By Trimmel Gomes, Florida News Connection
For decades, Florida’s upstream farmers and downstream aquaculturists have been at odds over water quality and environmental impacts.
Now, the new initiative “Healthy Farms-Healthy Bays” seeks to bridge the divide and foster more collaboration to protect Florida’s fragile ecosystems. It has released a new report outlining its vision, as well as specific steps to protect water quality and conserve Florida’s working lands.
Randall Dasher, a Suwannee County farmer and co-chair of the initiative, played a key role in uniting groups to work on creating a healthier watershed.
“It is about coming together and collaborating, getting across the table from each other in a nonthreatening way,” Dasher explained. “Because too much of that has gone on. That just makes people be less likely to listen and hear, and talk about best practices.”
The partnership, supported by the Florida Climate Smart Agriculture Work Group and a $100,000 grant from VoLo Foundation, brings together farmers, aquaculturists and environmental experts to tackle challenges like nutrient runoff, declining water quality and the effects of climate change.
Ernie Shea, president of the nonprofit Solutions from the Land, said the initiative marks a turning point in how Florida’s agriculture and aquaculture can work together when it comes to climate change.
“We’re all affected,” Shea pointed out. “Climate change takes no prisoners; it affects all sides of operations. And what we’ve done with Florida Climate-Smart Agriculture is bring together the entire value chain — the producers, right up through the associations that represent farmers.”
The Suwannee River Basin was chosen as the focal point for their efforts. A team of farmers, aquaculturists and university experts conducted a two-year analysis to identify the most pressing challenges and propose solutions. One key recommendation is accelerating best practices to reduce nutrient runoff, from planting cover crops to using microbial sprays and reducing chemical inputs that affect water quality.
Florida News Connection is a bureau of the Public News Service. Banner photo: A field of mixed cover crops next to alfalfa on a farm (iStock image).
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