Michigan Farm News http://www.michiganfarmnews.com/ Selected stories from Michigan Farm News en-us Copyright 1999-2008 Michigan Farm Bureau mfbinfo@michfb.com (Michigan Farm Bureau Information & Public Relations Division) mfbwebmaster@michfb.com (Michigan Farm Bureau Web Administrator) http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss 60 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Sunday Saturday Battling the bear The terms on which Demski is leaving his Berrien County tomato and cucumber operation are his own, mostly. But what forced his hand after years of bear wrestling was not the farm. It was the increasing number of dull arrows fired into it that made it impossible for Demski to live with. The slow, painful death Demski sees coming is one thing he won't watch anymore. http://www.michiganfarmbureau.com/farmnews/transform.php?xml=20080430/cover.xml http://www.michiganfarmbureau.com/farmnews/transform.php?xml=20080430/cover.xml DEQ slams Michigan farms in comments to EPA Following is the entire text of the public comment submitted by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regarding a rule proposal from EPA that would allow farms to self-certify that the farm has not discharged and has no potential to discharge. http://www.michiganfarmbureau.com/farmnews/transform.php?xml=20080430/deq.xml http://www.michiganfarmbureau.com/farmnews/transform.php?xml=20080430/deq.xml A history of anti-farming statements? In 2005, the American Farm Bureau Federation and the Waterkeeper Alliance both challenged a rule about concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) developed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). http://www.michiganfarmbureau.com/farmnews/transform.php?xml=20080430/antifarming.xml http://www.michiganfarmbureau.com/farmnews/transform.php?xml=20080430/antifarming.xml Tourism declines, some ag may gain Mike Beck, owner of Uncle John's Cider Mill in St. Johns, hopes Michigan families, shocked out of their long-range travel plans by gas prices and general inflation, will take shorter trips. http://www.michiganfarmbureau.com/farmnews/transform.php?xml=20080430/tourism.xml http://www.michiganfarmbureau.com/farmnews/transform.php?xml=20080430/tourism.xml Farm Bureau: DEQ shows 'apparent hostility' to production ag Following is the letter sent by Michigan Farm Bureau in response to the DEQ's comments to the EPA about its proposed new CAFO rule. http://www.michiganfarmbureau.com/farmnews/transform.php?xml=20080430/hostility.xml http://www.michiganfarmbureau.com/farmnews/transform.php?xml=20080430/hostility.xml Why biofuels are better for the environment Recent popular press articles have blamed U.S. agricultural ethanol production on causing global warming, primarily due to the indirect effect of causing deforestation of tropical rain forests. This type of narrowly focused, indirect analysis is fraught with error, lacking in science, and ultimately leads to poor policy. http://www.michiganfarmbureau.com/farmnews/transform.php?xml=20080430/biofuels.xml http://www.michiganfarmbureau.com/farmnews/transform.php?xml=20080430/biofuels.xml