Environmental Defense Praises EAT Healthy America Act

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Meg Little, mlittle@environmentaldefense.org, 202-572-3387
Sharyn Stein, sstein@environmentaldefense.org, 202-572-3396

(Washington, DC – March 20, 2007) – Environmental Defense praised the introduction today 0of the EAT Healthy America Act by Reps. Dennis Cardoza (D-CA), Adam Putnam (R-FL), John Salazar (D-CO), Rick Larsen (D-WA), and Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).

The bill would:
• Double incentives for better air and water quality to $2 billion a year;
• Provide farmers $300 million a year to enhance wildlife habitat;
• Help farmers restore 3 million acres of wetlands;
• Protect more than 10 million of acres of farm and ranchland from sprawl.

“The EAT Healthy America Act will help make health, equity and the environment a central focus of the 2007 Farm Bill,” said Scott Faber, farm policy campaign director for Environmental Defense. “Our farmers and ranchers are eager to solve America’s environmental challenges. They can help provide clean air, clean water, and clean energy, but only if we reward – rather than reject – their offers to help.”

Read the EAT Healthy America Act here [pdf].
Read the EAT Healthy America Act section-by-section here [pdf].

For more information, visit www.environmentaldefense.org/go/farms/.