Farm Bureau Calls On Lawmakers to Update ESA

The Endangered Species Act is in need of reform that benefits both conservation and farming practices, according to the Farm Bureau.  Arizona Farm Bureau Federation President Stefanie Smallhouse went before Congress Thursday, an urged lawmakers to streamline environmental regulations to preserve ranching as well as the land itself.

“The ESA is outdated it needs to be modernized, the conservation of species and the production of food and fiber are not mutually exclusive which means we should be able to do both at the same time.

The fifth generation farmer suggested which she called basic updates to the act that would better align the ESA to the needs of the public.

“One of those would be to require stronger data in the listing process.  What they really need is the best available scientific data, the data needs to be transparent.  I as a landowner should be able to see the documents which were used to substantiate the listing.  Also, local governments should be more involved in the listing process,” Smallhouse said.

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