State

From fox13seattle.com For years, Washington State has been losing two farms per day, and the impact of the Climate Commitment Act is making it even harder for some to survive. The Washington Farm Bureau says the Climate Commitment Act, which passed in 2021, is now disproportionately impacting small farms. If the system worked as intended, farmers wouldn’t have been negatively ... Read More »

From the Capital Press Legislation proposed by Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, and Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., is designed to preserve and protect the four lower Snake River dams. The Northwest Energy Security Act directs the federal Columbia River power system to operate in alignment with the “2020 Columbia River System Operations Environmental Impact Statement Record of Decision,” which found that ... Read More »

WAWG Past President Andy Juris, a farmer from Klickitat County, and Michele Kiesz, a farmer from Adams County, testified before the Washington State House Environment & Energy Committee this week in support of House Bill 1188, which requires local government and tribal approval of wind and solar siting recommendations by the energy facility site evaluation council. Juris told the committee ... Read More »

From the Capital Press Planted winter wheat is up 2% in both the Pacific Northwest and the United States, the USDA says in its annual winter wheat seedings report. Read the rest of the article here. Read More »

From the National Agricultural Statistics Service The statewide temperatures for December were above normal to slightly below normal throughout the state. Producers reported weather being unseasonably warm in the northwest part of the state. Vegetable growers hoped for colder temperatures to support optimal growing conditions. In the central part of the state, there was not much field activity in the ... Read More »

By Michelle Hennings Executive Director, Washington Association of Wheat Growers Happy New Year! There’s been a lot of changes in the last couple months. Not only do we have a large number of new state lawmakers and a new governor, we are also dealing with a change in administration in Washington, D.C. The Washington Association of Wheat Growers (WAWG) has ... Read More »

By Dr. Xianming Chen Based on the weather data of the November and December 2025, stripe rust in the 2024 wheat growing season is predicted to be in the range of severe epidemic level (40-60% yield loss on susceptible varieties). Using a set of forecast models based on this winter weather data so far (November and December 2024), highly susceptible ... Read More »

From the Capital Press Group 1 and Group 2 herbicides are still useful for farmers under some circumstances, but nearing the end of their lifespan, several Washington researchers say. “It’s pretty sobering to think about,” said Ian Burke, weed science professor at Washington State University.  Read the rest of the article here. Read More »

Have you purchased your floor tile for the Washington Wheat Foundation annex? Money raised for this project will be used for the Ambassador Scholarship program, which grants $4500 and $5000 scholarships to high school students entering their senior year, research equipment grants at WSU, Ag in the Classroom, Northwest Natural Resources Institute, and the FFA foundation. You can find information on ... Read More »

A coalition of regional leaders calls on the federal government to withdraw its decision to initiate new environmental reviews of the Columbia and Snake River dams. The coalition contends that a new National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) analysis would be both premature and unlawful, warning that it would be incomplete and could mislead the public about these dams’ vital role in ... Read More »