American Agri-Women (AAW), President, Karolyn Zurn views this Executive Order as one more blessing for American Agriculture and all Americans.

This order not only cuts red tape, but it also provides a clear path for agencies such as the Bureau of Interior, Environmental Protection Agency, and the Army Corp of Engineers to work with United States agriculture.

This order provides jobs, water infrastructure, transportation on rivers and inland waterways, and water forecasting.

This project will offer clarity to agriculture, especially those that rely on the Colorado River for irrigation and the Mississippi Delta working with the Gulf of Mexico Nutrient Task Force. Florida’s flood and restoration projects throughout the Everglades have been in progress for many years, mired in red tape will now be able to move forward.

This project will work directly with the Environmental Protection Agency to provide a clean, safe water source for Americans across the board.

As American Agri-Women we #STANDUPSPEAKOUT4AG and are an ongoing “Voice for Truth About Agriculture.” We see a great future for agriculture.

Source: American Agri-Women

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We feature below some of the most important sentences of the letter to the White house :

The COVID-19 pandemic underscores the importance of safety and stability provided by domestic food production. As this crisis has pointed out, a stable domestic food supply is essential and of national security interest. For farmers and ranchers to survive, and for food to continue to be produced here in the American West, a stable water supply is a necessary part of any conversation about our national food security.

President Trump has stated his belief that renewed efforts to meet the systemic infrastructure demands of the nation will be an important step in combating the long-term impacts of the pandemic.

   We strongly agree. In particular, we urge you to advance critically needed investments that address the shortcomings of our aging Western water infrastructure.

Existing water infrastructure in the West needs rehabilitation and improvement. Most of the federally funded water infrastructure projects that benefit the large cities, rural communities and small farms in the West were built more than 50 years ago. As hydrological conditions in the West change and populations continue to expand, failure to address water security has become increasingly critical.

Failing to improve water infrastructure and develop supplies will inevitably result in additional conflict as pressure grows to ‘solve’ urban and environmental water shortages. Moving water away from Western irrigated agriculture will surely contribute to the decline of our national food security.

The coalition letters—spearheaded by the California Farm Bureau Federation, Family Farm Alliance and Western Growers—emphasize that water conservation, water recycling, watershed management, conveyance, desalination, water transfers, groundwater storage and surface storage are all needed in a diversified management portfolio

If and when additional infrastructure funding is discussed as part of a larger economic stimulus package, we need your help to ensure that federal dollars flow to the water infrastructure needs mentioned above. .

Source: California Farm Bureau Federation

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NFU President Roger Johnson released the following statement in response to the President’s remarks:

“Without regard for the American family farmer, rural resident or consumer, President Trump is yet again risking essential trade markets and our country’s once-pristine trading reputation. Shutting down the U.S.-Mexico border would be disastrous for trade with our top agricultural trading partner, and the effects would be consistent with the numerous other trade disruptions the President has self-inflicted on our country: lost markets and lower prices for products grown and raised by family farmers and ranchers.

For two years, President Trump has dug American agriculture into a deep hole. We’ve lost markets that took decades to build, and worse yet, we’ve lost our reputation as a reliable trading partner. Threats to close our border worsen this reputation, digging our hole deeper and depressing farm prices for years to come.

“Many American farm families are already in dire financial strain because of a drastic decline in farm prices over the past five years. Unfortunately, the President’s tactless, flailing approach to trade has exacerbated the situation. In order to begin to fill the hole he has singlehandedly dug, he must work to repair relationships, not make them worse.”

Source: National Farmers Union (NFU)

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