Today, North Dakota Grain Growers President Dennis Haugen was announced by EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler as one of 33 members appointed to the agency’s Farm, Ranch, and Rural Communities Committee (FRRCC). Established in 2008, the FRRCC provides independent policy advice, information, and recommendations to the EPA administrator on a range of environmental issues and policies that are of importance to agriculture and rural communities.
The committee was selected includes members from production agriculture and related industries, academia, state, local, and tribal government, and nongovernmental organizations with the intention of providing a broad and balanced representation of perspectives. Members will each serve two or three year terms that began on June 15, 2020. The committee plans to meet twice a year starting later this summer.
Haugen says the formation of the committee will be a positive for not only North Dakota agriculture, but also for the whole country. “This is a huge opportunity to represent ND farmers on a national level,” he said. “Like we’ve been doing for years with our annual E-Tour, this committee will enable the EPA to better understand the practical concerns about policies it enacts and how those policies affect producers and other stakeholders in rural areas.”
