National

House needs to go big to address climate crisis

The visceral threats of the climate crisis, experienced through recent Midwest floods and California’s wildfi

A call for climate-focused agriculture policy

This blog was originally posted by the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition on November 18, 2019. 

Minnesota's fertilizer law: Cleaner water, fewer emissions

In the coming weeks, Minnesota is expected to adopt new regulations for agricultural fertilizer use designed to limit water pollution, a move that could also have climate benefits.

When climate goals and trade rules collide

Countries are increasingly advancing proposals to address climate concerns within new and existing trade agreements. Most modern trade agreements, and governing bodies like the World Trade Organization, were negotiated with little or no acknowledgement of the climate crisis.

Latest agriculture emissions data show rise of factory farms

New data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) shows a steady increase in agriculture-related greenhouse gas emissions, much of it linked to industrial systems of crop production and the rise of factory farm systems of animal production. The annually updated GHG data is designed to track U.S.

Bold and urgent Green New Deal may change Washington's climate change inertia

The following was first published in The Hill on January 31, 2019.

The U.S. Climate Alliance: Slow to act on agriculture

After the Trump administration announced plans to withdraw from the Paris Climate Accord, the governors of 18 states and Puerto Rico formed the U.S. Climate Alliance (Illinois and New Mexico joined in January).

Senator Warren's push for climate risk disclosure

Just prior to the new year, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) threw her hat into what is expected to be a crowded 2020 presidential race.

Factory farms slip environmental review for USDA loans

In August 2016, the Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency quietly announced a major change regarding its loan program for medium-sized Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs). The agency would no longer require an environmental review under the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA) prior to the approval of such loans.