Should voluntary water regulations for farmers be made mandatory?

Minnesota Public Radio asked visitors to its website this week if voluntary water regulations for farmers should be made mandatory. So far the response to the question in the comments section doesn’t appear to contain many farmer viewpoints.

If you farm, and you have an opinion on the topic, don’t be afraid to share your perspective. Perhaps you could let people know how Minnesota’s corn farmers use their own money through a voluntary check-off program to fund more than $4 million in new and ongoing research efforts annually, many of which focus on water quality and stewardship.

Or maybe you could highlight corn farmers’ support for the Minnesota Discovery Farms Network and other efforts to continually improve through the quality of our lakes and rivers through voluntary actions.

Of course you could also highlight the work of a corn farmer like Doug Albin, who has installed a saturated buffer on his farm in Yellow Medicine County to help improve water quality.

Regardless of what you choose to mention, the discussion is in desperate need of a farmer’s perspective. If you can, take a minute to chime in.