SOIL CONSERVATION: POLITICS, POLICY, AND PLANNING (WATER QUALITY, LAND-USE, EROSION, PALOUSE RIVER DRAINAGE BASIN, SEDIMENTATION, IDAHO, WASHINGTON

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has identified soil erosion as one of the five most important national environmental problems. Soil erosion results in billions of dollars of damage annually to land and water resources. The problem is worsening and government programs, which have largely been voluntary, have not ameliorated the negative impacts of erosion. Recent laws have been enacted by the federal government and some states to encourage soil conservation and to improve water quality. Although these laws appear to be an improvement over past efforts, there are indications that alone they will not resolve the problem.;I recommend an alternative approach that builds on these recent initiatives and incorporates new actions. I suggest a national soil conservation policy be adopted with a goal to reduce all erosion in the country to tolerable levels, as have been established by the U.S. Soil Conservation Service, by the year 2010. These levels, known as T-values, are consistent, national measures of the harmful rates of water and wind erosion. These T-values represent the maximum level of erosion that will permit a high level of crop productivity to be sustained economically and indefinitely. Bio-physical characteristics for specific soils determine these values, so they are sensitive to regional variations.;Landowners and county governments should develop plans based on these values to remain eligible for federal and state agricultural benefits. These plans would be coupled with regulations and enforcement provisions to ensure compliance. In addition, I suggest new education efforts, acquisition of easements of the most highly erodible lands, and funding for these recommendations.;These recommendations are timely and important. In recent years, much attention has been focused on soil conservation because of the 50th anniversary of the Soil Conservation Service in 1985 and proposals by the Reagan administration to abolish key conservation agencies, as well as the enactment of the new federal and state erosion control and clean water laws. In a larger sense, past soil conservation efforts are symptomatic of other land-use planning and environmental management programs in the United States. As a result, these recommendations have broad implications for American planning.