AgClips
Recent AgClips
Judge: US must reconsider Yellowstone bison protections
ABC News | Posted onFebruary 6, 2018 in Rural NewsA federal judge has ordered U.S. wildlife officials to reconsider a 2015 decision that blocked special protections for the iconic bison herds that roam Yellowstone National Park and are routinely subjected to hunting and slaughter. U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper said in a ruling late Wednesday that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service could not "simply pick and choose" between conflicting science, after the agency rejected a study suggesting the park's bison population might be too small to sustain its two herds.
Federal Natural Disaster Assistance Programs for Livestock Producers, 2008–2016
USDA | Posted onFebruary 6, 2018 in Federal NewsThree disaster assistance programs for livestock administered by the Farm Service Agency and one administered by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service are probed, revealing regional differences in payment delivery and how outlays vary by year and program.
Effects of milk prices reach far beyond the dairy
Frederick News Post | Posted onFebruary 6, 2018 in Agriculture NewsBut the decline of dairy is not just a loss of landscape and heritage; it is a real economic loss too. Few people realize that the economic impact of one dairy farm goes far beyond the farm lane. In many cases, a dairy will have several full-time employees representing multiple families’ incomes, but it goes even beyond employee salaries. A dairy almost always has a plumber or electrician on speed dial, a veterinarian they regularly have out, a nutritionist they consult, a feed or seed salesman, the trucking company that hauls the milk, and on and on.
Massachusetts orders utilities to lower rates after tax cut
Boston Herald | Posted onFebruary 6, 2018 in Energy, SARL Members and Alumni NewsState regulators are ordering Massachusetts utilities to lower their rates to reflect the reduction in the federal corporate tax rate approved by Congress. The Department of Public Utilities on Friday instructed the utilities to account for any revenues associated with the difference between the previous and current federal corporate tax rates.
Groups sue to overturn Alaska petroleum reserve lease sale
Spokane Spokesman | Posted onFebruary 6, 2018 in Energy NewsFive environmental groups sued the federal government Friday, claiming the Interior Department conducted a petroleum lease sale in a part of northern Alaska known for its wildlife without proper environmental review. The Bureau of Land Management on Dec. 14 conducted the largest-ever lease offering within the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, putting out for bid 900 tracts covering 16,100 square miles, roughly the size of New Hampshire and Massachusetts combined.Most tracts received no bids.
Lands stripped from Utah monuments open to claims, leases by oil, gas, coal and uranium companies
The Salt Lake Tribune | Posted onFebruary 6, 2018 in Energy, Rural NewsThe window opened Friday for oil, gas, uranium and coal companies to make requests or stake claims to lands that were cut from two sprawling Utah national monuments by President Trump in December — but there doesn’t appear to be a rush to seize the opportunities.For anyone interested in the uranium on the lands stripped from the Bears Ears National Monument, all they need to do is stake a few corner posts in the ground, pay a $212 initial fee and send paperwork to the federal government under a law first created in 1872 that harkens back to the days of the Wild West.They can then keep right
Interior apologizes after incorrectly saying Obama blocked coal mines
The Hill | Posted onFebruary 6, 2018 in Energy NewsThe Interior Department has apologized after an official incorrectly blamed the Obama administration for blocking approval of two coal mines. Deputy Interior Secretary David Bernhardt wrote a Jan. 28 opinion piece in the Grand Junction, Colo., Daily Sentinel, his hometown paper, lauding the Trump administration’s pro-coal agenda. One accomplishment Bernhardt boasted about was approving expansion applications for the West Elk and King II mines in Colorado.
Coal job losses to keep hurting Appalachia, beyond
KNOX News | Posted onFebruary 6, 2018 in Energy NewsCoal isn’t back — though it may hold steady near today’s level — but the long-term decline of mining in Appalachia will have a ripple effect on related businesses, health, education and regional population, according to a new study. While coal has boom-and-bust cycles, its long-term trend has been downward, said Matt Murray, University of Tennessee economics professor, associate director of the Boyd Center for Business & Economic Research and director of the Howard H. Baker Jr.
Cutting Crop Insurance for Big Farms Would Hurt Small Farmers Too
Farm Policy Facts | Posted onFebruary 6, 2018 in Federal NewsAmerica’s largest farms are far less risky than smaller operations and typically have fewer crop insurance claims, according to a new working paper from top agricultural economists. And proposals to exclude those farms from crop insurance could drive up costs for small farmers. The study comes as Congress takes up debate on the future of America’s farm policy.In crop insurance, farmers pay significant premiums for insurance coverage that is delivered by the private sector.
Maple syrup producers could face new rules
Farm and Dairy | Posted onFebruary 6, 2018 in Federal, Food NewsThe recently enacted federal food safety law, known as the Food Safety Modernization Act, includes new requirements for maple syrup producers.