Every day is Earth Day for ag producers
Posted: Wednesday, Apr 21st, 2010
By Jeanie Wright
Earth Day is tomorrow, April 22. The day was founded by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson in 1970 and is now celebrated in springtime in 175 countries around the globe. Some countries have Earth Week and focus largely on environmental issues and activities.
Taking a day or a week out of the year to focus on the earth and our natural surroundings is a good thing, especially for those whose feet and tires don’t usually touch the dirt. But for farmers and ranchers in Wyoming, who work outside in the dirt, wind, and all types of weather, every day is earth day. Now, I’m sure that some liberal news anchor could find a talking head “expert” to tell us that run-off from fertilized fields and farting cattle are the root of all evil, and in some extreme cases they may have a point. In general, though, agriculture producers in America, and especially in Wyoming, are great stewards of the earth.
Wyoming’s ag producers don’t need a government study or a new law passed to know the importance of taking care of all things natural. These are people who need water as much as they need the blood in their veins. They pray for rain, and when it comes they store it to water fields, livestock and wildlife. Their dirt reservoirs provide riparian areas for water fowl, fish, trees and other plant life. Read More
Earth Day: Time for beef and thanks
By JACK REICH Zap Posted: Wednesday, April 21, 2010 2:15 am
On April 22, millions of folks interested in protecting the environment will celebrate the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day. Earth Day is a great time to evaluate how our existence impacts the environment and how we can incorporate environmentally friendly strategies.
Protecting and preserving the environment is something North Dakota farmers and ranchers do every day. Being good environmental stewards is not a new concept for us. It is, and has been for generations, an absolute necessity for our survival on the Northern Plains.
In fact, several North Dakota ranchers have been recognized nationally for their efforts. These families manage rotational grazing systems that make the best use of available forage, while improving the soil and the root structure of plants. They manage their land to provide wildlife habitat. They recycle nutrients, converting sunshine, rain and forage into beef and recycling the nutrients found in manure as fertilizers. Read More
With this being the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, many farmers and ranchers this is a great opportunity to help teach people about what they do and why their work is so important. Standing on the sidelines while anti-ag groups also use Earth Day to claim farmers and ranchers are destroying the environment is a disservice to the agriculture profession and especially to the consumers who deserve to hear the real story from the real people doing it. There are opportunities every day to introduce yourself and educate someone about food production, we can’t be afraid to take advantage of them.
Showing posts with label environment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label environment. Show all posts
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Monday, March 9, 2009
Feedlot Regulations
EPA to withdraw from Idaho feedlot agreements
Associated Press - March 8, 2009 4:14 PM ET
TWIN FALLS, Idaho (AP) - An official with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says the agency is withdrawing in April from two agreements with Idaho concerning the regulating of animal feed lots.
Ed Kowalski, head of EPA's regional enforcement group, says confined-animal feeding operations have become a national priority with the agency and it plans to play a more direct role in inspection and enforcement.
The agreements concerning the state's dairy and beef-cattle operations regulate such things as discharges of animal waste into state waters.
Attorneys for the EPA say the agreements with the Idaho Department of Agriculture and the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality limit the federal agency's powers to monitor the industry. Link
The EPA apparently thinks they can better regulate agriculture in Idaho that those that live there. A great example of an intrusive federal government. When EPA was originally writing some of the rules concerning CAFO’s, I was in Washington, DC talking to one of their undersecretary’s and she didn’t realize that vegetation didn’t grow year round in northern climates. It’s never a good thing when Washington thinks they know more than those of us that live on the land.
Associated Press - March 8, 2009 4:14 PM ET
TWIN FALLS, Idaho (AP) - An official with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says the agency is withdrawing in April from two agreements with Idaho concerning the regulating of animal feed lots.
Ed Kowalski, head of EPA's regional enforcement group, says confined-animal feeding operations have become a national priority with the agency and it plans to play a more direct role in inspection and enforcement.
The agreements concerning the state's dairy and beef-cattle operations regulate such things as discharges of animal waste into state waters.
Attorneys for the EPA say the agreements with the Idaho Department of Agriculture and the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality limit the federal agency's powers to monitor the industry. Link
The EPA apparently thinks they can better regulate agriculture in Idaho that those that live there. A great example of an intrusive federal government. When EPA was originally writing some of the rules concerning CAFO’s, I was in Washington, DC talking to one of their undersecretary’s and she didn’t realize that vegetation didn’t grow year round in northern climates. It’s never a good thing when Washington thinks they know more than those of us that live on the land.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Reporting Livestock Emissions
EPA Won't Exempt CAFO's in Livestock Air Emissions Rule
12/15/2008
Matt Kaye
EPA has bowed to environmentalists and decided not to completely exempt major livestock operations from toxic air emission reporting requirements. American Farm Bureau’s Tyler Wegmeyer says EPA will not exempt big livestock operations from all emission reporting, even though it originally proposed to.
According to Wegmeyer, “There was a compromise, because of environmental concerns from the environmental community, that made large CAFOs, Confined Animal Feeding Operations, they still have to report to the local and state authorities.”
Small operations are still exempt and, under the new rule that takes effect 30-days from last Friday, all operations are exempt from federal reporting. EPA says federal responders deal with train wrecks, explosions and fires, not farms.
But environmentalists and state air quality agencies blame ammonia and hydrogen sulfide from manure pits for the deaths of some 2-dozen people near Midwest operations over the past 30-years. Farm Bureau argues no reporting is justified, based on normal air emissions from animal waste. Read More
The exact details on who has to report and how are yet to be seen but this does set a rather dangerous precedent for livestock producers. Currently, larger feeding operations already have a nutrient management plan in place. The fear should be that even if you are following your approved plan can this new regulation throw that out the window and suddenly you are now non-compliant. It’s important to remember that most of these regulations continue to be pushed not to benefit the environment, but rather to cause harm to the livestock industry.
12/15/2008
Matt Kaye
EPA has bowed to environmentalists and decided not to completely exempt major livestock operations from toxic air emission reporting requirements. American Farm Bureau’s Tyler Wegmeyer says EPA will not exempt big livestock operations from all emission reporting, even though it originally proposed to.
According to Wegmeyer, “There was a compromise, because of environmental concerns from the environmental community, that made large CAFOs, Confined Animal Feeding Operations, they still have to report to the local and state authorities.”
Small operations are still exempt and, under the new rule that takes effect 30-days from last Friday, all operations are exempt from federal reporting. EPA says federal responders deal with train wrecks, explosions and fires, not farms.
But environmentalists and state air quality agencies blame ammonia and hydrogen sulfide from manure pits for the deaths of some 2-dozen people near Midwest operations over the past 30-years. Farm Bureau argues no reporting is justified, based on normal air emissions from animal waste. Read More
The exact details on who has to report and how are yet to be seen but this does set a rather dangerous precedent for livestock producers. Currently, larger feeding operations already have a nutrient management plan in place. The fear should be that even if you are following your approved plan can this new regulation throw that out the window and suddenly you are now non-compliant. It’s important to remember that most of these regulations continue to be pushed not to benefit the environment, but rather to cause harm to the livestock industry.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Ag and the Environment
Technology reduces ag’s environmental footprint
Grand Forks Agweek
Published: 11/25/2008
The efficiencies American farmers and ranchers have implemented in the last 60 years have done more to help the environment than hurt it, said an American Farm Bureau Federation environmental specialist.
“Our ability to increase our efficiencies in feed conversion, our ability to in-crease the genetics of our herd and increase the meat per animal, has basically reduced our environmental footprint, rather than increased it," said Don Parrish, AFBF Senior Director for Regulatory Relations at North Dakota Farm Bureau Convention and Exposition informational session.
Compared to 1948, across all production in agriculture, animals produce 25 per-cent less manure. At the same time, each animal we raise produces 700 percent more meat than it did in 1948. Read More
This is probably one of the least advertised stories in agriculture. In the past 80 years, we have gone from the horse drawn equipment to four wheel drive tractors that drive themselves. Also during that time, the output produced by the American farmer and rancher has skyrocketed. It continues to grow today thanks to modern production practices that maximize efficiency.
Grand Forks Agweek
Published: 11/25/2008
The efficiencies American farmers and ranchers have implemented in the last 60 years have done more to help the environment than hurt it, said an American Farm Bureau Federation environmental specialist.
“Our ability to increase our efficiencies in feed conversion, our ability to in-crease the genetics of our herd and increase the meat per animal, has basically reduced our environmental footprint, rather than increased it," said Don Parrish, AFBF Senior Director for Regulatory Relations at North Dakota Farm Bureau Convention and Exposition informational session.
Compared to 1948, across all production in agriculture, animals produce 25 per-cent less manure. At the same time, each animal we raise produces 700 percent more meat than it did in 1948. Read More
This is probably one of the least advertised stories in agriculture. In the past 80 years, we have gone from the horse drawn equipment to four wheel drive tractors that drive themselves. Also during that time, the output produced by the American farmer and rancher has skyrocketed. It continues to grow today thanks to modern production practices that maximize efficiency.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Reduced meat eating can help save environment
Reduced meat eating can help save environment
April 7, 2008
Kate Rosettie
As an active athlete, I rely on meat as a source of protein, but just how much meat do we need and at what cost to our bodies and the environment?
Meat consumption is soaring worldwide, especially in newly industrializing nations. The destructive consequences of the spread of the 'Western diet' include environmental damage, water scarcity, animal cruelty, global warming and health issues. Moreover, as meat consumption increases so does the competition for food sources that go to livestock rather than to people who already suffer from hunger in the world.
The adverse consequences of widespread livestock production are becoming increasingly problematic. According to the Compassion in World Faming Trust (CIWF), livestock production uses the greatest percentage of agricultural land, and it is depleting water supplies. Read More
The major fallacy of this argument is that everyone assumes that every acre that is grazed by animals could be converted to cropland. If we eliminated livestock production, a vast majority of the western half of the United States would become a wasted resource. Livestock are the reason we have as much food as we do. They convert sunshine into protein, which is something that the human body can not do. Unless the human body can evolve to the point that we have a rumen, livestock will be key to feeding the world.
April 7, 2008
Kate Rosettie
As an active athlete, I rely on meat as a source of protein, but just how much meat do we need and at what cost to our bodies and the environment?
Meat consumption is soaring worldwide, especially in newly industrializing nations. The destructive consequences of the spread of the 'Western diet' include environmental damage, water scarcity, animal cruelty, global warming and health issues. Moreover, as meat consumption increases so does the competition for food sources that go to livestock rather than to people who already suffer from hunger in the world.
The adverse consequences of widespread livestock production are becoming increasingly problematic. According to the Compassion in World Faming Trust (CIWF), livestock production uses the greatest percentage of agricultural land, and it is depleting water supplies. Read More
The major fallacy of this argument is that everyone assumes that every acre that is grazed by animals could be converted to cropland. If we eliminated livestock production, a vast majority of the western half of the United States would become a wasted resource. Livestock are the reason we have as much food as we do. They convert sunshine into protein, which is something that the human body can not do. Unless the human body can evolve to the point that we have a rumen, livestock will be key to feeding the world.
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