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Callahan highlights relationship between ag and natural resources

A leader in both agriculture and natural resources says there needs to be a continued relationship between the two sectors.

Colleen Callahan is the former director of Illinois Rural Development for the USDA and now serves as the Director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. She says the ag and natural resources departments work toward similar goals.

“Because when we talk about the Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy, when we talk about flooding, when we talk about levees, aren’t we talking about soil and water and aren’t those natural resources? The two departments need to be working together certainly along with EPA.”

Callahan says the success of those relationships and collaborative projects depend on three things.

“It is about communicating, collaborating, and connecting. Whatever the topic or subject matter is we will make progress when we do those three things.”

Callahan and her family raise cattle, corn and soybeans near Peoria in north central Illinois. She spoke during the National Association of Farm Broadcasting virtual summer business meeting on Tuesday.