A fierce advocate for the land: Iowa and national conservationist Paul Johnson dies at 79
Donnelle Eller, Des Moines Register
Paul W. Johnson's vision for America's farms was down to earth — literally.
"The foundation of our farm’s productivity is our soil, a complex, living system that, although largely unrecognized as important in our national environmental policies, is in fact the basis of all life," he once wrote, referring to his own Iowa farm. "If we farm our soil well, its productivity will be sustained by recycling what was once living into new life."
Not only a farmer, but a state and national leader in the movement to conserve America's soil and water, Johnson died Monday on his farm in Decorah, surrounded by family. He was 79.