Agriculture

"Bees Facing a Poisoned Spring"

"A new generation of pesticides is making honeybees far more susceptible to disease, even at tiny doses, and may be a clue to the mysterious colony collapse disorder that has devastated bees across the world, the US government's leading bee researcher has found. Yet the discovery has remained unpublished for nearly two years since it was made by the US Department of Agriculture's Bee Research Laboratory."

Source: UK Independent, 01/20/2011

Sewage Sludge Battle Heats Up As Greens Appeal Move To Dismiss EPA Lawsuit

"A federal court’s decision to dismiss a lawsuit alleging US regulators failed to prevent widespread contamination of farmland with toxic PFAS chemicals was based on a “flawed interpretation” of the Clean Water Act, creating “dangerous real-world consequences for public health,” a watchdog group argued in a new court filing."

Source: The New Lede, 03/20/2026

Iran War Has US Farmers Worried About Cost And Availability Of Fertilizer

"Tennessee farmer Todd Littleton expects to pay $100,000 more for fertilizer this season, a 40% spike from his bill last year thanks to the war in Iran — and he is scrambling to cover that extra cost."

Source: AP, 03/19/2026

EPA Rolled Back Mercury Regs And Left This Community In Pollution's Path

"Rainbow trout is a prized catch for fisherman on the Northern Cheyenne reservation, in the high plains of southeastern Montana." 

Source: CNN, 03/19/2026

Ten Million Tons of Manure In California Are Unaccounted for: New Report

"Factory farms in California routinely avoid pollution regulations intended to protect the state’s water, finds a new white paper out of Stanford. Ten million tons of animal manure in the Golden State are unaccounted for, the report finds, thanks to a combination of non-compliance, non-enforcement and opaque disclosure rules."

Source: Sentient, 03/18/2026

Study Finds “Hot Spots” For Glyphosate And Cancer In Iowa, Midwest States

"A new analysis links high use of the weed killer glyphosate to elevated rates of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), particularly in the Midwest, reinforcing years of research linking cancer to the weed killer made popular by Monsanto."

Source: The New Lede, 03/18/2026

Mezcal’s Popularity Booming In US, At Growing Environmental Cost In Mexico


"Thirty years ago, a single light bulb would illuminate the mezcal distillery owned by Gladys Sánchez Garnica’s family in rural Oaxaca, where the agave-based spirit was made through the night. As drops dripped from a clay oven, Garnica and her siblings listened to stories told by their parents while neighbors arrived by horse to get a taste of a drink known for its smoky flavor."

Source: AP, 03/17/2026

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