UN climate report: Change land use to avoid a hungry future [Associated Press]
Human-caused climate change is dramatically degrading the Earth’s land and the way people use the land is making global warming worse, a new United Nations scientific report says. That creates a vicious cycle which is already making food more expensive, scarcer and less nutritious….But if people change the way they eat, grow food and manage forests, it could help save the planet from a far warmer future, scientists said.
https://www.apnews.com/afb6990efd7c437da19c6d4d9976899c
US-China trade war is hurting farmers, but they’re sticking with Trump [CNBC]
…Farmers are one of the most visible casualties of the U.S.-China trade war,…Yet farmers appear to be sticking by Trump — not just the Republican they largely supported in the 2016 election, but the trade warrior who has put their industries in China’s sights. And while they’re far from the largest group in Trump’s corner, farmers could prove to be a crucial voting bloc in the 2020 election. The Purdue Center for Commercial Agriculture’s latest producer survey, which was conducted last month and released Tuesday, showed a record-high 78% of farmers said they believe the trade war will ultimately benefit U.S. agriculture.
2020 Democrats target Trump gains in rural areas [Associated Press]
… Democratic presidential candidates are trying to prove they can gain ground in rural areas that swung to President Donald Trump. On Wednesday alone, three White House hopefuls — Elizabeth Warren, Kirsten Gillibrand and Amy Klobuchar — offered sweeping proposals that touch on everything from farm subsidies to rural broadband and health care….There’s considerable overlap within the field on the broad foundations for helping less-populous areas of the country. Nearly every candidate with a plan has endorsed stepping up antitrust enforcement against major agriculture monopolies, incentivizing farmers to engage in more environmentally friendly practices, renegotiating trade deals to be more favorable for farmers and investments in rural broadband.
https://www.apnews.com/67111b75b34043deaad1e89fd9eb0a5b
Swamp rats have invaded California. A Central Valley Democrat is declaring war [Los Angeles Times]
…With the August congressional recess in full swing, Harder and other vulnerable California freshmen are back in their districts highlighting local issues that they hope will help them court their constituents and avoid partisan bickering in Washington….For his part, Harder has focused much of his first year in office on local issues such as water storage and the effects of almond tariffs on Central Valley farmers. Now he is training his attention on the nutria, a semi-aquatic rodent that has drawn the ire of environmentalists, farmers and local officials alike.
California goes to the rats [Wall Street Journal]
Rising homelessness in California has spurred a rodent boom and resurgence of medieval disease. So naturally Democrats in the state Legislature want to ban rat poison….it’s not clear rodent poison is killing predator species. But it is clear that rodents carry diseases that are making Californians seriously ill….Low-income folks who live near homeless populations as usual will suffer the greatest harm from the rat-poison ban. If only there were an antidote to California’s toxic progressive politics.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/california-goes-to-the-rats-11565216091
Wild bee die-offs at center of new research [Point Reyes Light]
The plight of honey bees has received nationwide attention for the past decade, as conventional agricultural practices, a changing climate and habitat loss have decimated their numbers. Yet the spotlight has largely passed over thousands of native bee species, whose populations have also declined. For Nina Sokolov, a Ph.D. candidate from the University of California, Berkeley, the survival of native bees, which contribute an estimated $3 million a year in pollination services for crop production in the United States, is equally important….Speaking to the Marin County Farm Bureau, Ms. Sokolov underscored the importance of her research: last winter, an estimated 37.7 percent of the managed honey bee colonies in the United States were lost, representing the highest level of losses reported since the Department of Agriculture began surveying in 2006.
https://www.ptreyeslight.com/article/wild-bee-die-offs-center-new-research
