by Tim Alexander

Corn Growers Elect New Officers

NORMAL – The Illinois Corn Growers Association (ICGA) elected new officers during their annual reorganizational meeting held November 25 in downtown Normal, selecting Waterloo farmer Ken Hartman as president. Previously serving in a number of capacities with the ICGA Board of Directors over the past six years, Hartman, who is also District 14 Director, joins new vice president Jeff Jarboe of Loda, treasurer Glenna Taylor of Oakland and secretary Bill Leigh of Minonk in leadership roles with the corn growers.

Immediate past president Gary Hudson of Hindsboro was elected to chair the ICGA Grassroots Committee and serve as an at-large director. In addition, a number of other leaders were elected, including new ICGA district directors Spencer Janssen of Litchfield, Joe Murphy of Harrisburg, Aron Carlson of Winnebago, Justin Durdan of Utica, Ted Mottaz of Elmwood, Wayne Anderson of Geneseo and Grant Noland of Blue Mound.

The elections were held prior to the 2015 Ill. Commodity Conference held at the Marriott Hotel and Conference Center. (ICGA news)

Expert: WOTUS Makes CAFO Rules Clear as Mud

PEORIA – Ted Funk doesn’t much care for the Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) discussion launched by the U.S. Environmental Protection agency (EPA) last March. The former University of Illinois Extension educator, now a livestock consultant employed by the Illinois Pork Producers Assoc., says a proposed rule would expand the authority of the U.S. EPA and Army Corps of Engineers and grant the agencies too much power to prohibit land uses and farming under the Clean Water Act. And if the definition of what is and isn’t considered to be WOTUS is expanded to include ephemerals– land that looks like a small stream when saturated but remains dry most of the year– newly-enacted state laws for Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) could become vastly more cumbersome for producers to navigate.

“The CAFO regulations and the WOTUS discussion could really put some extra burdens on the livestock industry,” said Funk. “The CAFO permitting process mentions the possibility of discharge to WOTUS, and how WOTUS is defined is going to affect the final outcome of whether (producers) have a discharge or not, and what they will have to do to fix the problem,” Funk explained. “There has been pressure from livestock to have the proposed rule altered because it seems that it does have some serious implications.”

The only thing clear and certain about the WOTUS proposal is that it will make it more difficult to farm and make changes to land, even if the changes are beneficial to the environment. “I don’t know that there has been any change in the WOTUS discussion in the last few weeks,” said Funk. “It’s just a lot of politics. I hope common sense prevails, but we want to prepare our producers for whatever the final decisions are. It’s going to make a difference in how much money and effort producers will have to expend.”

State Releases Nutrient Mgmt. Strategy

SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy (NLRS), described as a framework to assess and reduce nutrient loss to Illinois waters and the Gulf of Mexico, was unveiled by the Ill. Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) on November 25. The Ill. NLRS utilizes existing, non-government programs and industry experience to help promote preventative measures farmers can employ to minimize losses of nitrogen, phosphorous and other farm chemicals from their soils and into waterways.

According to an EPA draft for public comment, the program’s key strategy components include extending ongoing regulatory and voluntary efforts including a “comprehensive suite” of best management practices for reducing farm and urban runoff, identifying priority watersheds for nutrient loss reduction efforts and establishing a “Nutrient Management Council” to coordinate collaborative water quality monitoring efforts.

In addition, the program creates a “Nutrient Science Advisory Committee” to develop numeric nutrient criteria for Ill. waters, identifies strategies for improving collaborative efforts through the formation of an “Agriculture Water Quality Partnership Forum” to steer outreach and education efforts, and defines a process for regular review and revision by the policy working group along with reporting to the public.

“The Illinois NRLS outlines cost effective strategies that meet community and industry needs while reducing the negative impacts of nutrient loss on the environment, industry and public health,” according to the IEPA public comment draft. Look for more information about this program, including industry reaction, in upcoming RFD columns.

ISA Names 2014-15 Soy Ambassadors

NORMAL – The 2014 Illinois Commodity Conference, held last week in Normal, also served as the setting for the naming of a new group of Soy Ambassadors for 2014-15 by the Ill. Soybean Association (ISA).  Seven farmers were selected from across the state to participate in the two-year program, which develops qualities that can be utilized in agricultural leadership roles.

The 2014-15 Soy Ambassadors include Ryan Vance of Onarga, Tyler Uden of Monticello, Elliott Uphoff of Shelbyville, Aaron Downs of Moweaqua, Cory Ritter of Blue Mound, David Wessel of Chandlerville and Heath Houck of Nokomis.

“Our Soy Ambassador program, now in its fourth year, is important to what ISA hopes to achieve both in the present and in the future,” stated Bill Raben, ISA chairman from Ridgway, in an ISA news release. “Participants receive firsthand experience and exposure that can lead to greater leadership positions while they also work on current projects.”

2013-14 Soy Ambassadors were recognized as well; they include Stan Born of Dunlap, Kate Danner of Aledo, Cassandra DeJaynes of LaHarpe, Matthew DeSutter of Woodhull, Frank Legner of Odell, Jenny Mennenga of LeRoy and Austin Rincker of Moweaqua.

Illinois Farm Fact:

The preliminary November Prices Received Index for agricultural production is 101 percent, a 2.0 percent increase from October. This likely reflects the seasonal change based on a three-year average mix of increased monthly movement of corn, cattle, milk and cotton offsetting the decreased marketing of soybeans, grapes, potatoes and wheat. (USDA Ill. Agricultural Prices Nov. 26 report)

(Tim Alexander is a freelance reporter who writes agriculture, news and feature articles for Chronicle Media, Farm World, Prairie Farmer and many other publications. He resides in rural Peoria County with his family.)