Tom Partin, President American Forest Resource Council The National Forest Planning process has a significant impact on the members of AFRC and their employees who live and work in the remote communities of the West where timber jobs and forest health are important to everyday life. The new Forest Planning Rule will gui
How 10% jump in beef prices hurts Oregon See video below from KOIN-6 which reviews recent beef price increases and interviews an Oregon rancher family.
Oregon takes action to stop new plant disease By Oregon Dept. of Agriculture Boxwood blight, a fungal plant disease new to North America, has been detected in Oregon for the first time, prompting state officials to take measures to eradicate it. However, unlike the pathogen that causes sudden oak death, the newly-reported d
NOAA rule designates add’l critical habitat for leatherbacks on U.S. west coast By Pacific Fishery Management Council NOAA announced the designation of additional critical habitat to provide protection for endangered leatherback sea turtles along the U.S. West Coast. NOAA is designating 41,914 square miles of marine habit
New Director hired for Oregonians for Food and Shelter BY Oregonians for Food and Shelter Please join us in welcoming Scott Dahlman as OFS’s new Executive Director! Scott is the former public policy analyst and national affairs coordinator for the Washington Farm Bureau, Scott will be a great addition to the OFS team
Community Mobilizes After Yahoo Declares Ag Degrees Useless By National Assoc. Wheat Growers Those who believe agriculture isn’t a serious academic subject and farmers are an uneducated lot may be enticed to expand their views based on the farm community’s reaction to a Jan. 19 article declaring agriculture degrees “u
Scholarships available through Oregon Agricultural Education Foundation By Oregon Farm Bureau The Oregon Agricultural Education Foundation (OAEF) is pleased to announce that applications are available for two scholarship programs for the upcoming 2012-2013 academic year. Oregon Farm Bureau Memorial Scholarships (OFBMS) with
States set spring chinook, sturgeon seasons By Oregon Dept. Fish & Wildlife Fishery managers from Oregon and Washington set spring chinook salmon and sturgeon retention fishing seasons for the Columbia River today during a joint state hearing. The Columbia River spring chinook seasons are based on a forecast of 314,000
American Farm Bureau Federation NewsLine The president set out his 2012 agenda in his State of the Union address. American Farm Bureau Director of Public Policy explains where agriculture fit into that agenda in this report from AFBF’s Johnna Miller Miller: American Farm Bureau Director of Public Policy Mark Maslyn says i
Timber industry challenges marbled murrelet habitat designation – Claims Fish and Wildlife Service violating Endangered Species Act By American Forest Resource Council The American Forest Resource Council (AFRC) brought suit against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) claiming the agency violated the Endangered S
Oregon Farm Bureau The U.S. Agriculture Department announced it will close nearly 260 offices nationwide in an effort to save dollars. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said the goal was to save $150 million a year in the agency’s $145 billion budget. About $90 million had already been saved by reducing travel and sup
By Oregon Small Business Association The Corvallis Gazette Times reports that three miles north of Nevada in Eastern Oregon lies fabulous wealth, in the form of an estimated 425,000 ounces of gold. Close to the gold deposit is another of uranium, which Oregon Energy Corp. hopes to mine over the next twenty years. Environm
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced today that it has issued payment to 18 counties in western Oregon eligible under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act extension, (Public Law 110-343). The amount paid to the Oregon & California (O&C) counties was $ 40,03
National Corn Growers Association Corn Commentary Blog These days, farmers and ranchers seem to be constantly having to defend every practice they use to produce food, fuel and fiber – and much of it is based on just plain ignorance of agriculture in general. Ignorance may be bliss, but it is also extremely dangerous. We
States agree to reduce sturgeon catch by 38% on the lower Columbia River By Oregon Dept. of Fish & Widlife For the third straight year, fish and wildlife directors from Washington and Oregon have agreed to reduce the catch of white sturgeon on the lower Columbia River, where the species has declined in abundance in [...
By National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Statement from NCBA President Bill Donald Regarding President Obama’s Proposed Consolidation of Trade Agencies The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) supports the administration’s recognition of the need to improve government efficiency and eliminate wasteful spen
by Rex Storm, Associated Oregon Loggers, Governor Maligns Timber Owners and Loggers: The rise in log exports to China has left coastal sawmills facing new price competition for timber. Oregon Governor Kitzhaber unfairly criticized log exports in his Nov. 3 testimony before the state Board of Forestry. “We are at risk of b
Greg Walden organizes bipartisan backing for job-creating forest landscape restoration projects By Congressman Greg Walden, Estimates from proposals say Lakeview project would create more than 80 jobs; Southern Blues project would create more than 150 jobs U.S. Rep. Greg Walden has organized a bipartisan letter to USDA Secr
Below is a press release from National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Statement from NCBA President and Montana Rancher Bill Donald Regarding Extremist Attacks against Cattle Operation WASHINGTON – National Cattlemen’s Beef Association President Bill Donald issued the following statement regarding alleged animal rights
Looking to 2012: Long To-Do List, Little Appetite in Election Year By National Association of Wheat Growers Members of Congress are headed back to Washington, D.C., from a holiday break, but how much they will accomplish before leaving in early August for full-time campaigning remains very much in question. The House of Rep
Dungeness crab season opens Jan. 15 on Oregon’s southern coast By Oregon Dept. of Fish and Wildlife NEWPORT – Commercial and sport Dungeness crabbing opens Jan. 15 from Gold Beach south, making all of the ocean off Oregon now open to crabbing. The ocean commercial Dungeness crab season in Oregon normally opens Dec. 1, b
By American Farm Bureau Federation Farmers need to commit their time, energy, money and best thinking if they want to stop the proliferation of federal regulations that threaten their businesses, a U.S. Chamber of Commerce official said today at the American Farm Bureau Federation 93rd Annual Meeting. “This isn’t academ
Windpower has killed 2,000 golden eagles in California & 500 other birds in Virginia proding conservationist to call for new guidelines. By Oregon Tax News, New federal rules instructing wind companies on how to better monitor and reduce the number of wildlife deaths from wind turbines are being worked on by the U.S. Fi
Projects advance solar, wind energy development on public lands; Will deliver power for 112,500 homes, support over 600 jobs and generate millions in local tax revenue Dept. of Interior Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced the approval of two renewable energy projects that further advance President Obama’s init
By Rick Sohn Umpqua Coquille LLC Weaker log and stud prices are seasonally expected, while homebuilding statistics increased, unsold inventory dropped, and mortgage rates continued near record lows. See below for details and a six-year span of prices and analysis of lumber, logs, housing, and mortgage statistics. Informatio
Bill Conerly, Conerly Consulting, Businomics Wood products demand is far more sensitive to the economy than demand for almost any other product. The outlook for the next two years is moderately positive, at least compared to the weak domestic markets we’ve seen since the downturn began. Log export markets look favorable,
by Cindy, Corn Commentary National Corn Growers Association Corn growers and the grain-based ethanol industry got a late Christmas present last week when a Federal District Court judge in Fresno, California sided with America’s ethanol industry in ruling that the State of California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) vio
Free forestry publication available online By Oregon Department of Forestry Oregon’s budget has necessitated cuts to a lot of programs – including some in forestry and the Oregon Department of Forestry’s flagship publication, Forests for Oregon – but the magazine-turned-newsletter is still available online, and it
Retail Food Prices Moderate Slightly in Fourth Quarter By American Farm Bureau Federation Retail food prices at the supermarket declined slightly during the fourth quarter of 2011, according to the latest American Farm Bureau Federation Marketbasket Survey. The informal survey shows the total cost of 16 food items that can
Scientists ID possible cause for honeybee colony collapse By Kurt Kipp, Daily Digger Oregon Association of Nurseries For five years, scientists have puzzled over the origin of colony collapse disorder (CCD), which is believed responsible for a decline in the honeybee populations that many agricultural producers depend upon.