To the Editor:
(March 2014) Rural and small town Americans work hard to make a living and adapt to changing times. It’s an important tradition, maintaining a rural way of life while finding new ways to improve it. Farmers, ranchers and rural small business depend upon flexibility, entrepreneurship and innovative adoption of new practices to confront new challenges.
Rural America’s newest challenges will come in the form of a changing climate and the subsequent rise of pests, fires, flooding and droughts. All will threaten the livelihoods of farmers, ranchers and others in rural communities, making it necessary to seek methods to mitigate damage and adapt to the changes.
In the summer of 2013, the USDA announced they would undertake the creation of regional climate hubs that will focus on aiding farmers and ranchers in adapting to impacts of climate change.
The seven regional climate hubs will, hopefully, provide useful tools for farmers and ranchers to employ in their day-to-day operations, as well as in planning for the future. These hubs will translate data and research into real solutions and practices that can be put to use in the field. Their research will also provide ideas and direction for federal conservation programs.
Climate hubs should also offer farmers and ranchers an opportunity to share what they learn and help drive development of innovative, practical solutions to the challenges they face. And the time has come for conservation programs to help farmers and ranchers adopt diverse agricultural systems that are more responsive to a changing climate.
From the Ground Up
The Center for Rural Affairs recently released a report, From the Ground Up, Addressing Key Community Concerns in Clean Energy Transmission, which examines the clashes that can arise between communities and transmission line developers and the causes of those clashes, with a unique focus on proposing a set of solutions to those issues.
The report found six common issues that surround transmission development: agriculture, conservation, health, eminent domain, need for the project and fairness. After identifying these causes, this report uses existing developer practices and current state policy as a basis for suggesting solutions.
Chief among these suggestions are increased communication between communities, landowners and developers and employing feedback to change regulatory policy governing the siting, routing and construction of transmission projects.
The findings make it clear that developers must go out of their way to communicate openly and often, make the process transparent for stakeholders, and seek to compromise when possible. Interactions with landowners and communities should be seen not only as an opportunity to improve and refine each transmission project, but also as a means to establish ways to modify the transmission regulatory process for the better.
In order to improve the transmission system across the country, it is vital that developers and advocates confront the concerns of those affected. Infrastructure is important, but it is essential that it be done in partnership with communities.
To view or download a full copy of the report, visit files.cfra.org/pdf/Energy-From-the-Ground-Up.pdf.
Lu Nelsen, Center for Rural Affairs
(lucasn@cfra.org)