By Diana Donlon A handful of states around the country have begun to recognize the importance of carbon farming as an expedient tool to fight climate change. What’s carbon farming? Eric Toensmeier, author of The Carbon Farming Solution, describes it as “a suite of crops and agricultural practices that sequester carbon in the soil and […]
A federal court has ruled that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) systematically violated the Endangered Species Act—a key wildlife protection law—when it approved bee-killing insecticides known as neonicotinoids. In a case ongoing for the last four years, brought by beekeepers, wildlife conservation groups and food safety and consumer advocates, Judge Maxine Chesney of the […]
The recently passed Congressional budget that averted government shutdown will allocate $3 million to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to promote “the environmental, nutritional, food safety, economic and humanitarian impacts” of biotech crops and genetically modified (GMO) ingredients in food to consumers—many of whom are wary of […]
The DC Circuit Court ordered the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Tuesday to close a loophole that has allowed hazardous substances released into the environment by concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) to go unreported. “We applaud the DC Circuit Court’s clear decision to enforce this vital environmental safeguard to protect public safety,” said Earthjustice attorney […]
Farmers, conservation groups and food and farm justice organizations stood up today to protest against the contamination of rural communities, our food supply and the environment by filing a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration. The groups are suing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under new administrator Scott Pruitt for approving Dow AgroScience’s Enlist […]
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a final deregulation decision Wednesday approving Monsanto and Scotts’ genetically engineered (GE) bentgrass, even as the highly invasive creeping grass continues to spread unchecked beyond its Oregon and Idaho test plots. Roundup Ready GMO Grass Coming to a Lawn Near You? – EcoWatch https://t.co/aullaF55p2 @NonGMOProject @gmo917 — EcoWatch […]
Next week, Monsanto and California’s Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) will face off over the agency’s plan to list the herbicide glyphosate as a carcinogen. The outcome of this legal battle could have major ramifications to California’s long-established regulatory program. It all started back in Sept. 2015 when the OEHHA […]
By Reynard Loki Editor’s note: The terms GE (genetic engineering) and GMO (genetically modified organism) are often used interchangeably, but their meanings are different. GMOs, which are produced when plant breeders select genetic traits that may also occur naturally, have been around for centuries. Common examples are seedless watermelons and modern broccoli. The subject of […]
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released a final environmental impact statement Wednesday giving the green light to genetically engineered (GE) creeping bentgrass, a highly invasive grass genetically engineered by Monsanto and Scotts to withstand what would normally be a fatal dose of the herbicide glyphosate. Decades-old outdoor experiments have proven the novel grass impossible to […]