U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos gave Monmouth College’s annual Wiswell-Robeson lecture on Tuesday and shared optimism about the future of rural America
Typically the lecture has featured a speaker from the ag community. Not only is Bustos a member of the U.S. House Ag committee but is also the granddaughter of a farmer.
Bustos spoke for nearly an hour covering a range of topics including the need for increased internet bandwidth, safer roads, and addressing the teacher shortage.
Bustos talked about some innovations she saw at the Farm Progress Show the previous week in Decatur.
Among those innovations; carbon sequestration, the long-term removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, which can mitigate or reverse climate change”
Bustos calls reversing climate change “one of the most pressing issues that we’re facing.”
The East Moline Democrat is also a sponsor of the Next Generations Farms Act. The legislation has three main goals according to Bustos; increasing ethanol in the fuel supply; creating more and better-paying jobs, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
