Cows and sheep to blame for flooding
There was an increase in flooding during the winter months in parts of Great Britain and researchers say they believe sheep and cattle are responsible.
Stuart Lane, a physical geography professor at Leeds University, told the London Telegraph large increases in sheep and cattle stocking densities trampled upland pasture so badly, the ground does not absorb water like it used to.
The end result, Lane said, is that more rainfall runs off into rivers, leading to more flooding downstream.
"There is still no major change in the rainfall patterns...that can adequately explain the dramatic increase in floods," Lane said. "Something other than rainfall is causing the flooding, something which affects how the water drains off the land, where it can go and at what speed.
"That is the land itself, and how that land is managed," Lane said.
Agricultural practice changes can affect lower-lying areas where rivers flood through towns and cities. Lane's study, which took three years to put together, is the first to try to match flooding information with details about land use.
Farmers have rejected the notion.
They say the increase in flooding is due to construction in flood plains, and say the Environmental Agency should take greater steps to keep watercourses open.
Lane, whose work was funded by the Environmental Agency, said the number of floods in York increased sharply following significant agricultural changes in land use.
The study cites increases in government subsidies that encouraged farmers to keep more cattle and sheep, thereby increasing use of the farmland.
The end result is an increase in flooding incidents from about 10 per decade in the first half of the 20th Century, compared to nearly 50 floods between 1991 and 2000 and more than 100 flood warnings last winter following severe weather, including alerts on the Ouse and Derwent rivers.
Farmers back fix for highway trust fund
More than 30 agriculture and transportation organizations signed a letter of support for legal language providing for alternative fuels and highways.
The language is part of a bill considered by the Senate finance committee to resolve the penalty to the Highway Trust Fund associated with the use of ethanol-blend gasoline.
It replaces the existing excise tax exemption that reduces payments to the trust fund with a new Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit that is funded through general revenues.
"Since federal motor fuel taxes are a primary source of funding for highway programs, there has understandably been an issue with the revenue impact of ethanol-blended fuels on the" trust fund, National Corn Growers Association public policy vice president Jon Doggett said.
Millers support U.S. desires for wheat
The North American Millers Association supports U.S. officials who want the World Trade Organization to pressure Canada to ease restrictions that discourage it from purchasing wheat from the United States and other countries.
"We feel strongly that exporting (state trading entities) cannot support monopolies in any form and must be forced to accept a progressively larger exposure to competitive market forces," the association said, in a prepared statement.
The association was reacting to word the WTO is creating a panel to determine whether the Canadian Wheat board is violating rules prohibiting it from acting in non-commercial matters. The panel will spend about six months studying the issue.
Parker takes ag civil rights post
The Agriculture Department has sworn into office its new assistant for civil rights.
Vernon Parker was nominated for the post earlier this year, and the Senate confirmed the appointment last week. He will oversee the Agriculture Department's civil rights office, and will ensure federal farm programs do not violate civil rights laws.
Parker previously served as senior pastor for his church in Arizona. He also serves on the Salvation Army's board and is with the Christian Family Care Agency.
Senators want milk price investigation
Senators from the northeastern United States want a federal investigation of why retail prices for milk remain so high.
The senators note the prices dairy farmers are receiving for their milk have declined to the point where consumers should be noticing cheaper prices for milk.
Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, requested the General Accounting Office conduct the investigation. Sens. John Kerry, D-Mass., Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and Susan Collins, R-Maine, support her request.
Grains mostly higher on CBOT
Grain futures were mostly higher at the close Wednesday on the Chicago Board of Trade.
Soybeans rose on word Spain purchased 110,000 metric tons of U.S. beans, along with word China was considering shifting an order from the South American crop to the U.S. crop
Corn rose on influence from soybeans.
Wheat futures rose on weather conditions and a lack of any new negative information.
Oats were mixed.
The prices:
Soybeans: May 5.86 3/4 up 13, Jul 5.84 1/2 up 12 1/2, Aug 5.71 up 11 1/4, Nov 5.17 up 5 1/4.
Corn: May 2.40 1/4 up 3/4, Jul 2.40 1/2 up 3/4, Sep 2.40 1/2 up 1/4, Dec 2.42 1/4 up 1/4.
Wheat: May 2.87 1/2 up 4 1/2, Jul 2.90 1/4 up 4, Sep 2.94 3/4 up 2 1/4, Dec 3.05 1/2 up 1 3/4.
Oats: May 1.84 1/2 off 1/4, Jul 1.62 3/4 up 1, Sep 1.51 3/4 up 1/2, Dec 1.48 unch.
