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Whitmer adds conservation funds, cuts ag investments

Michigan’s governor is asking for a one time $10 million investment in conservation programs for farmers implementing practices to protect water quality.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s recent budget proposal would work to leverage $250 million in potential USDA funding for the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program and other on-farm conservation work.

Ag director Gary McDowell tells Brownfield since 2016, farmers have been pulling land out of conservation programs for various reasons and this funding would increase incentives in highly sensitive watersheds.

“We saw right after they pulled out, the phosphorus levels started to creep back up.  We’re convinced that’s probably the best program we can do right now.”

An additional $600,000 would also be available to support the Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program and Michigan State University Extension conservation outreach.

McDowell says increased investments in technology updates have been greatly needed and after this year a large portion of the department’s licensing will be accessible online.

Funding was eliminated for the Food and Agriculture Investment Program in Whitmer’s 2021 proposal and funding for the Michigan Alliance for Animal Agriculture program, which was zeroed out in 2020, was not replaced.  Instead, McDowell says the department is working on merging animal and plant ag research investment dollars with Project GREEEN.

Without accounting for the one-time $10 million funding, Whitmer’s proposal cuts the ag department’s budget by three percent compared to 2020.