New proposals for biofuel requirements in 2019 have ethanol folks in Nebraska and Iowa asking what the regulators in Washington are thinking. This month the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released proposed requirements for biofuels in coming years, an annual figure known as the Renewable Fuel Standard. The proposal would allow for 15 billion gallons of conventional corn-based ethanol — unchanged from the previous standard — to be blended into the nation’s fuel supply and dispersed at neighborhood gas pumps as a clear gas/ethanol blend. [node:read-more:link]

The Washington State Department of Agriculture has recommended a dairy build a berm to keep manure from washing off the farm again. The Washington State Department of Agriculture has ended its investigation into the release of fecal coliform-laced water that flooded a Yakima County community last winter, recommending that a dairy block off a manure compost pile or move it to higher ground. [node:read-more:link]

Urea and other forms of nitrogen fertilizer are hitting the lowest price levels seen in more than a decade. Urea is selling for roughly $170 per short ton along the Gulf of Mexico wholesale market, which is the cheapest it’s been for roughly 15 years, said Glen Buckley, chief economist with the Fertilizer Advisory Service. [node:read-more:link]

Two years ago, Republicans in the state Senate tried to prevent the state from issuing more bonds to build roads, declaring they were dead set against relying on borrowing for highways.  That attitude is in the past. Now, they're eager to break out the state's credit card to pay for highways as they try to end a budget stalemate."We're not going to kick the can down the road," Sen. [node:read-more:link]

Needle exchange programs for drug users could be coming to six counties across the state, including Anne Arundel and Baltimore counties, as state health officials work with local leaders to stop the spread of infectious diseases in the face of the heroin epidemic. The efforts are being lead locally and are at various stages of formation, but state officials are encouraging the programs and offering technical assistance and some funding, said Onyeka Anaedozie, deputy director of the Maryland Department of Health’s Infectious Disease Prevention and Health Services Bureau. [node:read-more:link]

An 11-year-old cow in Alabama tested positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as mad cow disease, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Tuesday. The cow tested positive for the atypical L-type of BSE after exhibiting clinical signs at an Alabama livestock market, the USDA said in a press release. Atypical BSE can arise spontaneously in cattle herds, usually in animals 8 years old or older [node:read-more:link]

Crops and pastures continue to suffer in North Dakota as drought persists. The weekly crop report from the federal Agriculture Department says some farmers have started haying small grains crops that aren’t worth harvesting.Forty percent of North Dakota’s staple spring wheat crop is rated poor or very poor. Many other crops are in the same situation. [node:read-more:link]

If you are truly concerned about the welfare of animals and the quality of their lives, you should start thinking globally. If you’re sincere about your love for animals, you should make every attempt to go to the animals that are in the most deplorable situations and work hard to improve their conditions. [node:read-more:link]

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is authorizing the use of additional Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) lands for emergency grazing and haying in and around portions of Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota affected by severe drought. USDA is adding the ability for farmers and ranchers in these areas to hay and graze CRP wetland and buffer practices. “We are working to immediately address the dire straits facing drought-stricken farmers and ranchers,” said Perdue. [node:read-more:link]

Specialty crop farmers need the U.S. [node:read-more:link]