March 23, 2012, 12:05 AM
When Arysta LifeScience abruptly pulled methyl iodide off the market this week, it cited the “economic viability” of the controversial fumigant, which is used to sterilize soil before crops are planted. But at a hearing in an Oakland courtroom Wednesday, another factor emerged...
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March 16, 2012, 6:15 PM
“Valley of Shadows and Dreams” digs into the harsh truths of farm workers’ daily experiences in California’s Central Valley and the legacies of its politics and bureaucracy.
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January 24, 2012, 12:05 AM
Researchers have found higher-than-expected levels of deadly bacteria in what is considered the largest sampling of raw retail meat products in the United States. A team of researchers at the University of Iowa collected 256 samples of pork from 35 retail stores in Iowa, Minnesota and New...
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December 16, 2011, 11:55 AM
It started in 2001 and mostly affected the very young and very old. Peoples’ hair would fall out, their skin would break out in rashes and their eyes would turn red after showers. “That was how people were hurt on the outside,” said Horacio Amezquita, manager of the San...
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December 14, 2011, 12:05 AM
A year after environmentalists lost a regulatory battle to keep the controversial pesticide methyl iodide off the California market, they appear to be winning the ground war against the chemical. Only six California growers have used methyl iodide – marketed as MIDAS – to zap soil-...
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November 29, 2011, 12:05 AM
A new report suggests that California agriculture already uses water efficiently and disputes the notion that conservation could free up large amounts of water for other uses. Increasing water efficiency would generate only 330,000 acre-feet per year of new water, according to the study [PDF...
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June 14, 2011, 12:05 AM
Hopefully, you’re a fan of onions, corn and pineapple – and not so sweet on apples, celery and strawberries. That’s because the Environmental Working Group, a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group, released its annual Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce. ...
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June 3, 2011, 12:05 AM
The first leg of California’s $45 billion bullet train system is supposed to be built between Fresno and Bakersfield, perhaps starting next year. There’s “overwhelming public support” in the Central Valley for the massive public works project, the state High-Speed...
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March 28, 2011, 12:05 AM
California has long been the leader in organic farming: It's home to more than 2,700 organic farms – nearly 20 percent of those certified in the nation. Its products represented more than 36 percent of all organic sales in 2008, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. ...
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January 24, 2011, 12:05 AM
Gov. Jerry Brown's plan to end state funding for a program designed to protect farmland and open spaces has reignited a decades-old controversy over the law's effectiveness. The recommendation to cut $10 million from the program has led to an outcry from the state's agricultural...
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August 9, 2010, 12:05 AM
The Environmental Protection Agency is reviewing scientific assessments of a controversial strawberry fumigant scheduled for use in California, as well as opening up a public comment period on the toxic pesticide, according to U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein and the environmental law group Earthjustice...
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July 28, 2010, 12:05 AM
Generally preoccupied by such celestial phenomena as brown dwarves and solar flares, NASA is now turning its sights to a more provincial domain: farms. In partnership with the California Department of Water Resources, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service and...
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July 13, 2010, 12:05 AM
In the search for new sources of energy, California policymakers may need to look to the birds. The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday on a company interested in building chicken litter-fueled power plants in poultry-producing states. The company, Fibrowatt LLC, is based in Langhorne...
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