USDA Announces New Conservation
Reserve Enhancement Program
HARRISBURG (Dauphin
Co.) USDA officials are
adding another dimension to
helping farmers improve water
quality and provide wildlife hab
itat in 20 counties in southeast
and central Pennsylvania, in
cluding Lancaster County,
through the new Conservation
Reserve Enhancement Program
(CREP).
Sign-up begins June 1, 2000,
and continues until the state
acreage quota is met.
USDA has set a goal to pro
vide conservation benefits on a
total of 100,000 acres in the 20
county area with 25,000 of these
acres established in buffers.
The Farm Service Agency will
provide cost-share for installing
conservation practices as well as
land rental payments in return
for not cropping the land. Cost
share is set at 50 percent with
state efforts under way to in
crease that figure to 100 percent.
The Natural Resources Con
servation Service (NRCS) will
provide planning, design, and
installation assistance to farm
ers for practices such as estab
lishing permanent grass cover,
tree plantings, grass waterways,
forest riparian buffers, and wet
land restoration.
The Pennsylvania Game
Commission has provided fund
ing to NRCS for nine wildlife
habitat specialists which will be
positioned throughout the eligi
ble counties.
“This is an excellent example
of a federal and state partner
ship working for the health of
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the land and the future of a
healthy ecosystem,” said Janet
Oertly, NRCS State Conserva
tionist. “Our employees have a
history of working one-on-one
with landowners to plan options
which cover all the aspects of the
environment —oil, water, ani
mals, air, and humans. CREP
provides another tool to use in
that planning process.”
Considerations will be given
to landowner and renter rela
tionships in these 10 to 15-year
contracts which will reduce ero
sion, improve water quality, and
provide food, water, and shelter
as well as travel corridors for
wildlife. USDA is partnering
with the Pennsylvania Depart
ment for Environmental Protec
tion, Pennsylvania Game
Commission, Pennsylvania De
partment of Agriculture, Ducks
Unlimited, the Chesapeake Bay
foundation, and others.
“CREP is similar to the Con
servation Reserve program
(CRP) in land eligibility and
contract lengths,” said Bill
Baumgartner, FSA state execu
tive director. “It is different
from CRP in that land rental
payments and cost-share are
much higher. This program
should really benefit the land
and the landowner.
CREP is a unique program
sponsored jointly by USDA and
the Commonwealth of Pennsyl
vania. State officials are work
ing to increase the cost-share
amount to 100 percent. CREP is
now available in 12 states, in-
eluding the neighboring states of
Maryland, Virginia, New York,
and Ohio.
Interested landowners should
contact their local USDA Ser
vice Center for more informa
tion on how to participate.
Significant Knowledge Gap
In Debate Over GMO
PARIS, France Consumers
around the world are taking
home a negative message about
genetically modified organisms
(GMO). More consumers see the
issue as one where the risks
outweigh the benefits, according
to a new poll of 5,000 adults by
Angus Reid Group Worldwide.
Increasingly, it seems that
consumers see the issue as one of
food safety and public health
rather than progress in science
and technology.
Over half of consumers in
Japan, France, Germany, Aus
tralia and Canada see the issue
in a health and safety context. In
the U.S., 44 percent see it in that
context, as do 39 percent of
shoppers in the United King
dom. Only in Brazil, where
awareness of the issue is the
lowest, is it seen largely as a sci
ence and technology matter (61
percent).
Among the eight countries
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polled, the trend toward GMO
foods was seen most negatively
in Japan (82 percent), followed
by Germany (73 percent) and
France (71 percent). Americans
are growing more disenchanted
with the concept. Forty-five per
cent of Americans held a nega
tive view when polled by the
Angus Reid Group in 1998,
compared to 51 percent earlier
this year.
The same holds for Canadi
ans 59 percent hold negative
views about GMO foods, up
from 45 percent two years ago.
In Brazil, just 45 percent of
shoppers view this trend nega
tively.
When it came to identifying
the benefits or advantages of
GMO foods, the most commonly
mentioned benefit is productivi
ty-related (improved efficien
cies/higher yields in food
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production), mentioned by 31
percent.
On the consumer end of it, 15
percent mention better quality
foods and another 15 percent
mention fewer pesticides. As
well, one in 10 mention the po
tential for improved nutritional
value of GMO foods.
Of particular note is that 25
percent of those surveyed expect
GMO foods to provide no bene
fits or advantages. An additional
10 percent were unsure of any
benefits that might result.
While awareness is fairly high
on a global scale, more than four
in 10 consumers ranging
from 44 percent to 58 percent
still say they only understand “a
little” about GM foods. Under
standing is greatest in Germany,
Australia and the U.K.
Americans and Brazilians are
least likely to say they under
stand the issue.
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