Biofuels producers, farmers not sold on switch to electric [Associated Press]
The president and auto industry maintain the nation is on the cusp of a gigantic shift to electric vehicles and away from liquid-fueled cars, but biofuels producers and some of their supporters in Congress aren’t buying it. They argue that now is the time to increase sales of ethanol and biodiesel, not abandon them….Each year, U.S. refineries produce about 15 billion gallons of ethanol — about 10% the volume of gasoline — and 1.5 billion gallons of biodiesel, which is typically blended with petroleum-based diesel for trucks and other heavy vehicles. Plants around the country produce the fuel, but most are in the Midwest, led by Iowa with 43 ethanol refineries and 11 biodiesel plants. Nearly 40% of the U.S. corn crop is used for ethanol, and 30% of soybeans goes to biodiesel….Sen. Charles Grassley said last fall that a proposal by Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon and Rep. Mike Levin of California to end U.S. sales of gas-powered vehicles by 2035 would devastate Iowa. “This … would absolutely destroy Iowa’s economy because it’s so dependent on agriculture and agriculture is so dependent on biofuels,” Grassley said.
Thousands of meatpacking workers have been vaccinated, but the industry’s crisis continues [USA Today]
One year after COVID-19 infiltrated the meatpacking industry and sparked nationwide plant closures, meat-shortage fears and an executive order to keep production lines going, frontline workers continue to face risk….The industry is especially vulnerable to the coronavirus because the same features that allow a steady churn of cheap meat also provide the perfect breeding ground for airborne diseases: a cramped workplace, a culture of underreporting illnesses, and a cadre of rural, immigrant and undocumented workers who often live and work together because few other jobs are available….”As the pandemic continues, America’s essential food workers continue to face daily COVID risks on the frontlines in meatpacking and food processing plants across the country,” said Marc Perone, the president of the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, in a press release. The UFCW represents many meatpacking workers.
Local lawmakers call on governor to declare drought emergency [Bakersfield Californian]
Kern County lawmakers joined local farmers Wednesday in calling on Gov. Gavin Newsom to declare a drought emergency that would trigger new flexibility in how California’s limited water supply is moved around the state….Local farmers and water managers argue that if the situation isn’t urgent then the state shouldn’t have cut SWP water allocations last month to 5 percent, which is the same level allowed in 2014. The only time it has been set lower than that was in 1991, when the allocation was set at zero. “The question is, why are we at a 5-percent allocation, because … the hydrology this year is not as bad as it was in 2014,” said Jason Gianquinto, general manager of the Semitropic Water Storage District, which supplies local farmers and operates a water-banking program in northern-central Kern.
Local lawmakers call on governor to declare drought emergency | News | bakersfield.com
Commentary: California needs comprehensive groundwater management [CalMatters]
While California’s landmark Sustainable Groundwater Management Act promised comprehensive protection of the state’s groundwater, significant gaps remain in its coverage. The Department of Water Resources now has an opportunity to reduce or eliminate those gaps and should seize the moment. We know all Californians will experience another year of water shortages and warmer, drier conditions that will require conservation and which are likely to fuel destructive wildfires in our forests and around our communities. We are all in this together. Groundwater is critical for California, particularly in dry years when it provides up to 60% of the water supply for farms and people. But a recent Stanford Water in the West publication, “Mind the Gaps: The Case for Truly Comprehensive Sustainable Groundwater Management,” finds that the groundwater management act currently protects less than 2% of our groundwater. While it covers those groundwater basins where the vast majority of pumping occurs today, it does not protect many important groundwater sources. This leaves the majority of our groundwater at risk of over-pumping, now and in the future, with no state oversight to safeguard rural domestic wells, sensitive habitats and other beneficial uses of water.
California needs comprehensive groundwater management | CalMatters
Opinion: Mega drought: As goes Anasazi civilization, so goes California? [Manteca/Ripon Bulletin]
The Anasazi civilization, or the Ancient Ones, by all accounts was incredibly advanced. It prospered for 11 centuries in what are now large swaths of Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado as well as a portion of Northern Mexico. They had food year round thanks to irrigation advancements unmatched at the time by any civilization in the Americas….So what happened to the Anasazi? Some researches contend political divisiveness and a growing rift between the rich and poor contributed to its downfall. But the biggest factor was what was considered one of the last mega droughts to ravish what is now the Southwestern United States….Keep in mind almost all of California, climate wise, is part of the Southwest….The Bureau of Reclamation will not be delivering water to farmers this year. The State Water Project has indicated those farm interests with contracts will likely not get more than 5 to 10 percent of what they normally need, if that. The level of groundwater hasn’t recovered in most parts of the state after taking a severe hit from the last drought that ran from 2012 to 2016. Subsidence — where land sinks and compacts when aquifers collapse after being drained — continues to grow as a problem in many parts of the San Joaquin Valley.
Mega drought: As goes Anasazi civilization, so goes California? (mantecabulletin.com)
How a surprising Newsom veto threw California’s garbage, building industries into chaos [Sacramento Bee]
…Last fall, Newsom vetoed Senate Bill 68, which would have allowed landfills to continue accepting hundreds of thousands of tons of “treated wood waste” — the remnants of railroad ties, decking materials, agricultural stakes and other wooden material that had been pre-treated with industrial chemicals to withstand the elements….Contractors, haulers and the lumber industry initially had no idea what to do with the material that needs to get tossed after nearly every backyard remodel, agricultural clean up, highway project and housing teardown…. The logjam has been eased somewhat. The state Department of Toxic Substances Control developed an emergency “variance” allowing landfills to resume taking the treated wood debris. As of this week, at least 47 landfills across the state have received variance waivers, and many of those have started accepting the wood again in the past few weeks.
https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/article250504699.html
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