Agriculture

"It’s no fairy tale — factory farms and air travel form a viral expressway to pandemics."

"Delta smelt have hovered close to extinction for years, but biologists say they’ve never seen anything like this spring. 'There’s nothing between them and extinction, as far as I can tell,' said Peter Moyle, a UC Davis biologist who has studied smelt and other Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta fish species for nearly four decades."

Humans have been influencing landscapes and ecosystems on a global scale for far longer than people usually think, archeologists said in a newly published study.

"EU nations refused to back a limited extension of the herbicide glyphosate's use on Monday, threatening withdrawal of Monsanto's Roundup and other weed-killers from shelves if no decision is reached by the end of the month."

"One of the most popular herbicides in U.S. agriculture can be dangerous to animals and fish and leaves behind worrisome residue levels, the Environmental Protection Agency said on Thursday in a draft report that sparked outrage among farmers."

"Efforts to control brucellosis in cattle around Yellowstone National Park may be focusing on the wrong wildlife suspects, according to new DNA research on the disease."

"Efforts in Congress are heating up to bring some relief to California’s historic drought, just as the dry summer season is starting."

"Parasite fron China attacks eggs and larvae of Asian insect pest that has wiped out tens of millions of trees and is on march to Europe and Britain".

"The E.U. has not approved the biotech seeds; the uncertainty could present export problems for U.S. farmers and grain producers."