right on brother

I agree that environmental issues will become even more intertwined with agricultural issues in the near future. I also attended the Society of Environmental Journalists Conference, looking for agricultural topics among a host of tours and workshops. Adding to your list of highlights, a few additional things caught my interest: --Margaret Krome, Michael Fields Agricultural Institute Policy Program Director, spoke of a partnership between HMOs and community supported agriculture (CSA) programs in Madison. In an attempt to boost interest in local agriculture, some HMOs offer rebates if members join a CSA. There are also local food programs in K-12 schools. --About 240 arthropods are dependent on ash trees during their lifetime, Dan Herms from Ohio State University said in a natural resources and wildlife breakout session. Couple that with the anticipated 25 states that will be impacted by Emerald Ash Borers in the next 10 years and the mortality of ash trees will significantly be affected. -- Nina Plaushin from ITC Holdings Corp. described Green Power Express, a proposed project that would result in 3,000 miles of energy transmission lines across 6 states. The transmission lines would transfer 12,000 megawatts of energy.

Thanks, Kelliann, for attending workshops I couldn't get to and reporting on them. Good stuff.

Kudos to Mr Buffet ! Very generous ! On another matter, regarding the article "Why I Chose ACRE" (I find no comment area there). This appears to be a well written and informative article. However, its timeliness (presented well after the closing date for ACRE) is just another jab in the eye of those of us producers who are continually searching for timely and relevant information. The article gets added to the long list of DTN and other articles that recap a wonderful strategy that was accomplished "yesterday, last week, or month, or last year", and that are no longer available. Ed

Thanks, Ed. I hear you on Why I Chose ACRE, but I don't think the criticism is fair in this case. DTN carried a ton of articles and blog items explaining the benefits of ACRE in the months leading up to the decision date. I'd be glad to send them to you if you'd like to provide me an email address. Send it to urban.lehner@dtn.com.

I agree that DTN did an excellent job with articles and blogs about the ACRE program but I had no luck corresponding with DTN editors to get follow up information from some of the sources quoted in articles ie: the spokesperson from USDA in Washington D.C., the quote read that producers would have a couple of weeks after deadline to get signatures if the paperwork had already been initiated, but I could not get anyone, DTN or otherwise to give me more information about this, very fustrating when all a person can do to relate a message is email or leave a voice message and not talk to a live person with todays technology, and then wait for someone to respond which never happened. Very fustrating when time was of the essence.

Ed, as Urban mentioned DTN carried dozens of articles and a webinar with Carl Zulauf attended by over 1,000 people last July, several weeks prior to signup. But the reason for posting his 2009 decision now is to help growers think about their risk management options going forward. You will be able to elect ACRE again for 2010 next spring and Zulauf's points are still valid: (1) ACRE and crop insurance cover complimentary, not duplicate risks (2) ACRE offers corn.soybeans and wheat better protection for multi-year declines in revenue, unlike crop insurance or fixed payments under Counter Cyclical or Marketing Loan Programs (3) ACRE offers better coverage for those without crop base, because it pays on planted acres (4) Its cost for corn/soybean growers was relatively small compared to coverage levels. What's instructive is that even in Illinois, some counties reported only 20% of eligible farms enrolled. I know ACRE didn't fit all situations, and was difficult to explain to landlords, but since this program will be around three more years, perhaps a continued dialogue is warranted.

Nolan, I didn't write the story you mentioned, but in general, DTN tries to respond to subscribers questions if they can. Due to the volume of requests though, clicking on the author's email is the quickest option.

I'm sorry you had that experience. I receive many emails from readers and I try to answer them all; I don't recall receiving one from you. It's possible yours was lost in cyberspace. I have the ability through my blog-posting software to send emails to those who make comments here, and when I tried sending one to you, it bounced back as undeliverable. In any event, if there's anything along these lines we can do for you now, please let me know. If you want to communicate with me directly, my address is urban.lehner@dtn.com

Urban: I think you are missing a major point. This is a lot bigger than some soybeans being sold or not. It opens the door for China to dump our burgeoning debt. This would force an already weak economy into a recession due to higher interest rates, and under such circumstances, this weakness is never good for agriculture. It's the bonds, Urban, not the beans.

Thanks, but China can't dump our debt without shooting themselves seriously in the foot. They start selling in a big way, and the value of the rest of their Treasury holdings plummets. In a way, the situation we have with China now is like mutually assured destruction. It's suicide for either one of us to make a big move against the other.

Another look at the tire tariff. when China does not control emiisions, safety, quality and treat worker's with the same mandates as required for US manufacturers they attain a competive cost position. A tariff can raise their costs to be more in line with our more highly regulated business environment. We may not make the low-end tires. But if the cost between low and high gets smaller that will result in increased sales of tires "Made in the USA.

Let me quote who I feel is the father of conservation, "Conservation is a state of harmony between men and land" Aldo Leopold. Yet this conservation easement is an example of harmony of ideals of men toward the ultimate goal of men and land - Conservation, planned management of natural resources. As the two idealistic groups come together, working together, planned management will become the rule instead of the exception and a win-win will be the out come for the betterment of mankind. The hungry will be feed and the natural resources- Wild Life will be retained and assisted by mankind. Jim Sturrock

Many of us baby boomers were physically dragged into agriculture by our aging parents desiring to impart their dream( and debt) to us. My parents assumed that farming and ranching was better for me than leisurely drinking coffee and reading the Wall Street Journal at a five star resort hotel in Arizona on any given day. Having never baled hay, fed cattle, or planted a straight row of anything, I was thrust into 20 hour days that began and finished in darkness in snow, rain, heat, and icy cold toil. I found that farming 700 acres, raising cattle,feeding pigs, fencing, by yourself allowed me to do something I might never would accomplished without the experience. I was able to spend the final years of my parents with them. I can't tell you what that is worth. It is priceless. I have decided to stay and leave the big city to those that can afford to pay $50 for Prime Rib. I'd rather raise it and sell it to them. Living on a farm, a man can be a man all by himself and find his own purpose in life.

This comment came in by email from Zac Allen in Coleman, Texas. Dear Urban, I appreciate your column, but you did not speak to the unintended consequences of Bernanke. It was at his suggestion that the Federal Government step in, and basically throw away the "free market system" that has created a standard of living as good as any time in history. He put us on this road to Fascism that will now be hailed as the proper balance between private sector and public intervention. As always their are atleast two way to look at things. I am of the opinion that people to day will always look to the government for the pain free way out of a crisis instead of " you made our own bed now sleep in it." i do not want to ramble, so I will stop with this last comment. The unintended consequences seems to always be what we have been fighting since FDR decided that government should have a much bigger role in our lives. As then as is now, i am scared to death to think what this generation has done to may daughters and her childrens generation simply because people today do not want to own up to the consequences of their bad decisions. Looking bach through my letter, i notice a reoccurring word....CONSEQUENCES.... uninteneded or otherwise. That is what we should worry about. Thank you for your time, Saludos..... Zac Allen

Excellent points.