In Long-Sought Change, States Must Consider Tribal Rights When Crafting Water Rules
This May, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a revision to the Clean Water Act that requires states to consider tribal treaty rights when crafting water quality regulations. The rule could protect resources such as wild rice, sturgeon, salmon, and shellfish.
The states challenging the rule are Alaska, Idaho, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming.
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Periodic Flooding Hurts Mississippi. But Could Mitigation There Hurt Downstream in Louisiana?
While Jackson-area residents and business owners are pushing for flood mitigation, people are also expressing concern about the potential environmental impact in areas downstream in both Mississippi and Louisiana.
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U.S. Agricultural Land Values and Cropland Cash Rents Reach Record Levels Amid Falling Commodity Prices
Agricultural land values increased by $200 an acre over last year, according to USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service. The Land Values 2024 Summary report, released on August 2, shows a 5% increase to an average $4,170 per acre. This follows a 6.7%, or $250, increase between 2022 and 2023 and marks the fourth consecutive increase in agricultural land values. Cash rent values for cropland were up 3.2% to a record $160 per acre and up 3.3% to $15.50 per acre for pastureland.
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LDWF Reopens Oyster Season in Vermilion Bay
The Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission (LWFC) will reopen the oyster season in designated portions of the Public Oyster Seed Grounds in the Vermilion /Atchafalaya Bay area to allow bedding of oyster resource to private leases.
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Silent Auction To Be Held for Loose Livestock in Caddo Parish
The Caddo Parish Sheriff's Office will open a silent auction Monday for loose livestock that has been impounded by the Sheriff’s Livestock Patrol. The auction will feature three horses: a mare, a gelding and a stud. The owners of the horses could not be located.
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Chairman Vows To Overrule CBO on Question of Overspending in GOP Farm Bill
The Republican-written House farm bill is $33 billion over budget and fails to pay for its large increase in crop subsidies, said congressional scorekeepers in an official cost estimate. House Agriculture chairman Glenn Thompson, who brushed aside earlier warnings about over-spending, said if the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office won’t change its mind, he would rely on the House Budget Committee to overrule the CBO.
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Boston-Area Chef Wins Great American Seafood Cookoff Held in New Orleans
Erin Miller of Urban Hearth of Massachusetts has won this year's Great American Seafood Cookoff in New Orleans.
Miller also won the competition in 2022. Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser's office announced that Erika Lipe from SoLa Oxford in Mississippi finished in second place and Rob Dumas from the University of Maine placed third.
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Learn the Facts about the Emergency Forest Restoration Program
The Emergency Forest Restoration Program (EFRP) provides technical and financial assistance to owners of nonindustrial private forestland whose forestland was damaged by a qualifying natural disaster event.
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Dicamba Update from LSU AgCenter Weed Scientists
As you are aware, the EPA existing stocks order resulting from the vacated labels of Xtendimax, Engenia, and Tavium herbicides in February of this year ended for soybean on June 30 and July 30 for cotton in Louisiana. Bayer (Xtendimax), BASF (Engenia), and Syngenta (Tavium) have each submitted proposed labels for EPA review and approval this summer 2024.
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Yes, 24-Hour Corn Vending Machines in Louisiana Are a Real Thing
Do you ever wish that you could grab corn on the go at any hour, 24-7, day or night? If you're in Louisiana, I'm here to tell you that you're in luck.
While some Louisianans are just discovering them, 24-hour corn vending machines have been around since at least 2020, providing a unique convenience for hunters and farmers alike. Mitch Rabalais recently shared a post on X (formerly Twitter) highlighting a corn vending machine in Rayville, Louisiana, bringing renewed attention to this practical solution that aligns perfectly with the state's outdoor culture.
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Agriculture Interests and Others Worry that Congress Will Punt the Wide-ranging Farm Bill Again
The schedule shows Congress will be in town for 13 days between now and the week after the Nov. 5 congressional and presidential elections.
Judging from the amount of work left, such as passing an annual federal government budget, most remaining legislation will be shunted aside, including the $1.25 trillion Farm Bill, the shorthand for H.R. 8467, the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2024.
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John Deere Speaks Publicly For The First Time About Layoffs, New Challenges In the Ag Economy
John Deere recently laid off a significant number of salaried employees as part of the company's ongoing workforce reductions. The official number of layoffs is still unknown but are part of a broader trend of workforce reductions at John Deere, which have been ongoing for several months.
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Honey Bee Colonies Across Louisiana: August 2024
This report contains the results from the Quarterly Colony Loss surveys.Honey bee colonies for operations with five or more colonies in the Delta Region on January 1, 2024 totaled 88,000 colonies. This is up 11 percent from 79,000 colonies on January 1, 2023. On April 1, 2024, honey bee operations in the Delta Region totaled 104,500 colonies. During 2023, honey bee colonies for the Delta Region on January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1 were 79,000 colonies, 131,000 colonies, 92,500 colonies, and 101,000 colonies, respectively.
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Recycle Your Denim: The Circularity Of Cotton
When you think of recycling, you likely think of things like aluminum cans, cardboard boxes, and glass bottles. But have you considered recycling denim?
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USDA Discrimination Financial Assistance Program
Discrimination Financial Assistance Program (DFAP) decisions and awards have now been made. If you applied and haven’t received an award or denial by August 6, 2024, please call the DFAP call center at 1-800-721-0970.
Deputy USDA Secretary Xochitl Torres Small told the Voice of Louisiana Agriculture Radio Network some 77-million dollars will be distributed to just over eleven hundred farmers and ranchers in Louisiana who applied for the program.
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