Has the Time Come to Regulate Farmers: We Already Do, But How Do We Decide What Is Enough, How Clean is Clean

Abstract

The wetlands issue appears to be the major focus of the farm groups who argue that restraints on the drainage of wet soils restrict output and world competitiveness in a major way for a negligible return in habitat and water quality improvement. Political stability on the wetland issue may be very hard to achieve given the very large potential capital gains from non-farmland development and the long standing animosity between waterfowl enthusiasts and farm groups. At the larger system level, the North American Migratory Water Fowl Plan responds to the relevant treaties and serves as a focal point for some impressive private support groups. The idea of municipalities trading pollution reduction opportunities with farmers who can achieve goals for streams more cheaply may provide incentives for innovation. A number of states have experimented with adding regulatory features to their conservation efforts in the name of water quality. The future expectation is that for the immediate future, state and local developments will probably take the lead in terms of innovations in regulation.