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This day, Deputy Cindy Axne (IA-03) and Representative Sean Casten (IL-06) introduced the Voluntary Environmental Resilience and Conservation Opportunities Program Law (COVER)which will provide a $5/acre insurance premium subsidy to farmers who plant cover crops to incentivize this important soil health practice.
Planting cover crops is a critical conservation practice that reduces production risk, prevents erosion, improves soil health and water quality, increases soil water availability, suppresses weeds, helps control pests and diseases, increases biodiversity, mitigates greenhouse gas emissions and sequesters carbon. Aside from ecosystem benefits, cover crops also offer economic benefits to individual farmers; planting cover crops can lead to savings on inputs like fertilizers and herbicides and better yields over time.
“Cover crops are an effective and environmentally friendly way to enrich the soil for higher crop yields, and we’ve seen success with cover crop programs right here in Iowa.” Rep. Cindy Axne said. “The COVER Act will make this program available across the country so more farmers can take advantage of cover crops and help rebuild soil organic matter. I will continue to work with my colleagues to support common sense solutions that promote regenerative agriculture.” and help farmers be part of the climate solution.”
“We are already seeing how the climate crisis is driving up the cost of the federal crop insurance program, and we know it will continue to do so as extreme weather events become more frequent in the future.” Rep. Sean Casten said. “I am pleased that my home state of Illinois has recognized the importance of cover crops with its own state cover crop discount program. The COVER Act is critical to providing farmers across the country with the tools they need to make their land more resilient in the face of climate-related risks. ”
The IThe increasing frequency of droughts, rains and extreme weather conditions resulting from climate change will further stress our soils. Climate change will make the federal crop insurance program more expensive and difficult to administer without mitigation measures. We are already seeing crop insurance payouts increase by more than 400% for drought-related losses and almost 300% for rain- and flood-related losses between 1995 and 2020. Both drought and excess moisture are projected to increase by different parts of the country. in the coming decades, we must adapt our food system to be more resilient; promoting soil health is paramount to achieving this goal and farmers can play a vital role.
“The COVER Act is a revolutionary policy that will help farmers build resilient businesses in the face of ever-increasing natural disasters. Cover crops have a host of environmental benefits, such as better soil health, carbon sequestration, and increased water infiltration. The incentives offered in this bill provide farmers with more financial savings and support for their important environmental work and stewardship..” said Lara Bryant, Deputy Director, Water and Agriculture, NRDC.
Nicole Lederer, President and Co-Founder of Environmental Entrepreneurs said “Expanding the use of cover crops in US agriculture will deliver multiple economic and environmental benefits for farmers and consumers, reducing the costs and pollution associated with fossil inputs and sequestering carbon from atmospheric pollution. The COVER Act is a strategic step in recognizing the risk reduction and soil health improvements associated with planting cover crops, and an important tool to help secure America’s agricultural economy.”
“Cover crops have numerous environmental and economic benefits, such as preventing soil erosion, improving soil fertility, and reducing the rate and amount of water runoff. This bill provides the incentive and technical support needed by growers who want to try cover crops but aren’t sure how to get started.” said Ben Knuth, agricultural policy specialist for the National Wildlife Federation.
“Planting cover crops continues to be one of the most effective and profitable practices our innovative dairy farmers use to build healthy soil, prevent erosion, sequester carbon and protect water quality,” said Brody Stapel, president of the Edge Dairy Farmer Cooperative. “More and more of us are realizing the environmental and financial benefits of this tried-and-true conservation technique. As an incentive to maintain the practice and attract other farmers, insurance reimbursement is a relatively small investment that pays huge dividends.”
Specifically, the COVER Act:
- Help growers maintain cover crop systems: Creates the Good Steward Cover Crop Program to provide growers with a $5 per acre premium subsidy when they enroll in a covered insurance program and plant cover crops for conservation purposes.
- This program will be completely voluntary and will not require farmers to grow cover crops to be eligible for crop insurance.
- Authorize Additional Funding for Technical Assistance: Set aside $5 million for technical assistance, outreach and program support to help growers access the Good Steward Cover Crop Program.
- Create a soil health pilot program: Authorizes USDA to evaluate how additional premium subsidies can be offered for other soil health practices that reduce risk and meet the goals of the FCIP.
the COVER Law is endorsed by Illinois Farm Bureau, Practical Farmers of Iowa, Danone, Unilever, Natural Resources Defense Council, American Farmland Trust, National Wildlife Federation, Green Cover Seed, Izaak Walton League of America, Iowa Farmers Union, GO Seed, E2, Edge Dairy Farmer Cooperative, Y Agricultural Action Fund.
The text of the invoice can be found here.
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