Commentary: Listen to Farmers Before ‘Whacky’ Weather Destabilizes Food Security

Extreme weather patterns are on the rise globally. With flooding, heat waves and excessive rainfall becoming the norm, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has concluded that the rash of “whacky” weather is a result of climate change. Yet, legislators and other officials have ignored rural America when it comes to climate change legislation. “Rather than writing farmers off, we should be focusing our attention on them — and more importantly, listening to them,” said Commentator Jim Harkness. “We will depend on their wisdom to keep us fed as extreme storms become the new normal and on their good practices — like planting buffers along waterways and using cover crops — to hold the soil, filter our water and help keep flooding at bay when we're hit with the next round of torrential rains.” (Minneapolis Star Tribune) Read more.