Growing Returns

USDA newcomer Bill Northey has 3 big opportunities to scale ag resilience and productivity nationwide

By Suzy Friedman / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: March 22, 2018

In his new role at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Undersecretary Bill Northey will oversee agencies and programs that are vital to agricultural resilience and productivity, including the Farm Service Agency, the Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Risk Management Agency. His portfolio will include crop insurance, conservation, disaster assistance and producer lending services.

I’ve had the opportunity to work with Northey and have appreciated his collaborative approach, which I think will be an asset to USDA in pursuing gains in productivity and conservation.

As he leads ag sustainability efforts at USDA, Northey has three big opportunities to scale conservation and productivity innovations nationwide. Read More »

Posted in Supply Chain / Tagged Conservation Practice Standards, Conservation Technical Assistance, farm bill, Partnerships, public-private partnerships, regional conservation partnership program, sustainable agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Undersecretary Bill Northey, USDA, USDA NRCS | Comments are closed

A rare desert wildflower is no longer endangered, but the law that saved it may be

By Eric Holst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: March 20, 2018

When most people think about the Endangered Species Act, they picture the bald eagle, the sea turtle or the grizzly bear. They don’t think as often about the grasses, ferns, flowers and conifers that the ESA also protects.

That makes sense when you consider that there are approximately 26 known animal species for every known plant species. But animals, including humans of course, rely heavily on plants for food, oxygen, shelter and more.

Just like animals, plants increasingly face habitat loss, pollution, disease and climate change, which threaten their existence.

There are currently 949 species of plants listed as endangered or threatened under the ESA, including several species of cactus, mint and milkweed – a vital plant for monarch butterflies. But even the more obscure and isolated plants demonstrate how closely plant resilience is tied to the health of both local and broader ecosystems. Read More »

Posted in Wildlife Protection / Tagged biodiversity, death valley, delisted, delisting, dune grass, ecosystems, endangered species, Endangered Species Act, endangered species act success stories, endangered species act success story, eureka valley, evening primrose, national park, plants | Read 2 Responses

The farm bill can make the ag data revolution a reality

By Callie Eideberg / Bio / Published: March 12, 2018

For big data to truly revolutionize agricultural productivity and sustainability, data needs to be accessible. Industry and government have already collected troves of data points. The trick now is to combine disparate data sets and make them available to farmers, researchers and advisers – all while meticulously protecting producer privacy.

The private sector moved aggressively in 2017 to provide farmers with solutions for collecting and interpreting their data. $500 million in investments flowed to start-ups providing farm management software, sensing and other data solutions – a sector with 27 percent year-over-year growth.

It’s time for the public sector to do the same. Here’s how the next farm bill can ensure farmers see benefits from their data. Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged crop insurance, data, extreme weather, farm bill, Senator Amy Klobuchar, Senator John Thune, sustainable agriculture, USDA | Comments are closed

Unlikely allies are crowdsourcing funding and habitat to save the monarch butterfly

By David Wolfe / Bio / Published: March 1, 2018

The monarch butterfly has a new chance at recovery, thanks to the launch of the Monarch Butterfly Habitat Exchange and inspiring commitments from early participants.

The Monarch Butterfly Habitat Exchange is an innovative market-based program dedicated to restoring and conserving high-quality monarch habitat on America’s private working lands. It’s been dubbed an ‘Airbnb for butterflies’ because it’s the only program of its kind that can open the vast untapped potential of large-scale farms and ranches to make habitat available for monarchs at an unprecedented scale and pace.

[Tweet “Powerful partners have teamed up to launch a groundbreaking program to recover the monarch butterfly.”]

Studies estimate that the monarch’s population has declined by 95 percent since the 1980s, and the butterfly faces a June 2019 deadline for an Endangered Species Act listing decision.

To change the monarch’s trajectory and avoid the need for restrictive regulations that often accompany a listing, we need to restore millions of acres of native milkweed and wildflowers across the butterfly’s vast migration route, fast.

Posted in Habitat Exchange / Tagged conservation, environmental defense fund, milkweed, missouri, monarch butterfly, prairie, Smithfield Foods, Texas, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, wildlife | Read 11 Responses

What can Nebraska teach the American West about managing water? A lot.

By Christina Babbitt / Bio / Published: February 23, 2018

Nebraska is one of the top producers of corn, soybeans and hogs in the country. With 91 percent of the state’s total land area dedicated to agricultural production, a lot of water is needed to support all of Nebraska’s farms and ranches.

Fortunately, the state sits atop one of the largest underground aquifers in the world. The High Plains Aquifer, commonly referred to as the Ogallala Aquifer, underlies parts of eight states from Texas to South Dakota, and is a vital resource to Nebraskan farmers.

But as farms have expanded and demand for agricultural products has grown, pressure on the aquifer has increased and groundwater levels have been in steady decline for decades.

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged california, groundwater, groundwater management, groundwater recharge, Nebraska, sustainable groundwater management act, water use, western water | Comments are closed

For California water managers, establishing new traditions takes time

By Maurice Hall / Bio / Published: February 16, 2018

The California Water Commission sent ripples through the water world recently when it gave tepid “public benefit” scores to 11 water storage projects vying for taxpayer funding.

Project proponents were understandably frustrated, and many were openly critical of the Water Commission’s process for determining public benefits. After all, they’re vying for a big pot of public money – $2.7 billion that was set aside in 2014 with the passage of Proposition 1 – and their public benefit scores are a key factor in determining whether or not they get funded.

But let’s not be so critical. The Water Commission has been handed a difficult task, and is doing the right thing by carefully considering and scrutinizing each project. Here’s why.

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged California Water Commission, groundwater recharge, Proposition 1, water storage, Water Storage Improvement Program, water use, western water | Read 1 Response

Where’s the snow!? What a dry winter might mean for Colorado

By Brian Jackson / Bio / Published: February 14, 2018

We finally got a little dusting of snow last weekend. But snowpack in Colorado and throughout the West remains exceptionally low.

La Niña has wreaked havoc on weather systems around the country, sending storms to Baton Rouge, San Antonio and Boston, while Colorado, California and pretty much the entire Southwest United States stay dry. Colorado is at 68% of normal snowpack with the southwest Rockies in even worse shape. The Sierra Nevada snowpack – a key source of California’s water supply – is at 30% of average. Many parts of New Mexico have received less than a half inch of rain, making it one of the driest starts to a water year on record in the state.

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged colorado, colorado river, colorado water plan, snowpack, water trading, water use, western water | Comments are closed

$1 million USDA award expands public-private partnerships for ag sustainability

By Shelby Shelton / Bio / Published: February 14, 2018

A collaboration between Smithfield Foods and Environmental Defense Fund has reduced fertilizer loss and improved soil health on more than 400,000 acres in the regions where Smithfield sources feed grain. That acreage is set to grow thanks to a new USDA Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) award of $1,080,000.

The RCPP project will expand Smithfield’s ongoing grain sustainability efforts in North Carolina and scale up the program in Iowa, providing additional opportunities for farmers interested in improving their operations. Participating farmers will be supported by the combined efforts of 16 partner organizations, which include producer groups, government agencies, universities and nonprofits. Read More »

Posted in Supply Chain / Tagged farm bill, fertilizer, iowa, North Carolina, Partnerships, public-private partnerships, RCPP, regional conservation partnership program, Smithfield Foods, soil health, supply chain sustainability, U.S. Department of Agriculture, USDA | Comments are closed

3 reasons animal agriculture should be leading the way on supply chain sustainability

By Maggie Monast / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: February 9, 2018

Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture predicted that Americans will eat a record-breaking amount of meat in 2018 [PDF] – 223 pounds per person of chicken, pork and beef. That’s why I went to Atlanta last week to speak to environmental managers for the nation’s largest meat companies at a conference held by the North American Meat Institute.

My message for those I met? Animal agriculture should be leading the way in addressing the full impacts of their supply chains, from feed grain production all the way to the consumer.

Posted in Supply Chain / Tagged animal agriculture, meat production, Partnerships, Smithfield Foods, supply chain sustainability, sustainable agriculture, Tyson Foods | Read 1 Response

Why Trump should care about the fate of the sage-grouse even more than African elephants

By Eric Holst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: February 5, 2018

When the Trump administration announced that it was lifting the ban on imports of game trophies, there was public outcry. For days, my twitter feed was filled with photos of African elephants. It was, in Trump’s words, a “horror show” – one that ultimately ended when the president made the decision to keep the trophy ban in place.

At the same time the trophy ban was making headlines across the globe, a different story was unfolding back home. A great American wildlife conservation story was being rewritten. Read More »

Posted in Wildlife Protection / Tagged America first, conservation, ecosystems, elephant trophies, Endangered Species Act, greater sage-grouse, Interior department, oil and gas, ryan zinke, trophy hunting, wildlife | Read 2 Responses