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June 17, 2016 CapitalPress.com 5 Farmers seek attorney fees in Oregon GMO litigation Plaintiffs successfully sued to overturn county GMO ban By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI Capital Press Farmers who won a law- suit invalidating a ban of ge- netically engineered crops in Oregon’s Josephine County are now seeking $29,000 in attorney fees from the ordi- nance’s supporters. A state judge struck down the county’s prohibition in May, holding that Oregon law pre-empts local governments from restricting biotech seeds. Voters in Josephine Coun- ty approved the ordinance in 2014, which was challenged last year by Robert and Shel- ley Ann White, who wanted to grow genetically modifi ed sugar beets. While the county govern- ment took a neutral position in the litigation, supporters of the ordinance — Oregonians for Safe Farms and Families, a nonprofi t, and Siskiyou Seeds, an organic farm — intervened in the case to defend the ban on genetically modifi ed organ- isms. The intervenors claimed U.S. hops acres harvested 51.1 (Thousands of acres) 35.3 2007 ’10 *June forecast ’13 2016* Alan Kenaga/Capital Press Hop acreage records may be broken By DAN WHEAT Capital Press YAKIMA, Wash. — Pa- cific Northwest hop acreage increased 17 percent this year putting Washington, Idaho and the United States on track for new record lev- els, according to USDA’s National Agricultural Sta- tistics Service. U.S. acreage is forecast at 51,115, up 7,482 from 43,633 in 2015 and besting a record of 44,653 set in 1915. Of the U.S. total, Wash- ington is estimated at 37,475, up 5,317 from its record of 32,158 in 2015. Washington accounts for 73 percent of the total U.S. acreage. Oregon is estimated at 7,669 acres, up 1,057 from 6,612 in 2015. Oregon is 15 percent of the U.S. total. Oregon’s record was 26,000 acres in 1935. Idaho is estimated at 5,971, up 1,108 from a re- cord 4,863 in 2015. It is 12 percent of the U.S. acreage. In late April, Hop Grow- ers of America in Moxee, Wash., predicted 51,275 U.S. acres for 2016. It is including lesser acreage in states outside the Northwest that NASS is not tracking. Acreage increases con- tinue to be driven by the increase in craft breweries, Ann George, administrator of Hop Growers of Ameri- Thresher shuts down for safety training Capital Press Up 17.1% from 2015 Source: USDA NASS The group is still deciding whether to appeal Wolke’s ruling but doesn’t think it will impede others from seeking GMO-free zones. “The movement is grow- ing across the country,” she said. As for the petition for at- torney fees, Middleton said it’s likely an attempt by bio- tech developers to thwart such efforts. “I can only speculate, but the way it looks on the sur- face is they’re trying to scare counties and scare people who object to their agenda,” she said. 38 31.3 29.8 29.7 30.9 of the plaintiffs’ legal costs, they’re seeking the award in part to deter similar arguments in a future case, according to the petition for attorney fees. “An award of fees in this case will discourage those similarly situated to abandon meritless claims and to con- centrate on those issues which they might impact in a respon- sible way,” the petition said. Mary Middleton, execu- tive director of OSFF, said it “would very negatively impact us to pay attorney fees for the other side,” but her attorneys don’t think such an order would have legal precedent. By JOHN O’CONNELL 43.6 40.9 39.7 that the Whites lacked stand- ing to fi le the lawsuit because they were “hobby farmers” who didn’t have a fi nancial stake in growing GMOs. Supporters of the ordinance also argued that Oregon’s pre-emption law was uncon- stitutional because lawmakers created a “regulatory void” by disallowing local rules for GMO crops without imposing their own regulatory scheme. Josephine County Circuit Judge Pat Wolke rejected those arguments and overturned the GMO prohibition, fi nding that the confl ict between state law and the local ordinance “could not be more clear.” The plaintiffs’ attorneys are now seeking $29,200 from the intervenors, but not the county, because several of their legal claims “had no objectively reasonable basis.” For example, the interve- nors cited no legal precedents from Oregon to support their argument that the pre-emption statute was unconstitutional and instead pointed to a ruling from Ohio, the petition said. Though the amount rep- resents less than 20 percent Dan Wheat/Capital Press Hop harvest at Roy Farms, Moxee, Wash., Sept. 24, 2013. Washington, Idaho and the United States likely will harvest record hop acreage in 2016. ca and the Washington Hop Commission, has said. That trend is expected to contin- ue to 2020, she has said. In April, the Internation- al Hop Growers Convention in Paris estimated fall 2016 U.S. hop production at 97 million pounds, up from 80.2 million in 2015. Glob- al production is expected to increase from 190.4 mil- lion pounds to 232 million pounds. The 2016 Northwest crop looks good with normal pest pressure but erratic weather causing higher disease pres- sure of downy and powdery mildew, NASS said in a June 10 news release. Wa- ter supply is expected to be adequate with junior water right holders in the Yaki- ma Basin, where most U.S. hops are grown, to receive 86 percent of normal irriga- tion water. IDAHO FALLS — Bur- ied up to his knees in grain, Thresher Artisan Wheat em- ployee Lamont Benford said he could feel the pressure against his legs intensifying amid a June 9 engulfment ex- ercise at the company’s local grain elevator. For two days, Thresher shut down its seven Eastern Idaho facilities to run 95 seasonal and full-time workers through rigorous safety training, exer- cises company offi cials vow to continue annually. The compa- ny also intends to offer a fall training for regional growers. After Benford’s colleagues pounded rescue tube panels around him, Thresher Safe- ty Manager Eric Neibauer quizzed the trainees on the proper tool to dig him out. He explained a shovel would be too cumbersome, given the limited space within the tube, and a spark from a vacuum could cause the grain dust to explode. Before long, an employee shouted the correct answer: “His hard hat!” Neibauer explained a panel from the tube could also dou- ble as a gurney. In addition to engulfment training, Thresher covered safety topics including fall pro- tection, working in confi ned spaces and fi rst aid. Thresher also tested employees’ hearing and plans to work with its in- surance carrier to assess which areas of its facilities could ben- efi t from new hearing protec- tion requirements. “Especially in the ag busi- ness, safety is becoming a bigger and bigger issue. Every company is looking at zero injuries,” said Thresher CEO Don Wille. “Our people need to get home in the same shape in which they came to work every day.” Wille said the tempo- rary workers had never been through such a training. “This is a time when we’re not worried about the customer,” Wille said. “At the moment, we’re worried about ourselves and getting back into those good practic- John O’Connell/Capital Press Workers with Thresher Artisan Wheat pound panels of a rescue tube around their colleague, Lamont Benford, during a June 9 engulfment training in Idaho Falls. Thresher closed its seven Eastern Idaho facilities on June 9-10 for a comprehensive safety training. es and good habits.” Neibauer, whose position was created in November, told the workers a quarter of fall-re- lated deaths that occurred in 2015 happened under 10 feet, according to the Bureau of La- bor Statistics. Thresher, which purchased the regional Gen- eral Mills facilities in April 2014, has implemented a new requirement for fall protection to be used at its Moreland, Ida- ho, elevator. “We will not have anybody on a rail car without the prop- er equipment,” Wille said. To limit the risk of grain en- gulfment, Neibauer explained, Thresher has a prohibition on workers making top entries into grain bins, though he stressed walls of bins may still rupture or grain carts may tip. Neibauer said Thresher has avoided major accidents but has taken precautions to mitigate the risk of workers slipping on ice due to a cou- ple of recent injuries. Thresher now spreads salt at its facilities in winter and makes rubber cleats available workers. Neibauer said employees are encouraged to stop any operation if they have a safety concern, and the company has a policy of addressing reported safety hazards within 30 days. Corine Kingzio, who works at Thresher’s Blackfoot facil- ity, told superiors one of the catwalks was too narrow, mak- ing her uneasy while taking in- ventory. The company quickly remedied the problem. “I feel so much safer,” Kingzio said. By GEORGE PLAVIN EO Media Group Pendleton Grain Growers might be a thing of the past, but its upcountry elevators and Columbia River terminal will remain open under new ownership. United Grain Corporation, based in Vancouver, Washing- ton, has agreed to buy all of PGG’s grain assets including facilities, contracts and inven- tory. The deal was announced Tuesday, though terms were not disclosed. PGG announced it would try to sell its grain division in October 2015, foreshadowing the co-op’s fi nal collapse and dissolution on May 2. Negoti- ations continued with United Grain, whose vice president of business development, Tony Flagg, used to head up Pendleton Flour Mills. United Grain is one of the West Coast’s largest grain ex- porters, owned by the Mitsui Group of Japan. Mitsui is one of the largest corporate groups in the world, with a market value of $22.5 billion, accord- ing to Forbes. Rick Jacobson, PGG general manager, said United Grain will invest “a signifi cant amount of money” Kathy Aney/EO Media Group Pendleton Grain Growers has agreed to sell its grain division to United Grain Corporation. upgrading facilities around Pendleton, something PGG wasn’t able to do in recent years. “They will be looking for speed and space to meet the changing needs of the grow- ers,” Jacobson said. “I think this is going to be a step in the right direction.” Flagg did not return calls Tuesday for comment. Unit- ed Grain is in the process of opening local offi ces and has retained a majority of PGG employees, according to a press release from the co-op. The sale comes about a month ahead of wheat har- vest for most Eastern Oregon farms. Tim Hawkins, chairman of the PGG Board of Direc- tors, said the deal with Unit- ed Grain is the best possible outcome for growers and the community. “Through the negotiated agreement, (United Grain) has voiced a commitment to maintaining crucial oper- ations as well as investing in the long-term viability of grain facilities,” Hawkins said in a statement. For PGG, it’s another step forward in dissolving the 86-year-old cooperative, which had been synonymous with the region’s agriculture. Members voted to dissolve PGG on May 2 following a string of devastating fi nan- cial losses that pointed to a crisis of confi dence among growers. In 2012, the U.S. Depart- ment of Agriculture suspend- ed PGG’s grain warehouse license for 44 days due to auditing discrepancies. The license was restored, but the co-op discovered it had over- stated earnings in 2010 and 2011 by a combined $7.5 mil- lion. The East Oregonian has requested public records from the Farm Service Agency per- taining to the case. 25-4/#6 PGG sells grain assets to United Grain Corporation