Statement by Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) on Earth Day 2006

STATEMENT BY SENATOR TOM HARKIN (D-IA) ON EARTH DAY 2006

"Tomorrow, Iowans will join millions of others around the world in celebrating Earth Day and promoting a cleaner and healthier environment. While we've seen real progress since the first Earth Day in 1970, we continue to face some very serious environmental challenges.

"No one understands better than Iowans how important it is to care for our environment. Central to Iowa's heritage is a strong connection to the land. We know our agricultural abundance depends on conserving our natural resources and appreciate that a healthy environment is essential to the many outdoor pursuits we treasure - from hunting and fishing to hiking, boating or bird watching. Yet often our farmers often cannot afford the conservation and environmental practices that are needed. That's why we need to increase cost-share and incentive payments for agricultural conservation. Washington can do much more to help farmers preserve natural resources, and I intend to continue fighting for America's agricultural conservation efforts.

"Iowa is also at the forefront of the trend towards renewable sources of energy, which promise tremendous environmental benefits. Iowa's prairie winds are now generating clean, renewable electricity. Our state is the leader in ethanol and biodiesel production. In addition to our energy production, there is tremendous potential for using environmentally friendly farm-based material to make nearly any product now made from petroleum. These bio-based products have the potential to greatly enhance the environment and our energy security.

"We have taken big strides since that first Earth Day 36 years ago, but we still have a lot of work ahead of us. I applaud all the Iowans who continue to recommit themselves to conserving and protecting our resources and environment for future generations all 365 days of the year."

http://harkin.senate.gov/news.cfm?id=254356