Last
week, the Chesapeake Bay Journal published an article called, “Farm Bureau can choose to be a sore loser or part of the
solution.” Below is Virginia Farm Bureau’s response:
It’s
disappointing to read the Chesapeake
Bay Foundation—Virginia‘s call for American Farm Bureau
Federation to stop the rhetoric and be part of the solution. Implying
that Farm Bureau is a sore loser and that farmers are lacking effort for a
healthy Chesapeake Bay simply continues rhetoric; and is anti-farmer. If we all
took the time to read the May issue of the Chesapeake
Bay Journal you’d learn the following: Submerged Aquatic Vegetation is
at 30 year high, crab populations are at 4 year high, oysters and shellfish are
off slightly due to cold winter (not water quality). If you read further,
Virginia leads the East Coast in oyster and clam production. These things would
not be occurring if Farm Bureau members were not doing their part; and in many
cases more than their fair share. It’s sad to hear that the recent Agriculture
Census shows that the bay model was using data that overestimated the number of
cattle in Virginia and therefore overstated their role in the condition of the
bay. That’s not rhetoric.
The
Clean Water Act, and the associated federal and state regulations, has been
debated and litigated since it was passed decades ago. There is no doubt that
will continue. CBF has done, and will likely do, its fair share to perpetuate
that debate, litigation, and rhetoric. The advice provided in CBF’s commentary
is one everyone should follow, stop the rhetoric and work to maintain a healthy
Chesapeake Bay. We know the farmers are doing their part; are you?
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