ACCEPTED PRINCIPLES

Summit for Finding Common Ground in Controlling Agricultural Nonpoint Sources of Nutrients

THE SUMMIT

Purpose

Accepted Principles

Central Questions

Participants

Logistics

Reports

EUTROPHICATION

What is it?

U.S. Assessments

International Efforts

Management Programs

AGRICULTURAL SOURCES

Relative Importance

Fertilizers

Animal Wastes

Soil Mineralization

Management Practices

Cover Crops

POLICIES

Economic Analyses

Clean Water Act

State Statutes

Pending Legislation

The following are accepted principles on which the deliberations of the Summit are based:

1.       Sustaining U.S. agriculture production and rural communities is an imperative because of their economic, cultural, and quality of life benefits to society.

2.       Because of known deleterious effects nutrient over-enrichment of surface waters, reduction in the sources of nutrients is also an imperative, where such effects are likely. Although the degree of reduction that should or could be achieved is subject to debate, the need to reduce nutrient inputs to impaired aquatic ecosystems is not.

3.      Reducing agricultural nonpoint sources of nutrients from agriculture requires the active cooperation of farmers and landowners of America’s working lands.

4.      Economically viable and environmentally sound cropping systems and conservation practices on working lands yield additional benefits to society in terms of biodiversity and ecosystem services.

Last updated September 17, 2001