House gives final approval to SB 52

The Colorado House of Representatives approved a bill aimed at providing certainty for water wells pumping in designated ground water basins.  CFB supported SB 52, which was sponsored by Senator Greg Brophy and Representative Kathleen Curry.  The bill clarifies legislative intent of the 1965 Ground Water Management Act creating designated groundwater basins, by providing that once final well permits are issued, the permits cannot be revoked if designated basin boundaries change.  The bill was passed unanimously out of the Senate but ran into opposition in the House over concerns that senior surface water rights would be harmed.  This is not the case because SB 52 focuses on the 8 designated ground water basins in Colorado, and does not affect any other water well in the State. 

In 1965, the General Assembly adopted the Ground Water Management Act and provided for the formation of designated ground water basins.  Designated basins are formed only after full hearings are held and objections are heard.  Once the designated basin is formed, ground water rights are determined and administered by the Colorado Ground Water Commission and local ground water management districts.  Unlike the alluvial wells along the South Platte and Arkansas Rivers, this process legally removes the wells in designated basins from Water Court process and the priority administration of surface water and tributary ground water.  This is because there are not many surface rights in designated basins.  Designated ground water by definition in state statute is that water “not required for fulfillment of surface rights or ground water in areas not adjacent to continuously flowing streams where groundwater constituted the principal water use for at least 15 years.” 

Currently, there are more than 7000 high capacity wells found in the designated basins.  Most are used for agricultural irrigation, with some being used for municipal and industrial purposes in primarily rural areas.  In 2006, the Colorado Supreme Court decided Gallegos v. Ground Water Commission, 147 P.3d 20 (Colo. 2006).  Forty years after most of the designated ground water basins were formed, the Colorado Supreme Court concluded that under the current statute, designation of basins is never really final because the Ground Water Commission may be obligated to revise the boundaries of a basin to exclude wells from the basin.  The court acknowledged that there should be some cutoff time when the boundaries of a designated basin are final, however, decided that the current statute did not provide for such finality. 

SB 52 clarifies the General Assembly’s intent that there should be a cutoff date for challenging designation, and that landowners with well permits issued after inclusion in a designated basin can rely on those permits and not be excluded from the basin in the future.   

Colorado Farm Bureau supported SB 52, and would like to thank the sponsors, Rep. Curry and Sen. Brophy for their work on this issue.  We would also like to thank Rep. Sonnenberg and Rep. Cory Gardner for their support and their work to answer the many questions about the bill.

Executive Order Looms

President Obama signs an executive order early in his term.

The New York Times has reported on the President’s future plans to use his executive order power in the face of stiff opposition to his legislative agenda. The report gives credence to the recently revealed administration plan to roll millions of acres into federal monument status, effectively closing it off to multiple uses and development.

Recreational groups have also raised concerns about environmental groups pressuring the White House to unilaterally ban fishing in some coastal, ocean and even inland waters.

We will have to watch this closely and see where it goes… Stay tuned.

The New York Times has reported on the President’s future plans to use his executive order power in the face of stiff opposition to his legislative agenda. The report gives credence to the recently revealed administration plan to roll millions of acres into federal monument status, effectively closing it off to multiple uses and development.

Recreational groups have also raised concerns about environmental groups pressuring the White House to unilaterally ban fishing in some costal, ocean and even inland waters.

We will have to watch this closely and see where it goes… Stay tuned.

FAPRI: Livestock Can Lead to Higher Net Farm Income

The livestock sector can lead the agricultural economy to higher net farm income, assuming the farm economy benefits from a recovering general U.S. economy.

That analysis tops a 2010 baseline report prepared by the University of Missouri Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI). The 66-page report was delivered to Congress on Tuesday. The 10-year baseline shows economic possibilities for livestock, crop and biofuels under certain assumptions.

“If jobs—and consumers—return, the agricultural sector will benefit,” said Pat Westhoff, co-director of FAPRI. “Higher incomes increase the demand for food, feed, fiber and fuel, supporting farm commodity prices.”

Projected net farm income increases the next two years largely because of stronger livestock prices. “The recovery would mark a major change in direction for the farm economy after a dismal 2009, but 2010 farm income recovers only a third of the ground lost in 2009,” Westhoff said. Net farm income fell by more than $30 billion in 2009, as sharp declines in cash receipts were not offset by modest drops in production costs.

(Image: dgroth)

EPA Continues Strong Push to Regulate Greenhouse Gases

The Environmental Protection Agency continues its push to regulate greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act, while opposition in Congress to the plan continues to ramp up.

Speaking at the National Press Club in Washington on Monday, Lisa Jackson, EPA administrator, said delaying action on climate change regulations would be bad for the economy. Jackson criticized efforts by Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and others to stop EPA from regulating greenhouse gases. Jackson said Congress should focus on drafting a climate bill, instead of suspending the rules.

“I really think the energy of the Senate on this issue would be wonderful if it would be put toward new legislation to do something,” she said.

AFBF strongly supports legislation introduced by Murkowski and other members of Congress to stop EPA from regulating greenhouse gases without congressional approval.

U.S. – Mexican Trucking Dispute Continues

Mexican trucks prepare to cross the border into the U.S last summer.

Today marks the first anniversary of an ongoing trade dispute with Mexico. The dispute began when Congress terminated funding for the U.S.-Mexico cross-border trucking pilot program in the FY2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act-a move which failed to meet U.S. commitments under NAFTA, and prompted Mexico to impose damaging retaliatory tariffs on U.S. agriculture and manufacturing goods.

“This dispute has been going on for far too long,” said Steve Foglesong, president, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. “It’s time for the Administration to take action before the critical relationship with our top trading partner is further compromised, putting agriculture exports and imports, and American jobs, at risk.”

Although Congress addressed the issue by removing the prohibition on the trucking program within FY10 appropriations, the Administration has yet to make progress with Mexico in removing the tariffs. Last summer, paid lip service to fixing the problem, and it looked as though the administration had completed a review of a proposed policy fix, but that plan has yet to be implemented. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce estimates as many as 25,000.U.S. jobs could be lost as a result of the impasse.

Delta Electric Co-Op Quits CREA

The Delta-Montrose Electric Association (DMEA) has pulled out of the Colorado Rural Electric Association (CREA) in retaliation for its support of HB 1098, which provides for additional election oversight of rural electric co-ops.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Claire Levy (D-Boulder) mandates that co-ops adopt and post an election policy online, give advance notice of election dates and ballot mailings and reveal campaign contributions by co-op employees. It was introduced due to claims from green candidates that elections were stacked in favor of longtime board members and those dedicated to traditional sources of energy.

The Primitive Food Movement

The New York Times economics blog, Freakonomics, (which follows the methodology of the best selling book by the same name) has outlined what it calls the ‘Primitive Food Movement’ in a recent post.

Americans are currently embracing a strange sort of primitivism… This trend appears to be a unique response to a declension narrative that goes something like this: Americans once lived on small farms, ate locally produced food, did not poison the soil with chemicals, and always knew from whence their food came…

Current calls for dietary simplicity might have a revolutionary ring to them. But what’s overlooked in all the enthusiasm is this: Americans have always idealized, or at least harkened back to, an agricultural era when production was supposedly simpler, closer to the land, and unadulterated by the complexities of modernization.

According to the author, calls for ‘simple food’ were taking place during the Civil war and earlier.

After years of approximating the increasingly luxuriant habits of Empire, early Americans reacted to independence by playing up their status as rough-hewn frontiersmen and self-sufficient survivalists. In terms of food, this self-identification meant rejecting luxury for—you got it—the primitive simplicity of the first European settlers.

Consider taking a minute to read the post in its entirety. And don’t forget to take a look a the comments to the article at the bottom of the page.

(Image: windy_sydney)

Vilsack Announces New Trade Strategy

Facing rising criticism from many legislators on the hill who are frustrated by the lack of action on several Free Trade Agreements, the Obama administration is gearing up for what it calls, a “new strategy” on trade.

In an address to the 2010 Commodity Classic in Anaheim last week, Sec. Tom Vilsack told the assembled producers that his department understands that every market is not the same and that the administration will be doing all it can to approach each market on its own.

“This market strategy reflects the understanding of the sophistication that now takes place in trade – one size does not fit all. And, it’s important for us to tailor our approach in trade to the individual market conditions that we find and we’re prepared to do that.”

Vilsack deflected criticism from former Secretary of Ag Mike Johanns, who told AgriTalk last week that the Obama administration has not done enough to open up expanded trade with Japan. Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley this week criticized the administration’s “apparent lack of urgency” in resolving outstanding issues with current FTA’s up for consideration.

(Image: ZimmComm)

Gulf ‘Dead Zone’ Shrinks

Is Ag taking the blame for someone else’s problem?

The 'dead zone'

Sally Schuff over at Feedstuffs takes a good hard look at one of the sticks the enviros are using to beat farmers and ranchers over the head with. The Gulf of Mexico ‘dead zone’ unexpectedly shrank last year, prompting some to call for additional studies as to the cause of the hypoxia zone.

Last summer, scientists who study the so-called “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico were startled to find that the area had shrunk to 3,000 square miles — just half of the zone’s average size and far below the 7,500-8,500 square miles forecasted for 2009.

National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration scientists theorized that the unexpected shrinkage of the hypoxic zone was due to the year’s weather conditions, but they were curious enough to call for additional study. Measurements of the dead zone will continue this year.

The finding did not surprise the Missouri Water Quality Commission, which had successfully kept the Army Corps of Engineers from dumping phosphorus-laden sediments into the Missouri River since early 2008. The Missouri River is a major tributary to the Gulf.

Others are now joining in the call for a study to determine if agriculture is simply taking the blame for nutrient loading in the nation’s waterways when the nutrients are actually coming from other sources.

Since part of the upper Missouri River watershed is in North Dakota, state agriculture commissioner Doug Goehring said in a January statement that Missouri’s problems with the Corps have “serious implications for North Dakota and for American agriculture.”

(Image: www.howstuffworks.com)

Ag Safety Awareness Week

Across the country, Farm Bureaus are making safety a top priority this spring through the Agricultural Safety Awareness Program. As a part of ASAP, March 7-13 has been designated as Agricultural Safety Awareness Week.

This year’s theme, “Growing the Most Important Crop,” emphasizes making farms and ranches safer for farmers, their family members and employees with special emphasis on children.

People of all ages, but particularly children, are at risk of injuries on the farm. Educating adults about reducing risks to the children in their care is critical to preventing farm and ranch incidents and fatalities.

“Too many children are injured or hurt each year,” said Richard Connell, safety and health coordinator for Colorado Farm Bureau. “We hope that our participation in this program, will help us teach farmers and their families how to be safe and protect their children on the farm.”

According to the American Farm Bureau Federation, 100 children die in farmaccidents every year in the U.S. and many others are injured, often seriously.

CFB Regional Manager Tony Hass demonstrates the dangers of an operating PTO shaft.

That’s why during Ag Safety Awareness Week and throughout the year, state Farm Bureaus are focused on making farms and ranches safer for farmers, their family members and employees.

“We strive to educate as many people as we can, about as many topics as we can each year,” Connell said. “The CFB Safety and Health trailers have really helped our organization bring the safety message to rural Colorado.”

The CFB Safety Trailers attend events around Colorado in which children and adults are shown critical farm and ranch safety and health demonstrations. The hand-on nature of the demonstrations is the best way to ensure that a safety message will be remembered according to Connell.

The annual Ag Safety Awareness Week also recognizes the rich tradition of our farming and ranching culture in producing the safest and most abundant food in the world.

A ‘W’ for Western Civilization

Voters in Switzerland this weekend roundly rejected a proposal that would have provided abused animals with defense lawyers. The rejection was a disappointment for animal advocates in Switzerland, a country that currently has the worlds strictest animal care laws on the books. According to the AP…

Tiana Angelina Moser, a lawmaker for the Green Liberal Party, said animal rights advocates would look for other ways to make sure laws against animal abuse are properly applied and those who hurt animals receive appropriate punishment.

“It’s definitely disappointing, I thought it would have been a closer vote,” said Moser. “I don’t think it’s a ‘no’ to animal protection, but a ‘no’ for this particular measure.”

The country’s 160-page animal protection law states exactly how much space owners must give Mongolian gerbils (233 square inches) and what water temperature is required for African clawed frogs (18-22 degrees Celsius; 64-72 degrees Fahrenheit)

It is quite sad that such a proposal made it to the ballot box in the first place, but we think the outcome is worth breathing a sigh of relief over.

For FTA’s, Capitol Hill a Quagmire

Agricultural interests continue to express frustration with the lack of progress on pending free trade agreements (FTAs) with Columbia, Panama and South Korea.  Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley this week criticized the administration’s “apparent lack of urgency” in resolving outstanding issues with those countries.

An official of USDA’s Foreign Ag Service, deputy undersecretary Darci Vetter, spoke at an ag conference in Nebraska Thursday.  Vetter agrees the FTAs would be very beneficial to agriculture.  But in each case, she says there are other issues involved—tax evasion issues in Panama, labor violence in Columbia and automobiles in South Korea.

In a guest editorial in The Hill, a leading Congressional newspaper, American Meat Institute president J. Patrick Boyle urged Congress to pass the agreements.  He says rising meat consumption in other countries is a great opportunity for the U.S.—but in his words, “if the U.S. is not there to fill their plates, other major exporting nations will.”

Legislative Briefs…

SB 165 moves quickly through legislative process.

SB 165 specifies that no water well permit will be required for the use of nontributary/non-CBM water produced from oil & gas wells if that water is being used by oil & gas operators within the geologic basin where the groundwater is removed to facilitate or permit the mining of minerals.  Language was added in the House to specify that permitting determinations pursuant to this bill neither confer a water right nor preclude determination of a water right by the water court.

The bill also extends the well permitting and substitute water supply plan compliance deadlines established in HB09-1303 from March 31, 2010 to August 1, 2010 in order to give the State Engineer time to process all of the permits that are expected to be submitted.  Water well permit applications for current oil & gas wells must be submitted before April 30, 2010.  The bill has one more vote in the House before it goes back to the Senate for confirmation.

Senator Hudak, Vote NO on HB 1188

Russia Lifts Ban on U.S. Pork

Russia and the United States have reached an agreement paving the way for shipments of U.S. pork products to resume, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said Friday.

USDA and the U.S. Trade Representative’s office have been in negotiations with the Russian Veterinary Service since December 2009, when Russia notified USDA it would restrict pork shipments from 13 U.S. pork plants that accounted for more than 90 percent of U.S. pork exports to Russia.

The talks resulted in development of a new veterinary certificate to ensure U.S. pork exports meet specific Russian microbiological and tetracycline-group antibiotic residue requirements, USDA said.

No Endangered Status for Sage-Grouse

The Greater Sage-Grouse

The U.S. fish and Wildlife Service today issued its finding on the potential listing of the Greater Sage Grouse under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The Service has determined that, based on accumulated scientific data and new peer-reviewed information and analysis, the Greater Sage-Grouse warrants the protection of the Endangered Species Act but that listing the species at this time is precluded by the need to address higher priority species first. The greater sage-grouse will be placed on the “candidate list” for future action.

According to FWS officials, the official listing of the bird is, at this time, precluded by the need to address other listings of higher priority. The “candidate” status of the species will be reviewed on an annual basis and according to officials, may be removed before any listing action can be taken.

By stopping short of listing the bird under the ESA, public lands within the birds habitat will remain open to multiple use activities including grazing, recreation and natural resources development.

The finding does not afford the species protection under the ESA and states will still be responsible for managing the bird’s populations as they see fit. The finding makes note of the fact that Sage Grouse population remains large enough and is spread across a large enough range that the “immediate threat of extinction is low.”

“This development has provided important benefits, but we must find common-sense ways of protecting, restoring, and reconnecting the Western lands that are most important to the species’ survival while responsibly developing much-needed energy resources,” said Interior Secratary Ken Salazar.

Senator Schwartz, Vote NO on HB 1188

Leaked Memo Uncovers Obama Administration Land Grab

Colorado is on the front lines of federal land acquisition, fighting to keep the federal government out of our backyard on multiple fronts.

Senator Jim DeMint took to the pages of the Washington Post this morning to raise the alarm about a planned, 10 million acre Western land grab by the Obama administration.

A secret administration memo has surfaced revealing plans for the federal government to seize more than 10 million acres from Montana to New Mexico, halting job- creating activities like ranching, forestry, mining and energy development. Worse, this land grab would dry up tax revenue that’s essential for funding schools, firehouses and community centers.

President Obama could enact the plans in this memo with just the stroke of a pen, without any input from the communities affected by it.

The leaked document lists 17 sites in 11 states that could be designated as national monuments through the federal Antiquities Act. Over 380,000 acres in Colorado are designated in the memo under the heading “Prospective Conservation Designation.”

Updated ‘Right to Trespass’ News Round-Up

***Update***

Bill Threatens Ag, Tourism Balance

Coloradoan- Mar 3, 2010

The Threat of Commercial Rafters

The Aspen Times- Feb 24, 2010

_________________________________________________

Guest Commentary: Why favor rafters?

Denver Post - ‎Feb 28, 2010

Stow the oars on rafting bill

Grand Junction Sentinel - ‎Feb 26, 2010‎

Impractical rafting bill threatens Colorado’s property rights

Grand Junction Sentinel - ‎Feb 26, 2010‎

OUR VIEW: Rafting is not a basic human right

Colorado Springs Gazette - ‎Feb 22, 2010‎

Legislation assails private property rights in Colorado

Ag Journal - ‎Feb 11, 2010‎

Rafting or trespassing?

Pueblo Chieftain – Feb 28, 2010

Defective

Pueblo Chieftain – Feb 22, 2010

Farm Bureau Applauds Utah House for Turning Back Trespass Bill

The Pulse – March 1, 2010

ALERT: Vote NO on HB 1188!

The Pulse – Feb 17, 2010

House Votes to Erode Private Property Rights

The Pulse – February 16, 2010

Rep. Curry, House Judiciary Committee Sell Property Rights Down the River

The Pulse – February 9, 2010

More Opposition to HB 1188

Two more op-eds were published in Colorado newspapers opposing HB 1188. Opposition to the measure has been slowly growing across the state as more and more people realize that the bill goes far beyond simply clarifying the current system of floating on Colorado’s rivers.

Larimer County Farm Bureau President Bob Bee was published in the Ft. Collins Coloradoan yesterday, writing in opposition to the proposed ‘Right to Trespass’ bill that is currently up for consideration in the Senate Judiciary committee. Another op-ed was also published in the Aspen Times calling for the measure to be killed on the grounds that it completely ignores landowners.

Bill Threatens Ag, Tourism Balance

Coloradoan- Mar 3, 2010

The Threat of Commercial Rafters

The Aspen Times- Feb 24, 2010

(Image: Zevotron)

Majority of Americans Wrongly Believe HSUS is a Pet Shelter ‘Umbrella Group’

Consumer Group Reminds Americans that Less than One Percent of Donations to HSUS Benefit Local Pet Shelters

Seventy-one percent of Americans questioned in a new opinion poll wrongly believe the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is an “umbrella group” for America’s local humane societies. Sixty-three percent incorrectly think their local “humane society” is affiliated with HSUS. And fifty-nine percent falsely believe HSUS “contributes most of its money” to local organizations that care for cats and dogs.

The poll, which sampled the opinions of 1,008 Americans, was commissioned by the nonprofit Center for Consumer Freedom (CCF) and conducted by Opinion Research Corporation (ORC) of Princeton, New Jersey.

“These numbers indicate that Americans don’t really know what the Humane Society of the United States is all about,” said CCF Director of Research David Martosko. “HSUS intentionally uses those sad dogs and cats in its TV infomercials as props in an animal rights fundraising shell game. Meanwhile, thousands of American pet shelters are underfunded and struggling.” Martosko blogs about HSUS at www.HumaneWatch.org.

According to the federal income tax return filed by HSUS for the tax year 2008, less than one-half of one percent (0.5%) of the organization’s budget consisted of grants to hands-on pet shelters. HSUS does not run a single shelter for dogs or cats anywhere, and it is not affiliated with any local “humane society” organizations.

Cap & Trade: Dead or Alive?

Reports out of Washington indicate three key senators—John Kerry, Joe Lieberman and Lindsey Graham—are actively engaged in an overhaul of climate change legislation.  And while Senator Graham has been quoted as saying that cap and trade is dead, other reports indicate the new plan won’t abandon that concept entirely.

A bill may be introduced as early as next week that will initially cover only the electric power sector. However, Reuters quotes a Senate aide as saying the public details of the plan are still “weeks away.”

Lieberman said he aims for a floor vote in late spring, after consideration of health care and financial reform. Other members of the Senate say a climate bill is not likely this year.

The bill is expected to include a tax on the carbon content of fuels, which would remove the transportation sector from proposed cap-and-trade provisions, according to the Bureau of National Affairs. The bill will likely include mandatory limits on greenhouse gas emissions.

“There’s got to be a cap because it’s all about reducing carbon emissions,” Lieberman said.

On the other side of D.C., Energy Secretary Steven Chu maintains that cap-and-trade is still alive. “It is not dead. We need a comprehensive bill. We would very much want and need it this year,” Chu told Bloomberg TV.

Guest Commentary

Colorado Must Develop Natural Resources

By Ian Bezek

Over the years, Fort Collins has developed a very dynamic economy. Originally just a hub for agriculture with an emphasis in sugar beets, Fort Collins has prospered in recent decades by moving toward high technology.

Ever since Hewlett-Packard began moving into Northern Colorado, fostering a whole new wave of technology jobs, Fort Collins has started to focus its emphasis away from agriculture and resources and more toward jobs that require the educated workforce that CSU creates.

That said, the Northern Colorado economy still does rely on agriculture and natural resources to create many jobs, and I fear we may be threatening those jobs with our unrelenting push toward clean and green industries.

Pilot Travel Centers Pulls Support for HSUS

Thanks to an outcry from those in the ag community, Pilot Travel Centers has suspended all future donations to the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). A similar event occurred earlier last month between the ag community and Yellow Tail winery.

After discovering that Pilot Travel Centers was making donations to HSUS, hundreds of farmers mobilized on Twitter to flood the brand’s Facebook page in protest.  Within 24 hours of the ag community’s outcry at the proposed donation, Pilot issues this statement…

“We sincerely regret any actions that led to the misperception of our support of this organization. Pilot Travel Centers is a strong supporter of agriculture interests in our home state of Tennessee and across the country.

“Since 2007, less than $52,000 in voluntary donations from customers and employees were collected in stores as part of an employee-driven charity event. The money went to three specific areas: rural animal veterinary care services, disaster relief and a foreclosure fund to help rescue animals left behind in homes during the foreclosure crisis.

“In order to avoid any further misunderstandings, employees will immediately cease collections of donations to HSUS. Pilot corporate has never matched a single dollar of these donations and will not support any organization that has an agenda that works against agriculture interests.”

For the second time in as many weeks, shining the spotlight of publicity on who gives money to HSUS has resulted in a change in policy by supporters of this anti-animal agriculture group. Again, the rapid dissemination of information via the social media networks has played a role and has demonstrated the power of social media in coordination with grassroots campaigns.

Vilsack Announces CRP General Signup

U.S. Dept. of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and PF President and CEO Howard Vincent at National Pheasant Fest 2010.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack received a standing ovation Saturday at Pheasant Fest in Des Moines, Iowa, when he announced a new Conservation Reserve Program general signup will occur in late spring or early summer. “I can guarantee you we will have a general signup for the first time since 2006,” he declared. “No program is as important as CRP (in controlling wind and water soil erosion).”

The new general CRP signup slated for later this year will be the first general signup since 2006. It arrives in time to address the 4.4 million acres of CRP expiring on September 30, 2010. An additional 14.2 million acres of CRP are slated to expire between 2011 and 2013.

Secretary Vilsack also signed a first ever MOU between the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, Farm Service Agency, and Pheasants Forever. The MOU establishes the framework for the three groups to work together in partnership toward common goals; specifically the implementation of Farm Bill conservation programs. The MOU facilitates the free flow of information among the groups and provides a foundation for Pheasants Forever to deliver conservation technical assistance to farmers, ranchers, and landowners.