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Washington limits carbon pollution from largest sources
AP | Posted onJune 3, 2016 in Energy NewsWashington state regulators unveiled an updated plan to limit greenhouse gas emissions from large polluters, the latest attempt by Gov. Jay Inslee to push ahead with a binding cap on carbon emissions after struggling to win approval from legislators. Washington would join nearly a dozen states including California that have capped carbon pollution from industrial sources. The proposed rule requires large industrial emitters to gradually reduce carbon emissions over time.
Global Grain Glut to Continue with Second-Biggest Crop on Record
Hoosier Ag Today | Posted onJune 3, 2016 in Agriculture NewsA global grain surplus will continue to pressure crop prices as this year’s harvest will expand to the second-highest on record. The International Grains Council says world grain production will be nine million metric tons more than forecasted in April as wheat crops improve in the European Union, the United States, and Russia. The International Grains Council expects grain stocks will likely grow again, with much of the increase in China.
Wind and solar could meet nearly all Midwest energy needs by 2050, researcher says
Midwest Energy News | Posted onJune 3, 2016 in Energy NewsFor seven Midwest states - Michigan, Minnesota, Insiana, Illinois Ioa, Ohio and Wisconsin – between 50 percent (Indiana) and 79 percent (Minnesota) of the projected energy mix could come from a combination of onshore and offshore wind. The remaining supply would mostly comprise utility-scale, commercial, residential and concentrated solar, with a small percentage from hydroelectric sources under the projected energy mixes. Wind and solar could meet all of Indiana’s and Illinois’ energy needs; 99.9 percent of Ohio’s; 99.8 percent of Iowa’s; 99 percent of Wisconsin’s; 98.3 percent of Michig
Growing Environmental Threat from Animal-to-Man Diseases
Drovers | Posted onJune 3, 2016 in Agriculture NewsThe most worrying environmental threats facing the world today range from the rise in diseases transmitted from animals to humans to the increasing accumulation of toxic chemicals in food crops as a result of drought and high temperatures, according to a U.N. report. The U.N. Environment Agency's Frontiers report also highlighted the threat to human health posed by the alarming amount of plastic waste in the oceans, and scientific evidence suggesting that losses and damage from climate change are inevitable, with "profound consequences" for ecosystems, people, assets and economies.
CFTC eases on hedging rules, pleasing grain traders
Agri-pulse | Posted onJune 3, 2016 in Agriculture NewsThe Commodity Futures Trading Commission has responded to the concerns of agribusiness by loosening its restrictions on the type of hedging strategies that can be exempted from position limits. A supplemental proposal released by the CFTC would ensure that anticipatory hedging practices could qualify for a “bona fide” hedging exemption. The proposal also would provide flexibility to commodity exchanges to recognize certain positions as bona fide hedging, subject to CFTC oversight.
Animal welfare activists, state spar over 'ag-gag' law
Cache Valley Daily | Posted onJune 3, 2016 in Agriculture NewsUtah's law banning secret filming of agricultural facilities is unconstitutional and should be struck down just as Idaho's measure was last year, argue animal welfare activists in a new court filing. The so-called "Ag-gag" law, passed in 2012, has a chilling effect on groups trying to expose unsafe and illegal practices at slaughterhouses and factory farms, said attorneys for a group of plaintiffs that include the Animal Legal Defense Team and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
The Graying of Rural America
The Atlantic | Posted onJune 3, 2016 in Rural NewsAs young people increasingly move to cities, what happens to the people and places they leave behind? Over the past two decades, as cities have become job centers that attract diverse young people, rural America has become older, whiter, and less populated. Between 2010 and 2014, rural areas lost an average of 33,000 people a year. Today, just 19 percent of Americans live in areas the Census department classifies as rural, down from 44 percent in 1930. But roughly one-quarter of seniors live in rural communities, and 21 of the 25 oldest counties in the United States are rural.
Former SD ag secretary tapped to lead Pork Board
Agri-Pulse | Posted onJune 3, 2016 in Agriculture NewsThe National Pork Board has selected Bill Even to serve as the organization's next CEO. Even is currently global industry relations lead with DuPont Pioneer, where he has worked in some capacity since 2010. Before then, he served as South Dakota agriculture secretary for three years.
“Voluntary” FDA Sodium Targets May Bind Food Companies
OFW law | Posted onJune 3, 2016 in Food NewsFDA yesterday released so-called “voluntary” targets for sodium reduction for 150 categories of foods. A spreadsheet issued by the agency details baseline sodium content for each of the categories and lists short-term and long-term targets. The agency says it "recognizes the important role of sodium in food for microbial safety, stability, and other functions . . .
Supreme Court ruling offers clues on fate of Obama rule
EE Publishing | Posted onJune 2, 2016 in Federal NewsEnforcement of the Clean Water Act could undergo a wave of changes in the wake of yesterday's Supreme Court ruling on a key wetlands case, legal scholars say. The opinion is also offering clues to the possible fate of the administration's new water rule. The Supreme Court ruled 8-0 in the case Army Corps of Engineers v. Hawkes Co.