+1.

Not trying to be political _at all_:

Do some investigation on natural soil conservation. It has a lot to do with allowing animals to graze naturally. The droppings from these animals is how nature reintroduces nitrogen. You don't get that by planting corn/beans/wheat year after year. These things just suck the life out of the soil and then the farmers end up using all sorts of chemicals (anhydrous ammonia, etc.) to get the ground fit for planting the following year. It's a vicious circle that is ultimately not sustainable long term.

Prior to Europeans, there were something like 60,000,000 buffalo in North America. They helped make the plain states' The Great Plains'. When Europeans came in and killed all these buffalo, they caused a massive shift in the ecosystem and within a couple decades made 'The Great Dustbowl'. There's all sorts of yin/yang going on here. It takes one side of the equation to support the other. I believe we would be much better off having huge buffalo herds and smart livestock harvesting on the plains as opposed to grain crops. Farmers do what is best for them, though, and the boat is being steered in the direction of grain subsidies.