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A publication of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture HOUSE AGRICULTURE COMMITTEE RELEASES CHAIRMAN'S MARKUP DOCUMENTS NEW INTERSTATE MEAT BILL INTRODUCED State News--GRAY TO CHAIR NATIONAL PESTICIDE PANEL State News--FORMER TV FORECASTER EYES THE WEATHER FOR ODA _________________________________________________________Past Issues What's New on the NASDA Website
NASDA's 2007 Farm Bill Recommendations NASDA's Midyear Meeting Documents NASDA's Trade Shows: USFES; AFF; IFE
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HOUSE AGRICULTURE COMMITTEE RELEASES CHAIRMAN'S MARKUP DOCUMENTS
Late July 6, House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) released markup documents for each title of the 2007 farm bill. The documents, including an en bloc amendment, are located at http://agriculture.house.gov/inside/2007FarmBill.html. The committee is scheduled to begin markup on July 17. Among the highlights of the markup documents are: * Extends the safety net programs authorized in the 2002 farm bill with minor changes. * Increases target prices for wheat, barley, oats, oilseeds and soybeans, which increases producers' opportunity to receive counter-cyclical payments when prices are low. * Continues support for farmers through direct payments. * Extends the Milk Income Loss Contract Program until 2012. * Funds the Market Access Program (MAP) at $225 million annually for FY08 through FY12, which translates into a $125 million increase for the program over five years. Funds the Foreign Market Development (FMD) Program at the current year level of $34.5 million annually for FY08 through FY12. However, NASDA supports $325 million annually for MAP and $50 million annually for FMD. * Provides mandatory funding that would support expansion of the specialty crop block grant program with increases in funding over the term of the farm bill from $40 million in FY08 to $75 million in FY12. * If costs can be offset, the 2007 farm bill provides up to $2 billion in loan guarantee authority for biorefineries, with half going to loans less than $100 million, and the other half for loans up to $250 million. * If costs can be offset, the 2007 farm bill provides $500 million for the Renewable Energy & Efficiency Improvements Program, to be renamed the Rural Energy for America Program, over the five years included in the 2007 farm bill. * Provides money and outlines a plan for new programs of joint action between federal and state governments to provide for early detection and surveillance of plant pests and diseases. The funding levels increases from $10 million in FY08 to $100 million in FY12. * Establishes proactive, cooperative, audit-based certification systems between USDA, states, and growers to address plant pest infestations. * Provides $200 million in mandatory funding for pest and disease detection and control. * Extends the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) by authorizing 39.2 million acres to be enrolled through 2012. * Increases funding for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and expands the activities for which a producer can receive incentive payments to include technical assistance that will help fruit and vegetable producers access the program. * Increases funding for the Farm and Ranchland Protection Program (FRPP) and establishes a more user-friendly certification process to determine eligibility for program funds. * Extends the Department of Defense Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (DoD Fresh) and expands the USDA Snack Program to all fifty states. * Expands the Senior Farmer's Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP). * In total, eleven titles are proposed for consideration. The en bloc amendment includes permanent authority to provide emergency agricultural assistance; creation of a biomass energy reserve and an increase in funding for the specialty crops block grant program by $40 million for each fiscal year. (Contact: Jennifer Yezak or Charlie Ingram) NEW INTERSTATE MEAT BILL INTRODUCED On June 27, Rep. Zach Space (D-Ohio) introduced H.R. 2876 which would allow interstate sales of state-inspected meat and poultry. It is the third interstate meat bill to be introduced in the House as interest and support for legislation continues to grow. Earlier this spring, H.R. 1760 was introduced by Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wisc.) and H.R. 2315 was introduced by Reps. Earl Pomeroy (D-N.D.) and Roy Blunt (R-Mo.). H.R. 2876 takes a different approach than other bills to allow interstate meat sales. Specifically, the bill would require USDA to verify that state inspection programs are equal to the federal inspection program. If USDA determines that an individual state plant does not meet the "equal to" federal inspection requirements, then that state plant would not be eligible to ship meat and poultry in interstate commerce. NASDA has been leading a coalition of national, state and local organizations in support of interstate meat sales legislation. NASDA and the coalition have urged lawmakers to cosponsor all of the bills that have been introduced. (Contact: Charlie Ingram) STATE NEWS GRAY TO CHAIR NATIONAL PESTICIDE PANEL A North Dakota official will chair an advisory panel to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on pesticide regulation and enforcement. The Association of American Pesticide Control Officials (AAPCO) has appointed Jim Gray, pesticide, feed and fertilizer team leader in the North Dakota Department of Agriculture, as chairman of the Working Committee on Pesticide Operations and Management of the State FIFRA Issues Research and Evaluation Group. FIFRA is the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act, the nation's principal law governing pesticides. "The appointment clearly indicates the respect Jim commands in the pesticide regulatory community," said Agriculture Commissioner Roger Johnson. "He has been a leader in the development of pesticide labeling that is recognized in both the U.S. and Canada, and he is a recognized authority on pesticide registration and regulatory issues." Created by AAPCO and EPA in 1978, the State FIFRA Issues Research and Evaluation Group is a forum for the states and the EPA to exchange information, enabling the states to play a meaningful role in developing pesticide policies and regulations. The working committee is made up of representatives from 12 states who work with the EPA to resolve pesticide policy and regulatory issues, such as certification, registration, labeling and enforcement. A native of Trimont, Minn., Gray graduated from Bemidji State University in 1991 with a degree in environmental studies and later earned a master's degree in environmental toxicology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He was a senior weed biologist for Dow AgroSciences in Indianapolis, Ind., before joining NDDA. Last year, the North American Free Trade Agreement Technical Working Group on Pesticides, appointed Gray a member of the Subcommittee on Pesticide Harmonization--NAFTA Labels, a joint U.S.-Canadian technical team working to allow U.S. farmers and ranchers access to the Canadian pesticide market. (Contact: Ted Quanrud, 701/328-2233) FORMER TV FORECASTER EYES THE WEATHER FOR ODA A familiar face in the Portland television market has replaced another familiar face at the Oregon Department of Agriculture. TV meteorologist Pete Parsons has been hired to fill the vacancy left by fellow former on-air weather expert Jim Little, just in time to do some very important forecasting for this year's Willamette Valley field burning season. Weather information from ODA is critical for the valley's grass seed growers who depend on the ability to burn at least some of their fields. "One of the things I like about this position is that I'm able to see the impact of what I do right away," says Parsons, who has learned the ropes from his predecessor prior to Little leaving for a position with the Oregon Department of Forestry. "The idea is to try and protect air quality while allowing the growers to do what they need to do." Parsons will be dealing with a more specific customer. In television, his forecast was broad-scale and aimed at a multitude of interested viewers. This summer, he will be forecasting for people who depend on the weather information for their livelihood as well as the public that might be impacted from the activity of field burning. It's a balancing act. Parsons looks forward to the challenge. "I'm very familiar with the weather patterns around here, I've been forecasting weather for more than 20 years in this region," says Parsons. "That part of the job won't be new. What is new and exciting to me is that I will be looking at the weather patterns in a slightly different way. I don't believe there will be more pressure for me to get it right. I always try to get it right whether I'm forecasting for one person or for a million people who might be affected by what we do." Traditionally, the Fourth of July signals the beginning of the field burning season, which usually runs well into September. This year should be no exception as a limited number of fields will begin to be torched in the next couple of weeks, weather permitting. Parsons will be spending the early morning hours looking for the best possible conditions that will allow open field burning. Decisions to allow burning will determined by a team of experienced members of ODA's Smoke Management Program. Weather will be just one factor in the decision. "The growers have a job they need to get done and we are trying to keep the smoke away from populated areas," says Parsons. "It's a delicate balance that takes a team of people coming at it from different angles to reach the best decision." Field burning has been scaled back significantly from the late 1980s but is still an important management tool for Oregon's $481 million grass seed industry. The practice has helped growers eliminate straw residues and rid fields of weeds, insects, and diseases. But because of controversy generated by the smoke, the legislature directed a phase down on the amount of acreage allowed for open field burning with the final limitation set at 65,000 acres--a far cry from the days of a quarter-million acres going up in flames. A majority of growers have adapted to the limitation and have found new methods for dealing with the waste straw. On average, about 50,000 acres are burned annually. The numbers of registered acres show how Willamette Valley grass seed growers have responded. A total of 83,136 acres have been registered for regular open field burning this year. ODA uses a formula for allocating how much can actually be burned. That formula gives all registrants 48 percent of what they asked for in order to stay under the regular limitation of 40,000 acres. There is an additional allowance of 25,000 acres for certain identified species of grass and for grass grown on terrain too steep for the equipment that needs to be used. As usual, growers are expected to burn considerably less that what they actually register. It all adds up to the continued reliance on good weather forecasting. "The basic idea is to get the smoke up into the atmosphere and then have it carried away from the populated areas while it disperses into the atmosphere," says Parsons. "We are looking for conditions that include little or no surface winds so that the smoke is able to rise up high into the atmosphere. We are also looking for winds in the upper atmosphere so that the smoke is transported away from the population centers and has the opportunity to disperse. If we get that combination of meteorological conditions, we can put smoke in the air and have minimal impact on people." High temperatures, low humidity, low surface winds but good transport winds. That's a recipe for a good burning day in the Willamette Valley. Typically there will be at least a few days in the summer where it all comes together. Sometimes there is only a few hours in a given day where the conditions are just right. It will be up to ODA's Smoke Management Team and its newest member to make the right analysis and proper forecast. Better tools, including computer models developed by Jim Little during his tenure at ODA, is making the job a little easier. "There is now more information available, a quicker way to look at the data, and we have a better idea of what we are looking for," says Parsons. Parsons was not hired to work only on field burning forecasts. His expertise in meteorology will come in handy when other ODA programs rely on weather forecasting. The Insect Pest Prevention and Management Program, for instance, needs to know if conditions are not favorable for spray projects on a given day. Long range forecasting for winter snowpack can help ODA plan for water quantity issues that might crop up later in the year. Having an experienced meteorologist on staff is important to an agency that deals with agriculture. "This is a great opportunity for meaningful service," says Parsons. "I get to use my expertise to do a lot of good for a lot of people." (Contact: John Byers, 503/986-4718) |