A Jefferson woman recently returned from a trip to our nation’s capital to speak with our elected officials and other federal entities, as part of an agriculture organization.

Alexis Stevens is with the Emerging Leaders in Ag program with the Agribusiness Association of Iowa. She tells Raccoon Valley Radio this was an opportunity for her to learn about financials, as well as doing radio and television interviews, and marketing, which led to a trip to Washington, D.C. Stevens says the primary reason the group visited Washington, D.C., along with Bill Northery, the CEO of Agribusiness Association of Iowa, was to lobby the Environmental Protection Agency about two chemicals, including atrazine and dicamba. 

Stevens notes that atrazine will be under review with the EPA next month and if changes are made, then she believes the herbicide will be ineffective, which the chemical is the best route to help control weeds in farm fields.

“We want to reduce the amount of chemicals and I think that’s a goal that many people have. But we also want to do good conservation practices. And so if we get rid of atrazine our only other choice is to go out there and till and disk the field to get rid of the weeds. Well that’s also not a good conservation practice. So we’re working on a balance.”   

Stevens points out they also met with Iowa’s congressional delegation individually to urge the EPA to follow scientific data to keep atrazine and dicamba viable. She says they even talked about the pressing shipping crisis and possible railroad strike with the Surface Transportation Board, which would make it more difficult to haul grain.

Stevens talks about the Emerging Leaders in Ag program and how beneficial it’s been for her.

“This was probably one of the best things in my career and my life. It was a great experience. Again going with (former Iowa Secretary of Agriculture) Bill Northery, was just amazing, (I) couldn’t ask for a better person to take me out there. I’ve learned so much and there’s so much networking. I think that’s the best part is the networking where you meet the different people. And you never know where they’re going to pop up again in your life and how important that is.”      

Stevens began the program in February and went to D.C. this past July.