Protecting threatened salmon in the Northwest
has become everybody’s business, with Washington’s farmers the
newest group to enter the fray.
Now, farmers are
under the gun: In the next 18 months, they must make sure their
standards are compatible with habitat conservation guidelines
published by federal agencies overseeing salmon recovery. If
farmers are not in compliance with the Endangered Species and Clean
Water acts at that time, they may be subject to citizen
lawsuits.
“There is a steep learning curve for
the agricultural community,” says Patrick Batts of the Washington
Farm Bureau.
A sticking point for farmers is
buffers. Federal regulators want 100-200 feet on either side of a
stream to remain unused. Many farmers fear they will lose too much
productive land, so they’ve asked agency representatives to tour
Washington farms for a firsthand look at how various regulations
would impact farming.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Fish find friends in farmers.
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