Slowdown in the Atlantic (Inside Climate News): The circulation of Atlantic Ocean water has slowed by 15 percent since 1950, which could mean hotter summers in Europe, changed rainfall patterns in the tropics, and sea level rise along the U.S. coast.
Bt soybeans stay in South America (DTN/Progressive Farmer): Monsanto dropped plans to sell Bt soybeans, a GMO crop, in the United States. The company cited low demand, but entomologists say Bt-resistant insects are a more likely reason.
U.S. farmland is disappearing (AFT): Far too often, houses, stores, and roads are the last things planted on farmland, says the American Farmland Trust, which reports that 62 percent of development in a 20-year period was on farmland.
Protected forests cleared for palm oil (The Telegraph): Video and images gathered by Greenpeace “appear to show the clearance of 4,000 hectares of rain forest” in a two-year period in a protected area of Papua, Indonesia.
High pesticide use in California (FairWarning): The state’s farmers “are applying near-record amounts of pesticides despite the rising popularity of organic produce and concerns about the health of farmworkers and rural schoolchildren.”
First new U.S. veterinary school in 40 years (Feedstuffs): Texas Tech University will construct a veterinary school in Amarillo, co-located with its medical and pharmacy school.