketts spreading fear of soil conservation programming among a very divided/anxious base of farmers, will very much mean they are risking the future of their farms. Soil is a finite resource, we’ve used over 1/3 of topsoil in the Midwest. Scientists predict we have 60…

10/ some harvests left. To top it off, the conservation programs implemented by CDs actually help farmers increase their yields & reduce cost of inputs, which means MORE money in their pockets when the global grain/soy markets are punishing farmers. @GovRicketts @npratc

11/11 @GovRicketts spreading misinformation re: soil conservation means that farmers in Nebraska will dramatically suffer.

No one benefits from this type of rhetoric, ESPECIALLY farmers!

@npratc #DustBowl #30By30 @NACDconserve

12/ @GovRicketts @RickettsForGov Making non-partisan policy into a partisan issue, just because it’s @POTUS admin’s policy, is deeply irresponsible and harmful to your constituency. Please reconsider your positions here! It’s perfectly acceptable to backpedal here.

P.S. GO HUSKERS! (As a Michigander, I can say that because my sister is a UNL alumna 😁)