AgClips
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Florida Bill Would Stiffen Penalties for Hurting Police Dogs
NBC Miami | Posted onMarch 7, 2019 in SARL Members and Alumni NewsSenate Bill 96 increases the penalty for intentionally injuring or killing search-and-rescue dogs and horses employed by police and fire departments.43 Florida K-9s have died in duty over the years, according to Officers Down Memorial Page records.Currently, it's a third-degree felony to hurt or kill a police search-and-rescue or fire dog or horse. If SB 96 passes it would become a second-degree felony. That would possibly triple the prison time from a possible maximum of five to 15 years.
After 4 hour filibuster, New Mexico senate passes landmark renewable energy bill
Albuquerque Journal | Posted onMarch 7, 2019 in Energy, SARL Members and Alumni NewsA high-profile energy bill passed the Senate late Wednesday night after a procedural fight sparked by a Republican lawmaker’s lengthy filibuster.Sen.
A new book on Appalachia gives JD Vance his reckoning
Daily Yonder | Posted onMarch 7, 2019 in NewsA collection of essays by scholars and activists attempts to reshape our understanding of the southern mountains. Before you fall for the trope of Hillbilly Elegy and Ron Howard’s proposed film adaptation, get a more complex and complete picture from Appalachian Reckoning, says our reviewer. If footnotes were arrows, J.D.
Rural Nebraska libraries reinventing themselves in 'makerspace' movement
Journal Star | Posted onMarch 7, 2019 in Rural NewsEan Petersen has learned how the interior hinges of his 3D-printed birds, cats and dogs need proper spacing in order to flex and bend, and through trial and error, which materials work best.The North Platte 10-year-old can laser engrave paw prints onto a set of dice and laminate the instructions for "Pet Store," the board game he created to play with family and friends.Having access to the equipment used by makers and creators at his local public library has kindled Petersen's creative spark, bolstered his self-esteem and unleashed his entrepreneurial spirit.Petersen is among the thousands
Online portal seeks to decrease rural health "phlanthropy gap"
Daily Yonder | Posted onMarch 7, 2019 in Rural NewsA federal agency and national association have commissioned a toolkit to help groups raise more money for rural health-related projects. The creators hope a rising tide in funding will lift all boats.A new online “learning portal” seeks to help rural organizations raise more funding from philanthropies, which tend to favor urban projects and organizations over rural ones, a federal study shows. “There’s been a great interest in philanthropic investments in rural communities,” said Alana Knudson, one of the portal’s contributors.
The star student with a drug problem
Daily Yonder | Posted onMarch 7, 2019 in Rural NewsThe stigma of drug addiction means people in small towns may keep secrets to themselves – until it’s obvious something is wrong. Fighting addiction means talking honestly about the problems confronting our rural communities.Normal protocol was to send students who failed the drug test to a substance-abuse class at the juvenile detention center and ban them from participating in after–school activities. However, in my case, the positive drug test was kept a secret. I was allowed to continue doing theater and didn’t have to go to the substance abuse class.
Arizona house rejects legislation defining meat
Pinal Central | Posted onMarch 7, 2019 in SARL Members and Alumni NewsOn a 36-22 margin Monday night the House rebuffed a bid by a Globe rancher to legally limit the use of the words “meat’’ and “milk’’ when offering foods for sale in the state.Republican Rep. David Cook told colleagues he was mainly concerned about efforts to actually grow animal protein in laboratories. Cook said if those prove commercially successful the manufacturers should not be able to pass those off as something that actually came from what at one time was a living, breathing animal.Ditto poultry.
Australian consumers accept immuno castration for pigs
Pig Health Today | Posted onMarch 7, 2019 in Agriculture, Food NewsAustralian consumer acceptance of a technology that offers an alternative to physical castration should give more pork producers the confidence to use it, says one of Australia’s leading pork suppliers. The technology, known as immunological castration or immunocastration, involves administering a protein compound that works like a vaccine to reduce the risk of boar taint, an unpleasant odor that can occur when cooking meat from sexually mature male pigs.
Utility-linked group seeks to dismantle net metering in Michigan
Energy News Network | Posted onMarch 5, 2019 in Energy NewsNonprofit advocacy groups linked to DTE Energy are waging a public campaign to significantly reduce the amount customers are paid for their solar power, in line with the utility’s request before Michigan regulators.While these groups — classified as 501(c)(4) social welfare organizations — have been prominent in statewide elections and lobbying lawmakers on behalf of utility interests, the latest involves policy decisions at the Michigan Public Service Commission.
Coal ash contaminates groundwater near most U.S. coal plants: study
Reuters | Posted onMarch 4, 2019 in Energy NewsMore than 90 percent of U.S. coal-fired power plants that are required to monitor groundwater near their coal ash dumps show unsafe levels of toxic metals, according to a study released on Monday by environmental groups, which cited the potential harm to drinking water.