USDA Archives - Page 2 of 6 - Environment + Energy Leader

Big Dairies Raise Pollution Concerns

May 29, 2014May 28, 2014 by Leon Walker

As the consolidation of the US dairy industry into fewer and fewer, larger operations continues apace, fresh opposition is also growing in response to the increased pollution risk associated with bigger dairy farms, reports Environment 360. More than half of US milk is now produced by just 3 percent of the country’s ... Read more »

Slow Thaw Needed to Preserve Wheat Crop

March 4, 2014March 4, 2014 by Bill Opalka

The USDA says a gradual end to the winter freeze is needed to prevent further damage to the country’s wheat crop. US wheat futures have firmed in recent weeks over the prospect of a diminished crop caused by persistent cold weather, Reuters reports. Snow cover has protected crops but short-lived warmer ... Read more »

Funding for Farmers to Combat Drought Effects

February 6, 2014February 5, 2014 by Jessica Lyons Hardcastle

The USDA has made $20 million available to California ranchers and farmers to fund agricultural water conservation to combat the effects of the statewide drought. Farmers and ranchers have until March 3 to apply. The funding is part of the Natural Resources Conservation Service’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) to ... Read more »

Policy & Enforcement Briefing: Chemical Storage Overhaul, Rail Safety, Hydropower

January 8, 2014January 8, 2014 by Tamar Wilner

The Chemical Facility Safety and Security Working Group is considering a major overhaul of handling and storage for volatile substances, The Hill says. The group’s latest report asks for comment on an array of options, including mandatory safeguards and a third-party audit system. President Obama formed the working group in response to the ... Read more »

Biobased Fabric Provides Multi-Metal Protection

December 23, 2013 by Jessica Lyons Hardcastle

Cortec’s biobased sustainable packaging option for corrosion inhibition has been awarded USDA BioPreferred designation. BioPad is a flexible corrosion-inhibiting device constructed from 100 percent biobased non-woven material, containing 66 percent biobased content. It is designed with Vapor phase Corrosion Inhibitors (VpCI) impregnated throughout the substrate. The product provides up to ... Read more »

Partnership Advances Commercial Cellulosic Nanomaterial Facility

December 16, 2013 by Jessica Lyons Hardcastle

A new public-private partnership aims to advance the development of the first US commercial facility producing cellulosic nanomaterial, a wood fiber broken down to the nanoscale. The partnership, between the US Endowment for Forestry and Communities and the US Forest Service, builds on work done by the Forest Products Laboratory ... Read more »

$181 Million Available to Develop Biorefineries

October 22, 2013 by Jessica Lyons Hardcastle

The US Department of Agriculture has made available $181 million to develop commercial-scale biorefineries or retrofit existing facilities with appropriate technology to develop advanced biofuels. Agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack says the financing is intended to expand the number of commercial biorefineries in the US that are producing advanced biofuels from ... Read more »

Investors Urge Biotech, Food Industry to Stay Out of GMO Labeling Fight

October 10, 2013October 10, 2013 by Kirsten Korosec

Environmentalist and shareholder advocacy groups have filed resolutions urging Monsanto, DuPont de Nemours and Dow Chemical Company to stop using corporate funds to fight a referendum in Washington that, if it passed, would require special labels on raw and processed foods made from genetically modified crops. Opponents to Washington’s I-522 ... Read more »

How to Stop Food Waste? Invisible ‘Sell By’ Dates on Labels

September 26, 2013 by Jessica Lyons Hardcastle

Food producers and retailers should make “sell by” dates on labels invisible to consumers and take other steps to prevent US consumers and businesses from needlessly trashing billions of pounds of food every year, according to report co-authored by the Natural Resources Defense Council and Harvard Law School’s Food Law ... Read more »

Coke, USDA Partner to Restore Watersheds

September 16, 2013September 16, 2013 by Kirsten Korosec

Coca-Cola Americas and the United States Department of Agriculture have announced a public-private partnership that aims to return more than 1 billion liters of water to the National Forest System. The collaboration between government, business and community organizations includes the National Forest Foundation and National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, all ... Read more »

150 Companies, Organizations Urge GMO Crop Trial Action

August 27, 2013 by Kirsten Korosec

Organic food manufacturer Amy’s Kitchen, Farm Aid, Clif Bar & Company, The Urban Farm, Organic Seed Alliance and the Center for Food Safety are among more than 150 farm organizations, millers, retailers, bakeries, seed businesses and food processors urging the US Department of Agriculture to improve its oversight of experimental ... Read more »

Policy & Enforcement Briefing: Power Plant Rules, Enviro Regulator ‘Forced Out’

August 21, 2013August 21, 2013 by Tamar Wilner

The EPA plans to force utilities to limit emissions of hazardous pollutants during power plant shut-down, start-up and malfunctioning. Environmental groups are pressuring the agency to finalize the rule, which is due by September 26, the Hill reports. The Government Accountability Office has agreed to three Republican lawmakers’ request that ... Read more »

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