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North Dakota Court on WOTUS: "Whoa" to EPA
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Where will she come down?
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WASHINGTON, DC -- The Clean Water Rule: Definition of Waters of the United States, better known as Waters of the U.S. or WOTUS, has been sidelined by a
federal judge in the U.S. District Court of North Dakota who called the measure "exceptionally expansive." EPA has said they consider the preliminary injunction to only affect the 13 states involved in the lawsuit: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming. For all other states, WOTUS will go into effect today as scheduled.
The North Dakota judge found the rule likely to be arbitrary and capricious and so expansive that it was contrary to the Clean Water Act's grant of jurisdiction. EPA's argument is that the lawsuit needed to be consolidated in the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals, where 14 other suits are pending. In the meantime the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) sent a letter to the agency requesting more time before implementation so state agencies could understand "their duties and obligations," but were rebuffed.
"The Clean Water Rule is now in effect in all rice states except Arkansas and Missouri. Farmers and landowners in the states where the regulation applies are advised to consult with state and local authorities regarding the timeline of implementation and how to avoid regulatory action," said USA Rice Vice President of Government Affairs Ben Mosely.
"There are still several pieces of legislation that have been introduced and passed out of committees in both the House and the Senate that would restrict or delay the final rule from going into effect," Mosely added. "Congress will likely consider language in appropriations bills that would also aim to prevent the regulations from being enforced. USA Rice supports these efforts and will work with our allies in Congress to include a statutory fix in whatever legislative vehicle has the best potential to clear both chambers of Congress."
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National Rice Month Spotlight: Promotion Raises Awareness
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Final in a series of three articles this week highlighting upcoming
USA Rice National Rice Month promotions
ARLINGTON, VA -- Promotional events and activities are held throughout September, National Rice Month (NRM), to celebrate the harvest underway, and show support for rice farming families. To help spread awareness of NRM, USA
Rice will have daily social media postings on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram covering topics such as sustainability and conservation, health and nutrition, farming, rice recipes, and fun facts. New photos, videos, and infographics will also be released throughout the month.
"Social media provides a direct line of communication to people, and it helps to grab their attention with interesting videos and images," said Colleen Klemczewski, USA Rice social media coordinator. "This summer, our most popular posts on Facebook were infographics about rice - they received more than 300 'likes' and 500 'shares,' exposing more than 45,000 people to our messaging. We're excited to reveal our new content in celebration of National Rice Month and anticipate it will generate a lot of interest and activity."
"It's important to take advantage of NRM to tell our story - U.S.-grown rice is healthy, locally-grown, and good for the environment," said Byron Holmes, USA Rice Nutrition Subcommittee chairman. "Not only do our activities help drive those messages home, I think they contribute to a sense of pride all U.S. rice farmers should feel for what they do. "
All month long, high school seniors in rice producing states will be conducting their own NRM promotions to enter the annual NRM scholarships contest, sponsored by Dow AgroSciences. Teens will plan creative activities to promote U.S.-grown rice, NRM, and the importance of rice growing in their state. Be on the lookout for promotions going on in your state and support our scholarship applicants.
National Rice Month will also be celebrated in the classroom. USA Rice is continuing its school education outreach by partnering again with Young Minds Inspired (YMI) to electronically distribute the Think Rice education program to 5,000 teachers in all six rice states and beyond.
"We received such positive feedback from teachers in the spring, we thought National Rice Month would be a perfect time to remind them about the program and encourage them to use it with their new classes," said Holmes. "We also sent the program to school districts outside of the rice growing states to reach teachers that regularly participate in the YMI program."
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Egypt Bans Rice Exports as of September 1
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Like their rice, staying put
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CAIRO, EGYPT -- Egypt will ban rice exports again as of September 1 to satisfy domestic consumption, the ministry of trade and industry said yesterday. The ministry has yet to decide the duration of the ban, according to Sayed Abu Qomsan, a deputy to the minister.
Egypt is expected to produce 2.7 million metric tons (MT) of milled rice in the 2015-2016 season while its annual consumption is estimated at 3.6 million MT. The 750,000 MT gap will be filled from existing stocks, the ministry said in a statement.
Egypt had allowed the export of its medium grain rice last October with an export tax of $280 per MT, on condition that traders sell the government one MT of rice at 2,000 Egyptian pounds ($255.43) for every MT of rice exported. Thursday's statement said any export licenses granted according to the 2014 allowance could still be used.
Egyptian medium grain rice mainly competes with U.S. and Australian rice in Jordan, as well as Russian, Italian, and Indian medium grain rice on the Turkish market. However, traders had argued the export tax and regulations imposed made exports non-profitable.
Indeed, official rice import statistics for Turkey do not indicate any Egyptian rice imports for 2014, nor for the period of January-June 2015. There are no official figures available on Jordanian rice imports for 2015. However, black market trade has happened in the past and is expected to continue in spite of the newly imposed ban.
Egypt first imposed a ban on exports in 2008 saying it needed to save the rice for local consumption and wanted to discourage rice farmers from growing the crop to save water. The government has used the tactic at other times as well, including a 2013 ban that helped the government build up stocks.
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| CME Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures | CME Group (Prelim): Closing Rough Rice Futures for August 28
| September 2015 | $11.590 |
+ $0.290
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November 2015
| $11.885 |
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January 2016
| $12.180 |
+ $0.295
| | March 2016 | $12.440 |
+ $0.300
| | May 2016 | $12.685 |
+ $0.295
| | July 2016 | $12.725 |
+ $0.300
| September 2016
| $11.735
|
+ $0.300
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In the News
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Around Washington
In a statement, the EPA said the 13 states that obtained the preliminary injunction in N.D., are not subject to the new rule on Aug. 28. However, it said, for the remainder of the states, "in all other respects, the rule is effective on August 28."
Around the Country
During the drought, less rice was grown, which meant a decreased flow of money to the research station. Experiment Station director Kent McKenzie said his operation was fortunate that some funding from a tariff settlement has been used to offset the lost financial support.
Rice, cotton, corn and soybeans will also be discussed during the Sept. 2 field day at the Fisher Center, which is located near Portageville in the Missouri Bootheel. Tours run from 8:30 a.m. to 1:10 p.m.
Ducks Unlimited received a $4-million award from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) and the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) through the Gulf Coast Conservation Grants Program to support wetland restoration on private lands in southern Louisiana.
Video report by Dr. Tim Walker, Horizon Ag, giving his take on what would help the rice industry in an interview at his company's field day in Rayne, La., earlier this summer.
Students consume up to half their daily calories at school, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which released the data. Interviewers visited a nationally representative sample of schools in 2000, 2006 and 2014.
As far as yield predictions, USDA's newly released figure has Arkansas rice listed at 7,550 pounds per acre (or 167.8 bushels per acre). In 2012-2014, there were three straight years of record yields for the state: 166-, 168- and 168-bushels per acre. The current yield prediction of 167.8 bushels per acre seems high based on what we know about the 2015 season.
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| Upcoming Events | Events Calendar
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| Mission Statement | | USA Rice is the global advocate for all segments of the U.S. rice industry with a mission to promote and protect the interests of producers, millers, merchants and allied businesses. |
| About Us | Editor: Michael Klein
(703) 236-1458
mklein@usarice.com
Fax (703) 236-2301
2101 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 610
Arlington, VA 22201
This report is time-sensitive, based on information available at press time. Content is derived from facts and sources believed to be reliable. Reprinting and/or distribution may be done with permission of USA Rice.
Copyright © 2015. Please direct comments or questions to the editor or contact name listed for each story. |
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