Begin forwarded message:

From: "Scotty Johnson" <sjohnson@...>

Date: June 16, 2006 12:36:00 PM CDT

To: <fullspectrum@...>

Subject: Defenders Rural UPdates! jUNE 16, 2006

Defenders of Wildlife

Rural Updates!

June 16, 2006

Joining together to defend wildlife, family farms, and healthy and

delicious food.  Help us spread the word; email this to friends and

suggest they subscribe at:

www.familyfarmer.org/sections/ruralsubscribe.html

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1.  Take Action:  Stop Senate Cuts to Farm Bill Conservation

2.  Summary of Farm Bill Forums on Conservation Available

3.  Upcoming Conference on Community Supported Agriculture

4.  A Rural Updates Summer Reading List

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1.  TAKE ACTION: STOP SENATE CUTS TO FARM BILL

CONSERVATION FUNDING!

It's becoming a familiar refrain: another year, another

Congressional appropriations cycle, another failure to fund the

farm bill conservation programs at the level that was promised and

is needed.  Last month the House passed an appropriations bill that

dramatically shortchanged conservation funding, particular the

Conservation Security Program and the Wetlands Reserve

Program.  The House bill cut $54 million from the President's

request for the CSP, capping the program $288 million.  "The cut

is so big that it calls into question if they could have a new sign-up

if it stayed at that level," said Ferd Hoefner of the Sustainable

Agriculture Coalition.  On the WRP side, the House bill slashed

over 100,000 acres from the President's request, which would have

fully funded WRP at 250,000 acres in 2007.  The House bill also

placed limits on the popular Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program

and Farm and Ranchland Protection Program.  Please call the

Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask your senators to

maintain mandatory spending levels for all of the 2002 Farm Bill

conservation programs as they consider the agricultural

appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2007 next week.

2.  SUMMARY OF FARM BILL FORUMS ON

CONSERVATION AVAILABLE.

Following the USDA's 2005 Farm Bill forums, the agency has

released two papers in a series to summarize the solicited public

input.  The latest paper, released this month, examines the

Conservation Title of the Farm Bill.  The paper takes a look at

historical use of Farm Bill conservation programs, environmental

benefits achieved, the economic costs and benefits of the programs,

WTO trade compliance issues, and examines several possible

future scenarios for the Conservation Title of the Farm Bill in the

2007 reauthorization.

Executive Summary:

http://www.usda.gov/documents/FarmBill07consenvsum.pdf

Full Paper:

http://www.usda.gov/documents/FarmBill07consenv.pdf

3.  UPCOMING CONFERENCE ON COMMUNITY

SUPPORTED AGRICULTURE

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is sprouting up across

America faster than Kudzu or Johnson grass – with one notable

difference; this aggressive newcomer is a welcome invader!  CSA's

eliminate the marketing middle man while connecting consumers

and farmers in local food-webs that produce healthier food and

family farms while restoring ecosystems and wildlife habitat. In

Minnesota CSA Farms is hosting a CSA conference in November

designed to further awareness of CSA's.  If you can't attend, but

like the idea, why not hold a conference in your own region?

That's what CSA's are all about – learning to live sustainably in

the bio-regions where we dwell.  Learn more about CSA Farms

conference at http://www.csafarms.org/csafarms4056869.asp  To

read what the USDA has to say about CSA's see:

http://www.nal.usda.gov/afsic/csa/

4.  A RURAL UPDATES SUMMER READING LIST

Ahh, summer time.  The weather is warm, the sun is shining, what

better time to curl up with a good book examining the ecological

and social challenges we face, or the fate of the world as we know

it?  Here's a peak at some of the things the Rural Updates staff are

reading, and planning to read, this summer.  THE OMNIVORE'S

DILEMMA, by Michael Pollan, seeks an answer to the question

"What Should We Have for Dinner?" by examining the path from

field to plate of four distinct meals: one industrial conventional,

corn-based meal, one "industrial" organic meal, one local organic

meal, and one meal hunted and foraged by the author.  THE END

OF FOOD, by organic farmer and journalist Thomas Pawlick,

presents research mainly from outside of North America to make a

compelling case that industrial agriculture production significantly

decreases the nutritional value of our foods, even fruits and

vegetables.  CADILLAC DESERT, by Marc Reisner, examines the

history of water use in the western U.S., with an eye to both the

positive and negative effects. Finally, THE LAST HOURS OF

ANCIENT SUNLIGHT by Thom Hartmann and PLAN B 2.0 by

Lester Brown, both offer visions for re-thinking the business as

usual model that has brought us climate change, water shortages,

stressed ecosystems and countless human tragedies, and for

building a more sustainable future.

If you can't find these titles at your local library or bookseller, all

are available at www.powells.com <http://www.powells.com> and

www.amazon.com <http://www.amazon.com>.  Happy Reading!

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Rural Updates!

Scotty Johnson, Aimee Delach and Lisa Hummon

National Rural Community Outreach Campaign

sjohnson@...

Defenders of Wildlife

Visit our website at www.familyfarmer.org

520 623-9653 x3

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