Tag: farmers
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How About That Water Quality? Ocean Acidification
Talking about water quality isn’t most people’s idea of the ideal ice breaker. In the Lowcountry (loosely defined as coastal South Carolina and Georgia), folks typically find common ground discussing the region’s warm weather, great food, vibrant culture and remarkable history. But water quality is quickly becoming the talk of the town as locals are…
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Farmers drawing groundwater from Ogallala Aquifer faster than nature replaces it
Every summer the U.S. Central Plains go dry, leading farmers to tap into groundwater to irrigate sorghum, soy, cotton, wheat and corn and maintain large herds of cattle and hogs. As the heat rises, anxious irrigators gather to discuss whether and how they should adopt more stringent conservation measures. They know that if they do…
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Farmers Face Tough Choice On Controversial Weedkiller
Photo: Farmers attend Dicamba training in Cadiz, Kentucky. Nicole Erwin | Ohio Valley ReSource Jeff McGrew stood in line with about 30 other west Kentucky farmers awaiting certification that they’ve been trained to apply the herbicide Dicamba. The two hour session explained the Environmental Protection Agency’s new restrictions on use of the controversial herbicide. The…
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To Save Their Water Supply, Colorado Farmers Taxed Themselves
A sign advertising a water sale sits on a farm outside Del Norte, Colorado. The Western U.S. is just starting to recover after a prolonged, 16-year drought. A lack of water can force people to take a hard look at how they use it, and make big changes. That’s what happened in southern Colorado, where…
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Attack of the Killer Algae
Photo: Algal bloom on Lake Erie A roving pack of journalists shake off the rain in a squat, one-story federal building in Oak Harbor, Ohio. Hosting us journalists is a troop from the US Department of Agriculture. Beyond working with farmers, most are farmers themselves. But unlike many of their agricultural colleagues, these men embrace…
