The Kansas Livestock Association hosted a regional roundtable for the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of the Army June 6 to discuss experiences with the implementation and definition of Waters of the U.S., or WOTUS. Individual producers were brought together with representatives from various environmental organizations and conservation groups by KLA to provide their unique perspectives on this important issue.
While participants shared many individual views, there was some consensus. One common theme throughout the roundtable discussion was that regional stakeholders hoped to see voluntary incentives to improve water quality issues.
KLA President-Elect Shawn Tiffany, a cattle feeder from Herington, said during his comments, “Changes in practices, whether it’s adoption of new management strategies, are much better incentivized by education rather than regulation.”
KLA staff encouraged the government agencies to consider these methods in lieu of adding more regulatory burdens to Kansans and made clear the need for an appropriate balance to be struck between federal and state authority in the development of any new rule.
