DTN writer Todd Neeley reported last week that, “Agriculture interest groups and companies have filed a motion to intervene in a federal lawsuit that challenges EPA’s interim registration of the herbicide glyphosate.

“In a motion filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco on [April 20], the ag groups said intervention is needed because the industry stands to lose an important tool to combat weeds.

“‘Growers rate weed control as their number one crop production challenge — more significant than pests, diseases, frosts, and many other kinds of growing impediments,’ the motion said.”

Mr. Neeley noted that, “In the motion to intervene, the ag groups said combating weeds without glyphosate could be costly.

“‘As the National Cotton Council has explained, weeds can reduce yields by an average of 30%,’ the motion said.”

The DTN article added that, “The court filings are just another development in a series of complicated legal battles over glyphosate, which has pitted EPA and the chemical’s registrant, Bayer, against environmentalists and consumers.”

Reuters writer Lawrence Hurley reported yesterday that, “The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday rejected arguments by President Donald Trump’s administration seeking to limit the reach of a landmark water pollution law in a Hawaii dispute over wastewater indirectly discharged into the Pacific Ocean – a ruling hailed by environmentalists.

“The case involves whether Hawaii’s Maui County can be sued by environmentalists for allowing discharges from a sewage facility to reach the Pacific without a federal permit under the Clean Water Act. The wastewater was not directly discharged into the Pacific but rather into groundwater that ended up in the ocean.

“The justices in a 6-3 decision threw out a 2018 ruling by the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that had allowed the lawsuit by the Hawaii Wildlife Fund and other environmental groups to proceed, saying it was too broad. They sent the case back to the 9th Circuit to apply a new test to decide whether the lawsuit can move forward, leaving the door open for the litigation to proceed.”

The article stated that, “‘It’s a huge victory for environmentalists,’ said David Henkin, a lawyer with environmental group Earthjustice who argued the case for the challengers.

“Henkin voiced confidence that Maui County ultimately will be required to obtain a permit.

“The Supreme Court adopted a middle ground, saying permits can be required under the Clean Water Act when the discharge into groundwater is the ‘functional equivalent’ of the discharge from a pipe or other ‘point source.'”

“The new interpretation would allow environmentalists to file lawsuits in certain circumstances when water is discharged into groundwater, an outcome Trump’s administration opposed. The administration, which has rolled back numerous environmental regulations, sided with the county in the case,” the Reuters article said.

A news release yesterday from USDA’s Farm Service Agency stated that, “Producers signed a record 1.77 million contracts for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs for the 2019 crop year, which is more than 107 percent of the total contracts signed compared with a 5-year average. USDA also reminds producers that June 30 is the deadline to enroll in ARC and PLC for the 2020 crop year.

“‘Producers for several years have experienced low commodity prices, a volatile trade environment and catastrophic natural disasters,’ said Richard Fordyce, Administrator of USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA). ‘Farmers looking to mitigate these risks recognize that ARC and PLC provide the financial protections they need to weather substantial drops in crop prices or revenues.’

“Producers interested in enrolling for 2020 should contact their FSA county office. Producers must enroll by June 30 and make their one-time update to PLC payment yields by September 30.”

The FSA update noted that, “USDA Service Centers, including FSA county offices, are open for business by phone only, and field work will continue with appropriate social distancing. While program delivery staff will continue to come into the office, they will be working with producers by phone and using online tools whenever possible. All Service Center visitors wishing to conduct business with the FSA, Natural Resources Conservation Service or any other Service Center agency are required to call their Service Center to schedule a phone appointment. More information can be found at farmers.gov/coronavirus.

“For more information on ARC and PLC, download the program fact sheet or the 2014-2018 farm bills comparison fact sheet. Online ARC and PLC election decision tools are available at www.fsa.usda.gov/arc-plc. To locate the nearest USDA Service Center, visit farmers.gov/service-center-locator.”

Reuters writer Lianne Back reported today that, “A mechanical hum replaced the buzzing of the bees in one Israeli community this season as farmers, concerned over the global drop in bee populations, tried out a new method of pollinating their crops.

“Through an almond orchard in the area of Tel Arad in a desert plain in southern Israel, a tractor pulled a mast equipped with about a dozen small cannon that fired precise shots of pollen at the trees, enabling them to fertilize.

Bloomberg writer Josh Eidelson reported today that, “Unions representing U.S. farmworkers, many of whom are immigrants, are escalating their push for safer working conditions during the coronavirus pandemic.

“The United Farm Workers and Familias Unidas por la Justicia sued Washington state on Thursday, accusing regulators of failing to do enough to protect workers from exposure to the contagion.

“Food producers from farms to processing plants are grappling with the need to keep people fed while safeguarding their workers. They also have to comply with broader containment efforts such as travel restrictions that squeeze the supply of migrant workers they count on. Washington is the top apple-producing state and a major supplier of staples including wheat, potatoes and dairy.”

The Bloomberg article noted that, “The state’s governor, Jay Inslee, a Democrat, has pledged strong support for farmworkers and immigrant communities during the pandemic.”

New York Times writer Kim Severson reported earlier this month that, “Zaid Kurdieh has so many fava beans growing at his farm in upstate New York that he could send 4,000 pounds a week to the best chefs in New York City. In Kentucky, Robert Eversole and Thomas Sargent planted enough winter greens to fill the all the salad bars at the University of Kentucky and still have enough left over to feed fans at the state’s two major spring horse races.”

The Times article stated that, “So these small farmers, like many others across the country who spent decades building a local, sustainable agricultural system, are staring at their fields and wondering what to do now that the table has been kicked out from under the modern farm-to-table movement.”

Ms. Severson indicated that, “Farm-to-table — the term has become a fixture in the culinary lexicon — started in the 1970s, when Chez Panisse and a handful of other restaurants hatched what then seemed like a radical notion: Build menus from food grown by nearby farmers who are thoughtful about everything from the seeds they select and the soil they grow them in to the communities they feed.

“That idea grew into a pipeline connecting farmers, ranchers and chefs that in 2019 had generated $12 billion in income for small-scale producers including cheesemakers and vintners. Governments, hospitals and schools have come to see the value in buying locally grown food. No Silicon Valley tech company worth its stock price would dare to design a cafeteria without local food.

“Since the pandemic hit, that conduit has shut down. The loss in sales could run as high as $689 million, with much higher costs in jobs and other businesses that make up the farm-to-table economic ecosystem, according to a report compiled in March by the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition.”