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July 1, 2016 CapitalPress.com 17 Farm Bureau disputes WSU’s upbeat take on carbon tax Yes on I-732 campaign highlights report By DON JENKINS Capital Press Carbon tax proponents are calling attention to a Wash- ington State University study that concluded Initiative 732 on the November ballot would slightly boost the state’s farm economy. The study, led by Gregmar Galinato of the WSU School of Economic Sciences, con- cludes that an increase in the cost of fuel and other goods would be more than offset by I-732’s other features, which would cut taxes and stimulate consumer demand. The net result would be a 1.76 percent increase in the value of the state’s agricultural output in the policy’s second Don Jenkins/Capital Press A woman demonstrates on the Capital Campus in Olympia in 2015. Washington voters will decide in November whether to tax carbon. A Washington State University study concludes the tax would ac- tually beneit agriculture, a inding at odds with the Farm Bureau’s stance on taxing carbon. year, the authors concluded. The study did not report dollar igures. Washington’s agricultural production topped $10 billion in 2013, according to the U.S. Department of Ag- riculture. The Washington Farm Bu- reau views the report skepti- cally. It maintains that a car- bon tax would raise the cost of fuel, electricity, fertilizer and food processing, and that farmers and processors would have to absorb those costs. “We would disagree with this professor,” Tom Davis, the Farm Bureau’s director of gov- ernment relations, said. “Any- thing that impacts our food processors and causes them to move to other states would have a big detrimental impact to agriculture.” The report was completed in April, but highlighted Mon- day in a press release from the Yes on I-732 campaign. “This policy supports the state’s economic goals, while addressing our moral respon- sibility to protect our children and future generations from the harmful effects of climate change,” Yes on I-732 founder Yoram Bauman said in a writ- ten statement. Galinato’s study was fund- ed by a USDA grant. He has endorsed I-732, according to the campaign’s website. Ef- forts to reach Galinato were unsuccessful. I-732 would phase in over two years a $25 per metric ton tax on carbon emitted by the reining of fossil fuels and the generation of electricity. The tax would increase an- nually by 3.5 percent, plus the rate of inlation until climbing to $100 per ton. I-732 propo- nents estimate the cap would be reached in 40 years. Agriculture would be par- tially shielded from the carbon tax. The tax on diesel, biodies- el and aircraft fuel used for agriculture would be phased in over 40 years. Sponsors sought to make the proposal “revenue neutral” by reducing taxes on manufac- turers, cutting the state sales tax to 5.5 percent from 6.5 percent and distributing the carbon taxes to low-income workers. The WSU study conclud- ed the sales tax cut and work- ing-families rebate would help farmers by increasing food consumption Climate-change activists are not united behind the plan, criticizing the tax-cutting as- pects of the plan. The Ofice of Financial Management es- timated that state tax revenues would decline by $914 mil- lion over the policy’s irst four years. Carbon Washington, the group behind I-732, collected enough signatures last year to force state lawmakers to either adopt the measure or put it to a vote. Another Galinato-led study completed this year, titled “How a Race to the Bottom Can Make You Face,” linked lower business taxes with higher childhood obesity rates. The study concluded that cutting taxes and increasing spending on infrastructure to attract businesses siphoned money from health and edu- cation programs that reduce obesity. Paciic Ag acquires Calagri Company bolsters status as largest crop residue handler Don Jenkins/Capital Press Randy Lawffer, center, and his wife, Linda, smile June 17 at the Red Lion Inn in Olympia after being named tree farmers of the year by the Washington Tree Farm Program. The Lawffers own about 250 acres of timberland and pasture near Amboy in southwestern Washington. Stihl branch manager Dave Warren, left, presented the Lawffers with a chainsaw. SW Washington couple receive tree farm honor By DON JENKINS Capital Press OLYMPIA — A couple who own about 250 acres of timber and pasture land in southwestern Washington were honored Friday as tree farmers of the year by the Washington Farm Tree Pro- gram. The Lawffer Tree Farm near Amboy in northeast- ern Clark County has been in the family for more than a century. Randy and Linda Lawffer, who have four chil- dren, 16 grandchildren and ive great-grandchildren, said they hope the land will stay in the family. “It’s a big honor. I think it’s another incentive for the kids to realize how important it is to keep it going,” Randy Lawffer said. The Lawffers received the award at the organization’s 29th annual awards luncheon, which was held in conjunc- tion with the annual meeting of the Washington Farm For- estry Association. The nonproit tree program administers the American Tree Farm System in Wash- ington. Landowners who meet the standards are recognized around the world for sustain- able forest stewardship, ac- cording to the organization. The organization is cele- brating the 75th anniversary of the irst certiied tree farm, a 120,000-acre tract in Grays Harbor County that was owned by Weyerhaeuser Co. when it was certiied June 12, 1941. The Lawffers certiied their tree farm in 2010. “The Washington Tree Farm Program is proud to honor individuals who go above and beyond in their commitment to responsible forest management,” the pro- gram’s chairwoman, Tammie Perreault, said. “The Lawffers have been doing that for gen- erations.” Randy Lawffer’s great-grandfather bought the property in the early 1900s. He took over managing the property from his father near- ly 40 years ago, according to a tree program press release. The couple do much of the planting, thinning and har- vesting themselves. In a video shown at the luncheon, the Lawffers talk- ed about the enjoyment their family has received by spend- ing time on the land. Randy Lawffer also said that grazing cows have bene- ited the tree farm by keeping down brush. Bill and Marilyn Logan, who manage the 40-acre J.W. Logan Tree Farm, east of On- alaska in Lewis County, were also nominated for the annual award. Bill Logan was sheriff of Lewis County between 1987 and 1994. His father bought the family’s tree farm in the 1940s. In another video shown at the luncheon, Logan said that people ask him how he prof- its from managing a crop that won’t be harvested in his life- time. He said a granddaughter likes to spend time among the trees. “That’s how you get your payoff,” he said. By GEORGE PLAVEN EO Media Group HERMISTON, Ore. — Two of the Northwest’s larg- est biomass and crop residue companies are joining forc- es. Pacific Ag, of Hermis- ton, announced June 16 it has acquired Calagri after nearly two decades working side by side in the industry. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Pacific Ag CEO Bill Levy said it will help provide better service for growers and a more re- liable stream of products for different markets. “I think it says great things about the future of Pacific Ag and our markets,” Levy said. “There’s a lot of great opportunities out there, and we felt we could meet those opportunities better together than we could sep- arately.” Pacific Ag is the nation’s largest harvester of crop res- idue and forage — such as corn stover and wheat straw — used to make things like animal feed or tree-free paper products. Composted wheat straw is also what’s predom- Photo courtesy of Paciic Ag. Paciic Ag, of Hermiston, Ore., announced June 16 that it has acquired Calagri, a hay and forage company based in Washington. inately used to grow commer- cial mushrooms for grocery stores. But perhaps one of the biggest future markets, Levy said, is plant material as a feedstock for biofuel and bio- chemicals. “We believe that’s going to be a signiicant part of our future,” Levy said. Based in Ellensburg, Wash., Calagri has collabo- rated and even shared equip- ment in the past with Paciic Ag, Levy said. Now, they’ll be able to continue that work seamlessly under a single op- eration. Calagri’s co-owner, Kerry Calaway, is joining Paciic Ag’s leadership team and said it is an exciting time to be joining forces. “New markets for forage and crop residue are grow- ing across the region and the country, and farmers are in- creasingly looking for ways to sustainable generate addition- al income per acre,” Calaway said in a statement. “Together, we will create more opportu- nities for farmers while pro- viding better service to our customers.” Levy said Paciic Ag will retain Calagri’s employees, and as a result of the trans- action the company will now harvest more than 300,000 tons of forage every year across Oregon, Washington and Idaho. “This is a signiicant addi- tion for us,” Levy said. “It’s exciting, truly, to be working with them and to be one com- pany.” Growers interested in learning more about gener- ating income off crop resi- due can contact Paciic Ag at 1-844-RESIDUE. Breeder makes progress on new quinoa varieties Sequencing genome will help breeding eforts By MATTHEW WEAVER Capital Press PULLMAN, Wash. — Pa- ciic Northwest farmers will be able to get their hands on a Washington State Universi- ty variety of quinoa in about three years, the university’s breeder says. Kevin Murphy, assistant professor in barley and alter- native crop breeding, hopes to follow the model for releasing wheat and barley varieties. He needs one more year of sol- id testing and then a year of increasing breeder seed and foundation seed. Most advanced lines are in Western Washington this year, where they get better seed set and yield, Murphy said. The university has 200 to 250 breeding lines made from crosses made seven to eight years ago. “We’ll narrow those down to maybe 100 next year, to 20 and then to one or ive,” Mur- phy said. “So we’re getting close.” Murphy said he has fol- lowed, but is not involved in, private efforts to develop quinoa varieties and expand acreage in Idaho. The week of June 19, re- searchers from around the world were in Pullman to build collaboration with WSU breeders and determine the next steps forward. One of the researchers on the tour was Mark Tester, as- sociate director of the Des- ert Agriculture Center at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia. He recently submitted an article to Nature magazine on sequencing the quinoa genome. Understanding the genome will help develop a sophis- ticated system to develop quinoa that’s economically viable for more farmers, Tes- ter said. The next step is to use the information to select for key traits in breeding pro- grams, he said. Sequencing the genome will also allow breeders to knock a year or two off of variety development, which currently takes eight to nine years, Murphy said. Murphy said remaining questions about quinoa in- clude its heat tolerance, herbi- cide capabilities and handling of saponin, a waxy coating on the quinoa seed. Tester hoped to view WSU’s quinoa germplasm, discuss food processing possi- bilities and learn about grow- ing conditions. “We’re just exploding with questions,” he said. “We’re only at the ground loor of understanding quinoa. At the moment, quinoa is still a very new crop. There are a million things to do to improve it.” Spokane co-op begins malting local grains for brewers, distillers By MATTHEW WEAVER Capital Press SPOKANE VALLEY, Wash. — Spokane coopera- tive LINC Foods is malting local grains as a raw ingredi- ent for brewers and distillers to make beers and spirits. The co-op recently held an open house for its new Palouse Pint brand, showcas- ing various beers made from its malt. The cooperative has been producing for roughly a month. “As craft brewing has got- ten so popular in the last 15 years or so, craft malting has just started to emerge,” malt- ster Joel Williamson said. LINC Foods primarily aims to distribute food and produce to local institutions and restaurants. The co-op was looking for a year-round processing endeavor for the winter months, Williamson said. “Malting is one of those highly consolidated industries — there’s four giant compa- nies in North America,” he said. “They produce all the malt, and it’s all large-scale, kind of anonymous, aggregat- ed from thousands of farms.” Going along with LINC Foods’ mission, Williamson wants to malt different local grains and identify the source. The cooperative will also Matthew Weaver/Capital Press LINC Foods maltster Joel Williamson stands in the middle of the malting facility May 17 in Spokane Valley, Wash. The cooperative hopes to market its Palouse Pint malt to brewing companies, home-brew shops and distilleries in the Spokane area. malt triticale, oats and other grains. Williamson is inter- ested in ancient grains such as rye, spelt, and emmer. “Anything unique and in- teresting that the big compa- nies just won’t do,” William- son said. “We want all the grains to be as close as pos- sible.” The cooperative hopes to work with farmers who em- phasize sustainability, pro- moting their soil health. “We’re giving farmers an alternative to the commodity market,” Williamson said. “In working with us, they get to tell me, ‘This is my price, this is what I need.’” Williamson said malting barley averages 10 cents a pound, but he pays 20 to 30 cents per pound. The cooperative plans to sell to small and large breweries, local home-brew shops and distillers within Washington, primarily in the Spokane area. Colfax, Wash., farmer Bill Myers sells the cooperative barley and wheat through his Joseph’s Grainery brand. He believes it will be a different offering in the marketplace. “There’s a big vacuum in Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho,” Myers said. “The malt he’s putting out is excellent. Unless they can get it from Europe or some- thing, they are just buying the same malt everyone else does. That’s what craft brewing is all about, having something different than the other guy.” Lind, Wash., farmer James Wahl will sell triticale to the co-op, on a trial basis at irst.
