08/18/08 Seeking Common Ground

Seeking Common Ground. I'm Greg Martin with today's Line On Agriculture. There is room for common ground between Oregon agriculture and the environmental movement, according to a new report based on interviews with the conservation community. Oregon farmers and the state's conservation movement may not see eye-too-eye on everything, but they don't always have to go toe-to-toe when it comes to issues concerning the environment. In fact the new report suggests plenty of opportunities for both sides to work together, according to Katy Coba, director of the Oregon Department of Agriculture. COBA: I think a number of people recognize that the relationship in 2008 between production agriculture and environmental or conservation groups has improved and I think there are many people on both sides of the aisle that want to see that relationship continue to improve. The report- called "Working on Common Ground"- is the result of interviews with conservation leaders identified by the Oregon Environmental Council. Those interviews provided some positive and surprising revelations. COBA: Environmentalists recognize that farms and ranches in Oregon need to be economically viable or we are not going to have farms and ranches. And I think a lot of us on the production side believe that is not something environmentalists think about. Welcomed by the State Board of Agriculture, the report could potentially jump start a deeper conversation between agricultural and environmental groups on issues where common ground can be found in such areas as protecting farm land from development, climate change, and water quantity. Coba says another theme out of the report is that many environmentalists no longer think strict rules and regulations on farming will necessarily protect natural resources. COBA: For so long, there was the sense that you could achieve environmental benefits through regulation and actually you can gain further ground really working in common with one another to incentivize good things happening to land and air and water. Coba says there will always be some disagreements on issues between agriculture and environmentalists, despite the fact there is potential for common ground. COBA: We need to recognize that we're going to have to agree to disagree in some places and we're going to be better off if we do that. Kind of identify that, put that piece aside, but then identify the places where we really can work together and make progress. That's today's Line On Agriculture. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.