The Food Security Act of 1985, more commonly known as the “Swampbuster Act,” refers to certain provisions of the act discouraging the conversion of wetlands to farmland.
Under the Swampbuster provisions, a landowner is allowed to use farming practices as long as wetlands are not converted or wetland drainage increases for agricultural purposes. The program discourages farmers from altering wetlands by withholding Federal farm program benefits such as lose eligibility for USDA program benefits, including loans, subsidies, crop insurance, and other important agricultural after December 23, 1985. There have been several revisions since this date, such as 1990 and 1996. The 1990 provision added conversion of a wetland for the purpose of or to make agricultural commodity production possible.
The 1996 Farm Bill changed Swampbuster to give increased flexibility to farmers in complying with Swampbuster including the option to for the USDA to certify and make a determination if the land is indeed a wetland, the expansion of wetland mitigation options, fast tracking changes that are considered to have a "minimal effect" on a wetland and finally a clause that allows converted wetlands that were abandoned to again be used as farmland without violating Swampbuster.
Both the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) administer the Swampbuster provisions jointly and determine if a producer's land has wetlands that are subject to the provisions. The agency maintains a list of the plants and combinations of soils and plants found in wetlands and uses these technical tools, along with the hydrology of the area, to conduct determinations, which stay in effect as long as the land is used for agricultural purposes or until the producer requests a review.
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