A dust storm hit close to home. Congress is behind on the bill that could help.

Kate Hansen

As the League’s Agriculture Program Director, I think about soil more than the average person. It has never felt more personal than last month, when my spouse and I got stuck driving in the massive dust storm that hit Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana. Our visibility on the road was zero. The ominous weather alert on our phones said, “Stay alive!”. 

Headlines have called the storm rare and apocalyptic, but for those paying close attention, it wasn’t unexpected. In fact, scientists tell us that our soil is eroding so rapidly, we are barreling towards another Dust Bowl.

Two years ago, near Springfield, Illinois, a similar dust storm caused a 84-car pileup accident, tragically killing eight people. This March, another killed eight in Kansas.

These dust storms are attributable to two major factors—strong winds and dry, exposed soils. Most of the exposed soil is in agricultural fields, where farmers have recently been planting this year’s crop. While some soil erosion is expected, modern agricultural practices have accelerated it at staggering rates.

To reverse this trend, we look to practices that protect the soil, reduce erosion, and bolster its health and water retention. For example, farmers can plant cover crops in the off-season that armor the soil and keep it in place. They can also reduce or eliminate tillage to help the soil keep its structure. Farmers are beginning to adopt these practices, but to see real impact, we need many more to do so.

For years, the Izaak Walton League has advocated for wider adoption of soil health practices across the country. Scaling up soil health practices would not only help prevent future dust storms, but also improve drinking water quality for millions, help mitigate climate change, and reduce reliance on agricultural chemicals. To see real change, we need policies and programs that align with our values and drive more practices on more acres.

As a country, we make the largest investment in these types of practices in the Farm Bill—a package passed by Congress roughly every five years. Its programs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture help farmers adopt soil health practices, as well as other conservation practices that improve water quality, create wildlife habitat, and more.

The programs are popular, too. The Conservation Stewardship Program and Environmental Quality Incentives Program are so in demand that only around half of farmers that apply are accepted.

The Farm Bill can also establish new, innovative approaches. Right now, a new program that would fund soil health projects for states and Tribes is being seriously considered. If passed into law, it would provide technical assistance to farmers as they learn new practices, financial assistance to help them start, and resources for on-farm research, education, outreach and monitoring.

These investments would be worthwhile and benefit us all. However, Congress is nearly two years behind on its duty to pass a Farm Bill. In recent months, lawmakers have made decisions that could halt progress altogether. By pushing through a partisan reconciliation package, Congressional leaders are weakening their chances of coalescing bipartisan support needed to pass the Farm Bill.

Not passing a Farm Bill soon will impact our soil and the likelihood of more dust storms in the future. Its impacts will also stretch far wider—hindering farm to school initiatives, rural development programs, renewable energy incentives, support for local food systems and more.  

Congress has an obligation to pass a Farm Bill. It won’t solve our problems overnight. But it does represent our nation’s largest investment in conservation practices on agricultural lands. The powers that be are behind on that obligation. Our lawmakers should focus on passing a bipartisan Farm Bill that prioritizes common-sense conservation now.