Advocacy in Action
Dairy California Farm Bureau has submitted a letter supporting efforts by the California Dairy Research Foundation to develop planning and strategies for using organic waste to develop fuels. The foundation is partnering with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Technologies Office, which supports re- search and technology development to convert biomass and other wastes to high-performance fuels while lowering greenhouse gas emissions. Farm Bureau is collaborating on a pro- posal to conduct a scoping project that would evaluate the environmental and economic impacts of using dairy anaer- obic digester effluent on a wide scale for development of hydrogen fuels. Partners in the proposal include: Sandia National Laboratories, which works to ensure stable energy and water supplies; Dairy Cares, a coalition working toward sustainable practices for dairy farms; and California Bioenergy LLC, a developer of dairy digester projects for generating re- newable vehicle fuels and electricity. Most of California’s anaerobic digesters
use of materials containing paraquat di- chloride starting on Jan. 1, 2026. The bill is on the Senate floor waiting to be heard, and Farm Bureau and other agri- cultural organizations continue to oppose and meet with Senate legislative offices to stop the measure from moving forward. Farm Bureau is working with the California Department of Transportation to gather information on the range of fiscal impacts of another measure, AB 99. The bill, by Assembly Member Damon Connolly, D-San Rafael, would require Caltrans to adopt a statewide policy by
currently produce renewable natural gas. The scoping project would provide information on future income pathways for dairy digesters, including securing Department of Energy funding for exploring additional clean-fuel production from the dairy sector. Weed and pest management The California Farm Bureau oppos- es Assembly Bill 1963 by Assembly Member Laura Friedman, D-Glendale, which seeks to phase out the use of the herbicide Paraquat. The bill was recently amend- ed and voted out of the state Senate Appropriations Committee. The measure had sought to require the California Department of Pesticide Regulation to complete a reevaluation of Paraquat to determine by Jan. 1, 2029 whether to cancel or suspend its registra- tion or to place new restrictions on the use of pesticide products containing the active ingredient paraquat dichloride. However, the cancellation timeline has accelerated as the bill was amended. If passed in its current form, the bill would prohibit the manufacture, sale and
Jan. 1 to use integrated pest management on state roads and highways and report on its website about its use and application of pesticides and herbicides. The measure is a deference to local and more prohibitive weed management stan- dards. It would require Caltrans to post in- formation online on the type, formula and amount of materials it intends to use in any city or county and identify the location at least 24 hours before any pesticide or her- bicide applications. (To read the full version of the California Farm Bureau’s Advocacy in Action newsletter, visit cfbf.com/advocacy.)
Class set for water diverters The training is scheduled for Sept. 13, from 1 to 5 p.m. in the UCCE Conference Room at 1432 Abbott St. The session is limited to 30 people. The cost is $30.
University of California Cooperative Extension is offering training in Salinas for water-rights holders on state requirements for measuring and reporting water diver- sions from rivers and streams. California requires an instructional course for water-rights holders wanting to install and maintain their own devices for reporting diversions to the state.
To register, visit https://surveys.ucanr. edu/survey.cfm?surveynumber=43495. For more information, contact Larry Forero at lcforero@ucanr.edu.
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8 Ag Alert September 4, 2024
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