Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Capital press. (Salem, OR) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 26, 2016)
August 26, 2016 CapitalPress.com 7 China may exempt some U.S. farm exports from Zika rules Capital Press ile photo Recently released records show the Environmental Protection Agency’s regional director was involved in meetings about the What’s Upstream advocacy campaign at least nine months before EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy denounced the cam- paign in front of the Senate environment committee. By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI Capital Press When in trouble, What’s Upstream went to EPA regional head Agency support continued after meeting By DON JENKINS Capital Press The lead organizer of What’s Upstream turned to the Environmental Protec- tion Agency’s top Northwest oficial last summer after lower-level staff challenged the legality of the EPA-fund- ed campaign, according to newly released EPA emails. What’s Upstream was an advocacy campaign to convince Washingtonians to press for increased regu- lation of farming to protect their water. Records show Region 10 Administrator Dennis Mc- Lerran met July 16, 2015, with Swinomish Indian tribe environmental policy direc- tor Larry Wasserman and tribe attorney Nate Cushman. After the meeting, EPA staff members proposed that What’s Upstream soften its attacks on farmers, but did not again question the cam- paign’s lobbying for new state laws regulating farm- ers, according to records the EPA has released so far in response to Freedom of In- formation Act requests. The EPA declined to com- ment for this story. Efforts to reach Wasserman were un- successful. The EPA Ofice of the Inspector General is looking into whether some $655,000 spent on What’s Upstream was a misuse of federal funds. Federal laws prohibits lobbying with EPA grants. The newly available re- cords along with those pre- viously released conirm the tribe’s contention that EPA not only funded but was deeply involved in reviewing What’s Upstream. Records show McLerran was involved at least nine months before EPA Admin- istrator Gina McCarthy de- nounced the campaign in front of the Senate environ- ment committee. McCarthy said the cam- Regulations threaten to impede $20 billion in farm shipments paign was the result of a “subcontract” and that the EPA was distressed about the use of its money and tone of the campaign and had cut off funding. Almost a year earlier, EPA staff members were try- ing to steer Wasserman from using the EPA grant for a campaign focused solely on agriculture’s contribution to Puget Sound pollution. In a May 19, 2015, email to the Northwest Indian Fish- eries Commission, EPA’s Puget Sound intergovern- mental coordinator Lisa Chang bold-faced and un- derlined her concerns about Wasserman’s plans for a media campaign directed against farmers. On June 4, Chang sent an- other email about an upcom- ing meeting with EPA staff, Wasserman and the isheries commission, which distribut- ed EPA funds to the tribe. “Larry will want to know the legal and contractual grounds for why he can’t do this. Also, Larry will want speciics about what activ- ities in the proposed work plan is of concern to EPA,” Chang wrote. McLerran’s public cal- endar shows he talked with Wasserman and tribe attor- ney Nate Cushman on July 16, 2015. Chang referred to the meeting in a July 27 email to the isheries commission and said follow-up meetings were planned with EPA staff, Wasserman and Strategies 360, a Seattle lobbying irm hired by the tribe. “I think (I) mentioned last week that Larry and a Swin- omish attorney had asked to meet with Dennis regarding the public education and outreach project and a con- versation took place,” Chang stated. “As a follow-up, they agreed to meet this week — Larry and several of the Strat- egies 360 staff will meet with (EPA staff members) Dan (Opalski) and Angela (Boni- faci) as well as the managers of our communications team here to discuss the project on Wednesday afternoon.” U.S. farm exports from re- gions unaffected by the Zika virus may eventually be ex- cluded from China’s new rules requiring mosquito treatments for incoming goods. For now, however, agricul- tural exporters have to treat outgoing shipping containers with pesticides to kill mosqui- toes, which spread the birth defect-causing virus. Within the U.S., local trans- mission of Zika through mos- quitoes has only occurred in Florida, but China has imposed its shipping regulations on all U.S. shipments, creating the potential for trade disruption. China’s Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspec- tion and Quarantine, or AQ- SIQ, will conduct a risk assess- Don Jenkins/Capital Press File Containers are stacked Jan. 28 at the Port of Tacoma. China is requiring most containers of agricultural goods to be treated to prevent the Zika virus from entering the Asian nation. ment “to determine whether to apply a regional approach in its Zika response,” according to USDA’s Foreign Agricultur- al Service. There’s no timeline for when Chinese trade oficials will decide, the agency said. “We’re hoping that could be a potential work-around,” said Abigail Struxness, pro- gram manager for the Agricul- ture Transportation Coalition. “We’re very encouraged Chi- nese customs (oficials) are looking at a regionalization approach.” It’s heartening that refriger- ated containers kept below 59 degrees Fahrenheit are exempt from the regulations, unless they’re found to have mosqui- toes or larvae, she said. Containers and vessels that were ocean-bound before Aug. 5 also aren’t subject to the rules. Exporters have several op- tions for treating containers. Aside from fumigation, they will be allowed to perform less-expensive fogging treat- ments or other operations to kill mosquitoes. While it’s unlikely adult mosquitoes could survive the ocean crossing from the U.S. to China, their larvae could withstand such a journey, Struxness said. Chinese authorities have offered to arrange treatments for incoming shipments at a cost of roughly $30-60 per container, depending on its size. Though treatments within the U.S. will probably be more expensive, most exporters will likely choose to treat contain- ers before they leave for Chi- na, Struxness said. That way, they’ll have more control over timing and the chemicals used, she said. China will require that con- tainers treated in the U.S. be certiied as mosquito-free, but this can be veriied by a third party — such as a pest control company — rather than the U.S. government. Rancher billboards promote grazing, logging on public lands Stevens County Cattlemen work to engage public By MATTHEW WEAVER Capital Press Stevens County ranchers are using billboards to raise aware- ness about public lands issues. The Stevens County Cattle- men are advertising with a bill- board on Highway 395 south of Colville, Wash. The billboard depicts the message “Public Lands: Log it, graze it or watch it burn.” A billboard featuring the message “Wilderness: pub- lic land of no use — no logging, chainsaws, grazing, mining, bikes, wheelchairs and ATVs,” was located along the highway in Arden earlier this year. The group irst used the bill- boards in 2015. “Much of the policy being set for public lands emphasizes conservation and recreation, but shuns good management like grazing and logging,” said Ja- mie Henneman, spokeswoman for the group. “The best man- agement uses holistic tools like grazing and timber harvest to keep wildire fuel loads down in the forests.” The county wants to see public lands be sustainable and healthy for the beneit of all, Henneman said. “Some of the best recreation- al beneits — clear trails, healthy stands of trees, reduced brush and vegetation — are because of cows and loggers,” she said. “It may not be politically correct to say right now, but these methods work.” The organization is also working with public land man- agement agencies, such as the Colville National Forest, to pro- mote a balanced approach. Henneman said the group is concerned that the proposed management plan for the forest does not promote healthy man- agement, and will harm local communities by shutting down grazing and logging. Courtesy Stevens County Cattlemen A billboard sponsored by the Stevens County Cattlemen promotes logging and grazing on public lands. WE S P E CIA LIZE IN B U LK B AG S! BAGS: • Seed Bags • Fertilizer Bags • Feed Bags • Potato Bags • Printed Bags • Plain Bags • Bulk Bags • Totes • Woven Polypropylene • Bopp • Polyethylene • Pocket Bags • Roll Stock & More! HAY PRESS SUPPORT: • Hay Sleeves • Strap • Totes • Printed or Plain • Stretch Film (ALL GAUGES) WAREHOUSE PACKAGING: • Stretch Film • Pallet Sheets • Pallet Covers LOCATIONS: Albany, Oregon (MAIN OFFICE) Ellensburg, Washington CONTACT INFORMATION: Phone: 855-928-3856 Fax: 541-497-6262 info@westernpackaging.com ....................................................... CUSTOMER SERVICE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY! www.westernpackaging.com 35-1/#5 35-4/#7
