There are few better investments of taxpayer dollars than the land reserve project, which has protected millions of acres of sensitive lands nationwide and significantly reduced soil erosion, all the while costing taxpayers about one tenth as much as traditional farm subsidies. And unlike most farm subsidies — which concentrate wealth in the hands of the wealthy — this program spreads the money around and creates more economic value than it costs.

"The value of the Conservation Reserve Program in reduced water pollution and soil erosion alone is about $5 billion per year, according to a University of Minnesota study. On top of that, conserving these lands has generated billions in increased hunting revenues each year, not to mention resurrecting the central migratory flyway and the Prairie Pothole ecosystem and protecting at least 1.8 million acres of critical streamside habitat. Many Midwestern towns probably would be at even greater risk from flood waters without the protections of lands currently in the CRP."