EPA
EPA eases biofuels mandate that aided farmers
Months behind schedule, the EPA said it would set the biofuels share of the gasoline market well below the level specified by law because the fuel market is saturated with corn-based ethanol and second-generation biofuels are in scant supply. Farm groups and the ethanol industry said the agency was being short-sighted in its decision, and that the move would allow the oil industry to throttle a home-grown competitor. The American Petroleum Institute called for congressional repeal of the 2007 biofuels mandate.
Uncertainty slows arrival of new-generation biofuels
Commercial-scale production of new-generation biofuels has been slowed by a year and a half of uncertainty about federal support for the fuels, which use grass or corn stover as feedstocks rather than food crops, reports DTN, based on a panel discussion at a trade meeting.
Green groups ask EPA to re-evaluate weedkiller glyphosate
The EPA should conduct "an urgent re-evaluation" of glyphosate, one of the most widely used pesticides in the world, in response to a determination by a World Health Organization agency that the weedkiller is probably carcinogenic for humans, said eight environmental groups.
Few new plants expected as U.S. ethanol mandate plateaus
The U.S. ethanol industry has 213 plants with capacity to produce more than 15 billion gallons a year. With the EPA proposing ethanol use at close to current production levels, "there is little need for new plants in a saturated market," says Reuters after interviewing...
Widely used herbicide glyphosate is “probably carcinogenic”
The herbicide glyphosate, widely used in U.S. crop production, especially for genetically engineered corn and soybeans, is "probably carcinogenic to humans," says the specialized cancer agency of the UN World Health Organization. The herbicide is known under the brand name RoundUp in the United States. The International Agency for Research on Cancer reviewed glyphosate and four other organophosates on the recommendation of an advisory committee that dozens of pesticides should be examined because...
Neonicotinoid not the sole villain in honeybee losses
A widely used insecticide, the neonicotinoid imidacloprid, "does not significantly harm honey bee colonies at real-world doses," contrary to concerns that neonics, as they are called, are to blame for population declines, says a University of Maryland study.
Majority of US House opposes new EPA water rule
Some 231 U.S. representatives, including 18 committee chairmen, signed a letter asking the Obama administration to withdraw a proposed rule on federal jurisdiction over waterways, says Drovers CattleNetwork.
Watch out for pesticide residue on produce, says magazine
Shoppers should always buy organic peaches, strawberries, green beans and carrots to limit their exposure to pesticide residue, says Consumer Reports.
Ag-heavy Eastern Shore has big role in Chesapeake pollution
The U.S. Geological Survey says "excess fertilizer and manure applied to the Chesapeake Bay's Eastern Shore are causing poor-quality water flows in streams that flow into the bay."
Expect ethanol, clean-water rules this spring, says EPA chief
EPA administrator Gina McCarthy says the agency will issue rules this spring that set the ethanol mandate and define the upstream reach of clean-water laws, according to DTN, but she did not offer a specific date for the announcement.
At Ag Summit, Bush and Cruz speak against ethanol mandate
Two potential aspirants for the Republican nomination for president, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz spoke against an ethanol mandate at the Iowa Ag Summit, according to reports in the Washington Post and the New York Times.
Former House Ag chairman seeks to end ethanol mandate
Two of the top-ranking members of the House Agriculture Committee are among the four lead sponsors of a bill to eliminate the federal mandate for corn-based ethanol.
EPA withdraws interpretive rule for Waters of United States
The government withdrew the so-called interpretive rule for its Waters of the United States proposal, a step that farm groups said was required by the omnibus appropriations bill enacted at the end of 2015.
Dual-herbicide seeds to be Monsanto’s biggest GE launch
After a decade of development, Monsanto anticipates its genetically engineered Xtend soybean and cotton varieties will be its "largest biotech trait launch...with six times the number of varieties" that it offered in a previous set of GE strains.
Fertilizer management, filtering can cut runoff by 45%
Nitrogen runoff could be reduced by 45 percent in the Mississippi River basin - the heart of U.S. grain farming - with adoption of practices that reduce fertilizer waste and conversion of as little as 3.1 million acres of farmland to filter and hold nutrients that now flow downstream, says a research paper. Nitrogen runoff from farms and other sources is blamed for the "dead zone" in the Gulf of Mexico.
EPA proposes framework to keep Bt corn seed effective
Corn growers would use crop rotation and "stacked" seeds to prevent corn rootworm from developing widespread resistance to Bt corn under a framework proposed by EPA and open for public comment until March 16.
Lawsuit seeks US air pollution limits on large livestock farms
Five environmental, animal welfare and community organizations filed suit in federal district court in Washington, DC, to force EPA to set air pollution standards for large livestock farms.
Roberts says regulatory overkill is top Ag Committee issue
Chairman Pat Roberts says the big issue confronting the Senate Agriculture Committee is "regulatory overkill we are experiencing with every agency" and particularly with the EPA. Roberts mentioned regulatory reform twice while listing committee priorities for this session. "We've got a lot of priorities," he said, citing reauthorization of the CFTC, the mandatory livestock price reporting law, and child nutrition programs - "big time." Regulatory reform, he said, "seems to be the big thing" in farm country.