Katrina's lessons for agriculture

The images of Hurricane Katrina's devastation continue to haunt us all. Gulf Coast farmers and shrimpers may never fully recover from the loss of their homes and livelihoods.

But the impact of the storm goes well beyond the Coast and will likely be felt by farmers and consumers around the country for years to come. From higher energy costs to a dearth of transport and storage for fertilizer and grain, Katrina reminds us of the fragility of our commodity networks.

As we recover, we have an opportunity to rebuild and rethink how to strengthen agriculture, regional economies and the transportation and production infrastructure.

Here are 10 areas of vulnerability exposed by Katrina that need sensible policies and national leadership:

1. Energy. Almost every aspect of agricultural production now relies on fossil fuel inputs-diesel for the tractor, petrochemicals in pesticides and herbicides, or natural gas in fertilizer. Sixty years ago, farmers were largely independent from big oil. Biofuels such as ethanol and biodiesel are part of the solution, as is wind energy, biomass for heat and power, and manure digestion.

2. Fertilizers. As nitrogen prices follow natural gas prices, manure and legumes have become more attractive options for getting nitrogen into soil. We can go even further into reducing farmers' dependence on commercial fertilizer by developing less nitrogen-dependent crops, more sophisticated cropping rotations, and cover crops.

3. Transportation. Because federal policies have severely reduced Midwest grain storage capacity, farmers are excessively dependent on high-functioning transportation networks. Any kink in the system can sharply reduce grain prices. Lengthening

Mississippi River locks does not solve this issue. It is the policy equivalent of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. Barge traffic on the Mississippi has declined in recent years as West Coast port traffic has surged to serve emerging

Asian markets more efficiently. American farmers are better served by maintaining diverse market options-including viable regional markets, local storage capacity and more efficient rail and barge networks.

4. Domestic markets. Large government expenditures are dedicated to maximizing corn and soybean production, upgrading transportation networks to international ports, prying open foreign markets-and then providing federal support for farmers because these markets do not provide an adequate return. We've effectively ignored promising domestic markets. Farmers are better served by developing regional markets for high-value foods and bio-based products.

5. Markets for crops less dependent on inputs. Current corn production methods work great when natural gas is cheap and the demand for international feed is high. Katrina demonstrates why putting all of our eggs into this basket is not sound policy: We can sharply reduce input costs by developing opportunities in grass-fed livestock, longer crop rotations and other diversification techniques.

6. Biofuels, bioplastics and other material production from crops. Significant advances in cellulosic ethanol technology-using common plant material like stalks and stems to produce fuel rather than grain starches or sugars-have made a future where fuel is derived from Midwest prairie grass a real possibility.

7. CAFO regulation. There is no quicker way to turn the public against agriculture than to convert rivers into flowing manure discharges. Parts of North Carolina are still trying to recover from the lagoon failures after Hurricane Hugo. We have yet to learn how badly the Gulf Coast has been harmed from damaged poultry confinement operations. There are better ways to raise animals, particularly in floodplains.

8.Valuing the commons. We all benefit from a healthy, functioning Mississippi River and Gulf of Mexico, yet our penny wise, pound foolish approach to Gulf shore development jeopardizes resources. Saving the vanishing wetlands of coastal Louisiana would provide benefits to us all that go far beyond storm protection.

9. Climate change. The U.S. needs to provide leadership on climate change, while also preparing for future major weather disturbances so U.S. citizens-and the economy-aren't so vulnerable.

There is no silver lining to a disaster like Hurricane Katrina, but there are lessons to be learned. The dominant course of Midwest agriculture-toward larger, energy-intensive, export-oriented farming systems-shows every indication it is headed toward a dead end. We can actively lay the groundwork of research and development that will make alternatives profitable, or we can passively let the next disaster make those decisions for us.

Mark Muller is the director of the Environment and Agriculture Program at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policys, headquartered in Minneapolis, is a policy research center committed to creating environmentally and economically sustainable rural communities and regions through sound agriculture and trade policy.