Producing crops, which are used to feed animals and create products for humans, comes with costs. One is the nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer runoff that gets into surface waters. When the concentrations are too high, there is damage to the ecosystem. Effects can be localized, or be seen at the mouth of a major river like the Mississippi.

Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton’s recently concluded Water Summit focused some attention on this kind of problem. The summit made clear there is trust – and distrust – of the stewardship of farmers, who say they want to protect the land and water.

“It shouldn’t be necessary for governors or legislators to tell farmers what to do,” Dayton said at the summit. “They know what to do better than anybody else on their own farmlands. We just need for all of them to do it.”

The critical sentence is the last. How can society and its agent, government, get all farmers to act properly? And if all do not act, what are the means to compel all?

Education is always the first and most important step. It provides the basic framework to help farmers do the right thing. Technology is a leap forward because it can tell farmers things like how much fertilizer to put where. And laws create incentives or disincentives for farmers to act appropriately.

We hope those involved in the Water Summit are looking toward the future with an emphasis on education and technology. And we hope farmers know they can avoid regulatory complications by fulfilling their claims about stewardship.