Stanislaus water committee suggests well data be voluntary [Modesto Bee]
Hoping
not to alienate farmers, a water committee on Wednesday softened well-data
recommendations going before Stanislaus County supervisors in two weeks. Rather
than requiring that well owners provide groundwater pumping information, the
Water Advisory Committee is suggesting that people volunteer key data. Also,
the information must be obscured before sharing it publicly, the committee
agreed.…“People said we wouldn’t get anywhere and we’re getting somewhere,”
said Terry Withrow, a county supervisor guiding the committee. Wayne Zipser of
the Stanislaus County Farm Bureau, the committee’s chairman, said, “We became
united in trying to solve a problem.” He referred to fears of environmental
catastrophe from too much pumping to counter drought and to feed millions of
almond trees on the county’s northeast end.
http://www.modbee.com/2014/05/28/3361721/stanislaus-water-committee-suggests.html?sp=/99/1571/&ihp=1
Lodi-area growers
oppose California groundwater reform [Lodi News-Sentinel]
Henry
Van Exel has about a dozen groundwater wells that run as deep as 150 feet at
Exels Holsteins, his operation west of Lodi. The water is used for both
irrigation and for many of the 1,500 head of Jersey and Holstein cattle he
owns. A Woodbridge Irrigation District board member, Van Exel thinks pending
legislation focused on managing local groundwater supplies is a terrible idea.
California chicken
still linked to salmonella [Associated Press]
An
outbreak of antibiotic-resistant salmonella linked to a California chicken
producer continues to sicken people more than a year after it started. Despite
the illnesses, producer Foster Farms has not initiated a recall, and the
government has no apparent plans to shut it down. The federal Centers for
Disease Control says there were 50 new reported illnesses in the last two
months, bringing to 574 the total number of cases in the outbreak. Most of the
illnesses are in California.
Ag apps make for
'smart' farming [Imperial Valley Press]
Like
seemingly everyone else who owns a smartphone, Brawley farmer Carson Kalin uses
his phone and iPad to keep track of all kinds of information. And, during the
growing season, he uses it to make crucial irrigation decisions. “It has
completely changed how we irrigate row crops,” he said. Smartphones have
profoundly transformed the way people communicate and access information,
and now are revolutionizing the way
farmers run their operations. About three years ago, Carson and his brother, Al
Kalin, installed Hortau’s Irrolissystem in their fields. The system combines
tensiometers with cellular modems to allow farmers to review soil water tension
levels through their smartphones and tablet computers in real time.
Obama to unveil rule
to cut greenhouse gas emissions [Los Angeles Times]
President
Obama will unveil a rule Monday intended to confront climate change by cutting
carbon dioxide emissions from power plants, the nation's greatest source of the
heat-trapping gas. Obama plans to bypass Congress and use his authority under the
Clean Air Act to achieve greenhouse gas reductions. Power generation accounts
for about 40% of such emissions. The 3,000-page rule is expected to spark
lawsuits, claims of job losses and charges by critics that Obama has launched a
new "war on coal."
Ag
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