And there go the prairie potholes....

[SAJ-99]

Modern agriculture is apocalyptic for most wildlife

And the tax payers pay for it. Farmers have tapped out the natural stores of inputs that the prairies and wetlands built up over thousands of years. We can’t convince most of them that there are more efficient and cheaper ways to farm than to apply man made fertilizer on the ground a couple of times each year only to watch it wash away because of the tiles. The answer is to double-down on the tiles. I guess the tax payer will be there to bail them out during a drought.

 

[R.K.]

And the tax payers pay for it. Farmers have tapped out the natural stores of inputs that the prairies and wetlands built up over thousands of years. We can’t convince most of them that there are more efficient and cheaper ways to farm than to apply man made fertilizer on the ground a couple of times each year only to watch it wash away because of the tiles. The answer is to double-down on the tiles. I guess the tax payer will be there to bail them out during a drought.

Nope, no bailout coming this time. Which the end result will be corporate or foreign capital buyout. I won’t get into the who, or the why, but that’s going to be the result with this round of farm bankruptcies.

 

[Mustangs Rule]

Eagle Lake, TX? I can't tell because you don't put a location on your user ID.
If you are going to try to argue that farmers are beneficial to waterfowl, you are going to have a tough go of it without sounding foolish. Try to stick to arguing that this rule change was necessary in any way.

While I tend to agree that Big Ag seriously hurts wildlife, this is another twist to consider.

Why did the snow goose population explode? - Birdful

The population of snow geese has exploded in recent decades. In the early 1900s, overhunting had decimated snow goose numbers, with only a few thousand

www.birdful.org

 

[Mustangs Rule]

It mostly comes back to how much stubble, residue, and water is left during the migration. The entire state of IL seems to get a fall chisel plow these days, the AR delta mows down the rice stubble and drains the fields (unless leased out for hunting), and most of it gets pesticide applications so the invertebrates the ducks eat during warmer weather are severely diminished.

The one crop that seems to get left for stubble is wheat in the prairie pothole region (helps catch snow and retain moisture), but that isn't where wintering ducks are, and the pintails nest in it the following spring only to get their nests plowed under during planting season.

Modern monoculture* agriculture is apocalyptic for most wildlife.

please look at post #63