February 19, 2016
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CapitalPress.com
Judge rules against environmentalists on Snake River dredging
By MATTHEW WEAVER
Capital Press
The U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers did everything
right when dredging sediment
to improve navigation on the
Lower Snake River in ear-
ly 2015, a federal judge has
ruled.
U.S. District Judge James
L. Robart ruled against a
coalition of environmental
groups and a tribe in their bid
to sue the corps for alleged
violations of the National En-
vironmental Policy Act and
Clean Water Act. The coali-
tion claimed dredging, which
is used to remove accumu-
lated sediment that interferes
with commercial navigation,
is damaging to the environ-
ment.
“Absent from Plaintiff’s
declarations are any factual
showings of actual harm to
salmon or lamprey as a result
of the Corps’ 2015 dredging
activities,” Robart wrote in
his ruling. “Not one of Plain-
tiff’s declarants speciically
tether the generalized harm
to ish or the environment
they assert to the Corps’ par-
ticular 2015 dredging at issue
here. Instead, Plaintiffs posit
sweeping, generalized asser-
tions that dredging in general
is harmful to ish ... The al-
leged harm must be concrete
and particular.”
The 2015 dredging was
timed to occur when salmon
Idaho spud contracts require
minimum three-year rotation
By JOHN O’CONNELL
Capital Press
BOISE — Growers repre-
sented by Southern Idaho Po-
tato Cooperative have agreed
to a provision in their 2016
processing contracts requiring
them to plant at least two alter-
native crops between raising
spuds.
As of Feb. 15, SIPCO Ex-
ecutive Director Dan Har-
graves said his organization
had inished negotiations with
Lamb Weston but not J.R.
Simplot Co. or McCain Foods.
He declined to comment on
other contract details prior to
completing talks with all three
companies but said the mini-
mum rotation clause has broad
support and isn’t in question.
Hargraves said some spud
growers, including a few Fort
Hall producers who raise
spuds every other year on san-
dy soils, have already fumigat-
ed ields and prepared ground,
and the processors will grant
them an exception from the
policy this season.
Hargraves explained a lon-
ger rotation between spuds
reduces the need for farm in-
puts, helps control pests and
diseases and improves yields
and quality.
“It was something that was
whole-heartedly supported by
both sides, and they under-
stood there may need to be
some exceptions as they work
into it,” Hargraves said.
David Smith, senior di-
rector of agricultural services
with Lamb Weston, said the
majority of growers already
practices minimum three-year
rotations.
“We’re proud to work
with growers who value our
resources as much as we do
and appreciate the positive im-
pact crop rotation has on soil
health, disease prevention and
overall sustainability,” Smith
said.
SIPCO President Mark
Darrington, a Declo grower,
doubts the policy will have a
great impact on planted pota-
to acreage, but he said a min-
imum three-year rotation is a
“best management practice,”
and annual audits required of
processed growers will make
certain guidelines are met.
Aberdeen farmer Ritchey
Toevs, a SIPCO member on
the Idaho Potato Commission,
believes the minimum rotation
requirement combined with a
water call settlement forcing
many well users to reduce their
groundwater
consumption
could raise interest in in-sea-
son cover crops, planted only
for soil health beneits, as a
water-eficient option.
Toevs also believes the pol-
icy will cause upward pressure
on land rents and make plan-
ning tougher, but he agrees
the policy is “the right thing
to do.”
John O’Connell/Capital Press
Don Wille, CEO oF Thresher Artisan Wheat, speaks during his
company’s recent seed meeting in Idaho Falls. He warned growers
premiums they’ve enjoyed on soFt white wheat relative to hard
wheat varieties likely won’t continue much longer.
Wheat leaders anticipate
erosion of soft white premium
By JOHN O’CONNELL
Capital Press
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho —
Some wheat industry experts
are warning growers the price
premium soft white wheat
has held over hard varieties
for several months is unlikely
to persist, and they shouldn’t
shift acres toward soft white
this spring.
“In a year where nothing
pencils, the best thing to do
is stick with your rotation and
work with what grows best on
your ground,” said Don Wille,
CEO of Thresher Artisan
Wheat.
Typically, Wille said, hard
wheat enjoys a roughly 50-
cent premium over soft wheat.
Hard wheat tends to have high-
er levels of gluten and protein,
for use in breads and baked
goods that rise. It’s relatively
inicky and costs more to grow,
requiring farmers to apply
more fertilizer to meet mini-
mum protein requirements.
Lower protein is desir-
able in soft wheat, popular in
noodles and lat breads, and
among livestock feeders. Yet
soft wheat is now trading at
a 13-cent premium to hard
wheat.
“I have heard from numer-
ous people on, ‘Why in the
heck should I plant protein
wheats when soft white pencils
out better for me now,’” Wille
said. “I’m 95 percent certain
this relationship we have today
will not be there when we get
to harvest time.”
Alex Bassett, a broker with
F.C. Stone in Kansas City, said
soft wheat has held its unusu-
al premium to hard wheat for
eight months on the futures
market, and longer on the cash
market.
For the past two seasons,
Bassett said the major soft
wheat production areas — the
Northwest and the Midwest —
have experienced challenging
conditions. In the Northwest,
especially Eastern Washing-
ton, severe drought has cut
soft white yields and caused
elevated protein levels. Bassett
has heard Asian markets plan
to start docking growers for
elevated soft white protein this
season.
In the Midwest, soft red
winter growers were “pound-
ed” with rainfall at harvest,
causing problems with Fusar-
ium headblight and milling
quality, Bassett said. Plains
farmers who skimped on in-
puts had horriic problems
with rust, he said.
Soil moisture has been am-
ple in the major soft wheat re-
gions for the current fall crop,
and Bassett said there “really
haven’t been any cold snaps
to concern anybody about
damage so far.”
and lamprey were likely not
present, Robart said.
Robart also dismissed
the plaintiffs’ argument that
the corps’ programmatic
sediment management plan
(PSMP), which monitors and
plans for sediment manage-
ment, violates NEPA and the
Clean Water Act.
‘Clear-cut victory’
Robart concluded his rul-
ing by saying if the plaintiffs
believe that dredging is no
longer in the public’s best
interest, they should petition
Congress and not the court.
Kristin Meira, execu-
tive director of the Paciic
Northwest Waterways Asso-
ciation, which manages the
Inland Ports and Navigation
Group, called Robart’s ruling
a “clear-cut victory” for the
corps and for navigation on
the Lower Snake River.
“The judge ruled the plain-
tiffs were not appropriate in
bringing this suit,” Meira said.
“The Corps was completely in
the clear in how they planned
for dredging and how to eval-
uate sediment in the future.
This was really fantastic news
for folks who care about a bal-
anced approach to the river
system, and one that recognizes
the value of goods movement
as well as the environment.”
Meira doesn’t see room for
an appeal from environmen-
talists who oppose dredging.
She didn’t see anything in
Robart’s ruling that would be
negative for agriculture.
‘We’re disappointed’
“Obviously, we’re disap-
pointed,” said Kevin Lewis,
conservation director with
Idaho Rivers United. “There
are signiicant issues with the
Lower Snake River, with the
hydrosystem, the barging, the
river navigation system — we
believe it is a failing system,
it is costing the taxpayers mil-
lions of dollars every year to
support that system.”
Lewis said his organi-
zation will look at Robart’s
ruling and “move on from
there.” Could future dredging
projects result in further legal
action?
“I don’t know if you’ll see
any legal action, but you’ll
certainly see continued scru-
tiny of the operation of the
Lower Snake River system,”
Lewis said.
Idaho Rivers United,
Washington Wildlife Fed-
eration, Pacific Coast Fed-
eration of Fishermen’s
Associations, Institute for
Fisheries Resources, Sierra
Club, Friends of the Clear-
water and the Nez Perce
Tribe brought the lawsuit
against the corps.
The plaintiffs, the corps
and the Inland Ports and Nav-
igation Group, intervening on
behalf of the corps, all sought
summary judgment from the
court.
Campaigns aim to change potato perceptions
By JOHN O’CONNELL
Capital Press
EAGLE,
Idaho
—
Though the commodity they
champion is often described
as “humble,” oficials with
the Idaho Potato Commission
and U.S. Potato Board aim to
convince the public through
their new campaigns that the
spud is better viewed as a po-
tassium powerhouse and the
“ninth wonder of the world.”
IPC’s heightened focus on
educating the public about the
rich potassium content in po-
tatoes stems from the results
of a recent online survey of
1,000 consumers the organi-
zation commissioned.
Just 27 percent of respon-
dents in the survey, conducted
by the research irm Kelton
Global, associated potatoes
with potassium. By contrast,
89 percent of respondents
identiied bananas as a rich
source of the vital nutrient.
IPC President and CEO
Frank Muir said the banana
industry has centered its mar-
keting around potassium for
several years, but potatoes
contain double the potassium.
Muir said potassium is
critical for helping the body
regulate blood pressure and
maintaining heart health,
and USDA estimates 97
percent of Americans don’t
John O’Connell/Capital Press
Workers clean and load red potatoes Following harvest Sept. 11 in the Pleasant Valley area oF south-
east Idaho. The size proile of the crop appears to be up, while the number of tubers is down.
consume enough potassium.
“The USDA has indicated
two elements need to be more
in consumers’ diets — potassi-
um and dietary iber — and it
just so happens those two are
signiicant in a potato,” Muir
said.
In 2011, IPC got the Ida-
ho potato certiied as heart
healthy with the American
Heart Association. Muir said
about 20 shippers are now li-
censed to use the AHA heart
health checkmark on packag-
ing, since IPC renegotiated its
AHA contract and began cov-
ering shippers’ licensing fees.
In February, IPC hosted a
“satellite media tour,” invit-
ing lifestyle expert Michelle
Yarn to discuss potato nutri-
tion in TV health segments
that reached 10 million view-
ers, Muir said. In March, reg-
istered dietitian Toby Amidor
will discuss the importance of
potatoes and potassium in a
balanced diet during a syndi-
cated radio program that will
reach 3 million listeners. IPC
has scheduled a Twitter party
for 6 p.m. Mountain Time on
March 2, using #idahopotato,
and will conduct a potassium
campaign on social media.
USPB’s new marketing
campaign, called The Ninth
Wonder of the World, targets
the growing “food enthusiast”
population segment.
Food enthusiasts are known
for an “adventurous culinary
spirit,” and they appreciate
that potatoes offer variety ver-
satility and the ability to be
paired with many foods and
lavors, according to a USPB
press release.
“Food enthusiasts, the US-
PB’s newest consumer segment,
represent a large portion of the
population and are deined by
their love of food, as well as
their desire to explore culi-
nary creations from around the
world,” the press release reads.
USPB oficials said the
campaign will utilize print and
digital advertising and social
media. Professional chefs will
help USPB develop creative
new potato dishes throughout
the year, and will also offer
new potato product ideas to
food manufacturers.
Agricultural education teaches students about agriculture, food and
natural resources. Through these subjects, agricultural educators
teach students a wide variety of skills, including science, math,
communications, leadership, management and technology.
Ag teachers never have the same day twice. One day they might be
in a classroom or laboratory, the next visiting students in the field,
preparing teams for an FFA Career Development Event,
or leading a community service activity with
their FFA Chapter.
• Teach by doing, not just telling
• Share their passion for agriculture
• Create lessons that are hands-on
• Reach students, including those
who might not be successful in a
traditional classroom
• Teach about cutting edge topics, like
cloning, satellite mapping, biofuels,
alternative energy and more.
• Travel in state, nationally, and even internationally.
• Work with new and emerging technology from agribusiness
companies.
Currently there is a national shortage of agricultural educators at the
secondary level. It is estimated that there will be hundreds of
unfilled positions across the United States this year, simply because
not enough students are choosing to be agricultural educators.
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