Agriculture

Pesticides Becoming More Toxic For The World's Most Important Insects

"Over the last 25 years, the toxicity of 381 pesticides in the U.S. more than doubled for pollinators and aquatic invertebrates such as crustaceans, mayflies, and dragonflies, according to a new study."

Source: EHN, 05/19/2021

"Banks Fight $4 Billion Debt Relief Plan for Black Farmers"

"The Biden administration’s efforts to provide $4 billion in debt relief to minority farmers is encountering stiff resistance from banks, which are complaining that the government initiative to pay off the loans of borrowers who have faced decades of financial discrimination will cut into their profits and hurt investors."

Source: NYTimes, 05/19/2021

Calif. Water Districts Get OK To Sue Dow, Shell On Groundwater Pollution

"A state appeals court has upheld California’s cleanup standards for a cancer-causing chemical that was added to pesticides and has polluted groundwater in the Central Valley, rejecting challenges by manufacturers that may have to pay the costs."

Source: San Francisco Chronicle, 05/19/2021

Amid Drought Crisis, Some Ranchers Restore Grasslands to Reserve Water

"It’s calving season and all across the West ranchers are watching the sizes of their herds grow. It’s also the beginning of a new season on most ranches, but in the midst of a historic, persistent drought, a growing herd brings difficult questions."

Source: Civil Eats, 05/18/2021

Australia Unveils Weapons Of Mouse Destruction To Tackle Rodent ‘Plague’

"Farmers and rural residents say they’re at their wits end battling the growing tide of mice."

"The Australian state of New South Wales will spend $38.5 million to send a plague of mice eating their way across farms and invading homes “into oblivion,” a move hailed by farmers and rural residents who say they’re at their wits end with a growing tide of rodents.

Source: HuffPost, 05/17/2021
June 8, 2021

NOAA/NCEI Climate Normals Webinar

The National Centers for Environmental Information invites you to a webinar, hosted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, on the recently released 1991-2020 Climate Normals. It will focus on the agriculture and energy sectors. 2-4 p.m. ET.

Visibility: 

"As the Climate Warms, Could the U.S. Face Another Dust Bowl?"

"Improved agricultural practices and widespread irrigation may stave off another agricultural calamity in the Great Plains. But scientists are now warning that two inescapable realities — rising temperatures and worsening drought — could still spawn a modern-day Dust Bowl."

Source: YaleE360, 05/14/2021

OSHA Failed to Protect Food Workers. Can a New Director Keep Them Safe?

"The federal agency largely failed people on farms, in restaurants, and in meat-processing facilities during the pandemic. Labor leaders hope Cal/OSHA’s Doug Parker will steer the ship right."

Source: Civil Eats, 05/14/2021

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