House Agriculture Committee adopts a farm bill

Federal Agriculture, Risk, and Reform Management Act  

Key Development: House Agriculture Committee adopts a farm bill with a provision to prohibit EPA from requiring discharge permits for pesticide spraying on or near water bodies.

Potential Impact: The bill would reauthorize conservation, renewable energy, and forestry programs for five years.

The House Agriculture Committee adopted a farm bill July 12 that would provide $57 billion for conservation programs over the next 10 years and prohibit the Environmental Protection Agency from requiring Clean Water Act discharge permits for pesticide spraying on or near water bodies.

CA state committee looks at rural renewable energy

Rural renewable energy planning has started as a state committee began hearings today on the “promise of renewable energy development in California’s rural economies.”

The Assembly Select Committee on Renewable Energy Economy in Rural California, chaired by Assemblyman V. Manuel Pérez, D-Coachella, held its first hearing at Fresno City College to assess the opportunities and challenges of achieving the state’s high renewable energy portfolio standards. The hearing included discussion on transmission planning, siting and rural land use, according to a press release from Pérez’s office.

CA: Two bills help farmers address renewable energy goals

By Lois Wolk

I want to applaud Ag Alert® for its excellent two-part series on the effects of solar power on agriculture (Sept. 7 and Sept. 14), drawing attention to the fact that California farmers and ranchers lead the nation in use of solar power.