WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) today announced that the Conference Committee has completed deliberation on the 2007 Farm Bill. This legislation includes the Stabenow provision to improve the Great Lakes Basin Program for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control, which targets clean-up activities in severely polluted watersheds and restores urban watersheds that have been degraded by development. The Farm Bill will also help implement the Great Lakes Regional Collaborative Strategy, which is dedicated to water cleanliness, combating invasive species, habitat and land conservation, and wildlife protection.

“Making sure our beautiful lakes, waterways, lands and wildlife are preserved and protected is vital to the very identity of our state and our nation,” said Stabenow. “This Farm Bill places a premium on conservation which is critical to our environment and economy.”  The Farm Bill expands essential programs like the Wetlands Reserve Program, the Conservation Security Program, the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, and the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program. Additionally, the farm bill would establish new incentives for taxpayers who take voluntary measures to aid in the recovery of certain endangered species.  As a member of the Farm Bill Conference Committee and Senate Agriculture Committee, Stabenow has served as a leading voice for Michigan throughout the crafting of this legislation. She has served on agricultural committees in all four legislative bodies in which she was a member, including the Michigan House, Michigan Senate, U.S. House and currently, the U.S. Senate. She is also the first Senator from Michigan to serve on the Senate Agriculture Committee since Senator Phil Hart from 1959 to 1962.

Conservation/Great Lakes Provisions Included in the Farm Bill:  The Great Lakes Basin Program for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control