Agriculture

Tensions Rise in Rio Grande Basin as Mexico Lags in Water Deliveries to US

"In 2020, rebellious Mexican farmers occupied a dam in parched Chihuahua state to prevent the federal government from sending its reservoir water to Texas under a 1944 treaty. With the clock ticking toward another treaty deadline, the two sides are struggling for a solution."

Source: Inside Climate News, 10/11/2023

"Mega CAFOs on the Chesapeake"

"Chicken farms housing millions of animals threaten a fragile ecology"

"On a drizzly day in May, Maria Payan walked along a country road in Somerset County, Maryland, near her home. On one side of the road was a white house with a peaked roof and an American flag flying from the porch; a ride-on toy tractor was parked by the front steps. On the other, a row of six long, windowless metal buildings housed tens of thousands of chickens. “Oh, the smell is so bad,” Payan said. “Can you imagine living with this every day?”

Source: Sierra, 10/09/2023

"Abandoned Lands: A Hidden Resource for Restoring Biodiversity"

"Abandoned farmland has been increasing, with a billion acres — an area half the size of Australia — lost globally. Ecologists are increasingly pointing to the potential of these lands and of degraded forests as neglected resources for rewilding and for capturing carbon."

Source: YaleE360, 10/04/2023

Arizona To Cancel Leases Allowing Saudi-Owned Farm Access To Its Groundwater

"Arizona governor Katie Hobbs said this week her administration is terminating state land leases that for years have given a Saudi-owned farm nearly unfettered access to pump groundwater in the dry southwestern state."

Source: AP, 10/04/2023
October 5, 2023

Environmental Storytelling and the Future of Clean Water

At 5:00 p.m. ET, SEJ board member Sara Shipley Hiles is leading the Smith/Patterson Science Journalism Lecture with filmmakers Duy Lin Tu and Sebastian Tuinder speaking about their project, “Poisoning the Chesapeake,” followed by Mizzou students on their “Price of Plenty” project.

Visibility: 

Illinois: "5 Dead After Crash, Chemical Leak In Downstate Teutopolis"

"Five people were killed in a multi-vehicle crash that included a tanker truck carrying a toxic chemical that spilled Friday night, triggering a large temporary evacuation near downstate Effingham. The truck was holding 7,500 gallons of anhydrous ammonia, of which about 4,000 gallons spilled, according to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency."

Source: Chicago Sun-Times, 10/02/2023

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