Water, Agriculture, and Public Policy

Agriculture in the United States is both a very large consumer and a major provider of water. In 1985, agriculture accounted for 42 percent of all freshwater withdrawals in the United States. Agriculture is also the largest single user of the land base that is the source of surface and groundwater available to all other uses. Instream uses of water were diminished, streamflow patterns were changed to accommodate agriculture’s needs, and water quality problems occurred. The agricultural tradition emphasizes voluntary compliance and incentives as the preferred modes of policy implementation; those outside agriculture are more accustomed to a tradition of strict regulation. Water policy issues relating to agriculture involve several different water problem areas. The relationship between agricultural production and water quality were reflected in the Conservation Titles of the Food Security Act of 1985 and the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990.