October 13, 2017
CapitalPress.com
11
Washington
Don Jenkins/Capital Press File
Opponents of a proposal to build a coal export terminal on the Colum-
bia River wave signs at a public hearing May 24, 2016, in Longview,
Wash. Washington Farm Bureau CEO John Stuhlmiller says the
Department of Ecology has set a bad precedent by denying the project
a permit to fill wetlands for reasons unrelated to water quality.
Washington Farm Bureau:
Nixing coal dock bad omen
By DON JENKINS
Capital Press
Washington Farm Bureau
CEO John Stuhlmiller said
Monday that he was disap-
pointed but not surprised that
the Department of Ecology de-
nied a key permit for a coal ex-
port terminal on the Columbia
River in Longview.
The project’s purpose, ship-
ping Powder River Basin coal
to Asia, probably will doom it
with Gov. Jay Inslee’s climate
change-conscious administra-
tion, he said.
“The fact that you’re mov-
ing coal is heavy on every-
body’s mind,” Stuhlmiller said.
“Personally, I think it’s prob-
ably a legacy issue for the ad-
ministration,”
The Farm Bureau has sup-
ported Millennium Bulk Termi-
nals since the coal company be-
gan applying for permits more
than five years ago.
The Farm Bureau says that
new rail lines and docks in the
state will help all exporters, in-
cluding farmers.
The proposal suffered a ma-
jor setback Sept. 26 when Ecol-
ogy denied a permit that Mil-
lennium needs under the federal
Clean Water Act to fill wetlands
and dredge the Columbia River.
Millennium complained Ecolo-
gy was biased against the proj-
ect and said that it will appeal
Labor contractor
fined $105,000
for no license
to the Environmental and Land
Use Hearings Office, a state
board.
An alliance of business
groups has organized a cam-
paign to send emails to Ecology
to demonstrate public support
for the terminal, and the Farm
Bureau has asked its members
to join in.
Ecology didn’t mention
climate change in its 19-page
denial letter to Millennium, but
Ecology has said it would hold
Millennium responsible for
increased carbon emissions in
countries that take the coal.
Ecology’s stated reasons for
denying the permit — one of
about 20 state, federal and local
permits the project needs —
weren’t confined to wetlands
or the river. Ecology’s concerns
included noise, air pollution,
traffic at rail crossings and
crowded shipping lanes.
Ecology Director Maia Bel-
lon said in a written statement
there were “simply too many
unavoidable and negative im-
pacts for the project to move
forward.”
Many of the reasons given
by Ecology were related to how
the project would affect a neigh-
borhood across a state highway
from Longview’s heavily in-
dustrialized waterfront. A study
found an influx of locomotives
would raise cancer rates, ac-
cording to Ecology.
Matthew Weaver/Capital Press
Randy Fortenbery, a small grains economist at Washington State University, says storing grain is riskier for farmers this year with flat
wheat prices.
Economist: Flat wheat
price means storage ‘risky’
Stocks down,
domestic demand
remains same
By MATTHEW WEAVER
Capital Press
Storing grain is a risky
economic move for wheat
growers this fall, a grain
economist says, since prices
aren’t likely to go up before
the end of the year.
“I’m not expecting (farm-
ers) to get rewarded for sit-
ting on grain another two,
three or four months,” said
Randy Fortenbery, Washing-
ton State University small
grains economist.
If prices don’t go up,
farmers cannot be compen-
sated for their storage costs,
Fortenbery said.
Storage typically doesn’t
pay off for farmers in fall and
winter, he said, but it tends
to pay off later in the spring,
when challenges to planting a
spring crop or a large reduc-
tion in spring wheat acreage
can occur, he said.
“If you’re just sort of try-
ing to hold your grain to get
through the end of the year
for tax purposes or whatever,
I don’t think you’re going to
get paid for that, given what
the current market conditions
look like,” Fortenbery said.
Asked if he’s recom-
mending selling, Fortenbery
said every grower’s situation
varies, and some individual
markets could offer a storage
incentive. It depends on how
much risk the farmer wants to
take.
“This is one of the more
risky years to speculate on
storage,” he said. “If you’re
not willing to be a high
risk-taker, this probably isn’t a
good year to store.”
Fortenbery expects prices
on the Portland market to re-
main in the $5.45-$5.50 per
bushel range through the end
of December.
“That’s a pretty tough
price” compared to growers’
cost of production, Fortenbery
said. Some farmers may be
near their break-even point.
U.S. wheat stocks recent-
ly were 2.25 billion bushels,
down 11 percent from the
same date in 2016. The re-
duced stock is part of the
reason prices are higher than
they were a year ago, but
farmers shouldn’t expect it to
mean prices will go higher,
Fortenbery said.
A combination of lower
production and domestic de-
mand that stayed the same
means some of that demand
will be met out of inventory,
Fortenbery said.
The USDA expects ex-
ports to be down by 75 million
bushels compared to a year
ago, from 1.06 billion bush-
els, but still higher than 2015-
2016, which was a low point,
Fortenbery said. Even though
exports are off, the total carry-
out of bushels in stock will be
reduced.
While the wheat stock lev-
el by itself doesn’t suggest
higher prices, other things
could happen to boost them,
such as a smaller Australian
crop than expected and a
weaker U.S. dollar boosting
exports, Fortenbery said,.
John Deere Dealers
See one of these dealers for a demonstration
By DAN WHEAT
Capital Press
OTHELLO, Wash. — A
farm labor contractor has
been fined $105,000 by the
state Department of Labor &
Industries for allegedly oper-
ating without a license.
The fine, issued to Agri
Aide of Othello, is the larg-
est ever levied against a farm
labor contractor by the de-
partment, a department news
release says.
Marivel Brunetti, co-own-
er of Agri Aide with Jose Luis
Brunetti, told Capital Press
the fine wasn’t for operating
without a license and that she
was trying to take care of the
matter with L&I right then
and couldn’t talk.
The penalty is based on
the firm’s history of repeat-
ed violations, L&I said. Agri
Aide did not file an appeal by
an Oct. 6 deadline but made
a $2,000 payment toward the
infraction, L&I said.
Agri Aide operated with-
out a license in 2012, 2013
and 2015 and received maxi-
mum fines in those cases, the
news release states. Violations
included forging a contractor
license in 2012 and failing to
tell workers about conditions
of employment in 2015, L&I
said.
Investigation of the latest
case began in May based on
a complaint. It involved Agri
Aide workers transplanting
chili plants at Williamson
Farms in Quincy.
Williamson Farms hadn’t
checked the Agri Aide li-
cense since 2006 and said it
would no longer work with
any unlicensed contractor,
L&I said.
Tisa Soeteber, L&I agri-
cultural employment special-
ist, said farmers should check
farm labor contractor licenses
annually before using them,
that the Farm Labor Con-
tractor Act protects workers’
rights and limits farmers’ li-
ability for using unlicensed
contractors.
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