§3472 Conservation Tillage; Congressional Findings, Etc.

Summary

Congress urges the Secretary of Agriculture to promote and study conservation tillage. The law says demand for U.S. farm products at home and abroad will grow a lot over the next twenty years, but the country now loses five billion tons of soil every year to wind and water. Federal spending of millions of dollars has not stopped the loss. Conservation tillage can cut erosion by 50 to 90 percent compared with conventional farming and may give better yields, save fuel, cut labor and equipment costs, hold more soil moisture, and work on many soil types and slopes. The Secretary is asked to tell farmers about the costs and benefits of conservation tillage and to run research to answer any remaining questions about how it compares to other soil-saving methods.