Making industry voices heard

In March, industry advocates representing a wide range of companies along with members of the Irrigation Association staff gathered in Washington, D.C., for the 2023 Irrigation Association Fly-In to highlight the important role irrigation plays in society and to highlight key IA policy priorities.

Industry advocates represented industry perspectives and concerns from more than 10 states and spent time discussing key industry priorities with lawmakers and their staff.

With the next iteration of the farm bill currently being debated in Congress, uncertainties in the financial sector and potentially harmful changes to critical labor programs on the table, there wasn’t a better or more crucial time for our industry to work together to ensure federal policymakers enable irrigation professionals to continue doing their vital work for our communities and nation.

These objectives are indicative of the critical role the irrigation industry plays in helping growers around the country to more efficiently utilize our precious freshwater resources, all while becoming more productive in order to meet growing global demand.

In addition to directly engaging with lawmakers, the IA also officially announced our farm bill priorities concurrently with the event. These priorities include the following:

• Invest in and improve conservation programs, especially the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, and ensure those programs maximize producers’ ability to adopt irrigation tools that boost productivity and conserve natural resources.
• Recognize that irrigation efficiency provides multiple benefits such as energy savings, reduced carbon emissions, soil health and water quality.
• Ensure producers have the technical assistance, education and research they need to become more efficient.
• Expand rural connectivity and focus on agriculture’s cybersecurity needs so producers can effectively leverage precision agricultural technology.

These objectives are indicative of the critical role the irrigation industry plays in helping growers around the country to more efficiently utilize our precious freshwater resources, all while becoming more productive in order to meet growing global demand.

It was also a key theme of the United Nations Water Conference that took place the week before the IA’s fly-in. The IA co-sponsored a side event at the conference highlighting the importance of irrigation to meeting global conservation priorities and the productivity needs associated with increased population growth.

We are committed to advancing the solutions our industry brings to bear to help meet the productivity needs of a growing global population and ensure global food security, all while providing important economic, environmental and societal benefits to urban and rural communities alike.

As we look forward to continuing discussions with stakeholders here in the United States surrounding the farm bill, we are also aware of the implications of the debt ceiling agreement.

The debt ceiling agreement serves the purpose of preventing an economic calamity. It provides a measure of helpful clarity regarding the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and the farm bill. Importantly, it didn’t redirect funds from the Inflation Reduction Act. While the implementation of the IRA has not been perfect, it does present our industry with ongoing opportunities.

Even now that the debt ceiling is dealt with, the farm bill is still sure to generate a great deal of debate from both sides of the aisle. We remain laser-focused on advocating for programs that allow more growers the ability to access the tools and funding necessary to succeed in the market, such as the EQIP program and technical assistance.

Nathan Bowen is advocacy director for the Irrigation Association.