Agriculture

"One year after the Super Bowl season was marred by a ban on Mexican avocado shipments, another threat has emerged: An environmental complaint that avocado growers are destroying forests that provide critical habitat for monarch butterflies and other creatures."

"Seven attorneys general are calling on the federal government to create emergency standards to protect workers from the summer’s deadly heat by the beginning of May."

"No one knows for sure what happened to the ancient Hittite Empire. For nearly 500 years, its dominion extended across much of modern Turkey and into Syria and Lebanon. Its kings dwelled in massive stone palaces inside a gated capital city. Large-scale farming, sophisticated irrigation systems and far-reaching trade networks filled the imperial coffers. And then, just after 1200 B.C., it vanished."

"The Biden administration called for regulatory changes Wednesday to encourage voluntary conservation projects on private land, partly by shielding owners from punishment if their actions kill or harm small numbers of imperiled species."

"The Inflation Reduction Act was hailed for its climate funding – but some are concerned several provisions will worsen a growing environmental disaster".

"Rural communities of color and farmworkers are disproportionately exposed to some of the most dangerous chemicals used in agriculture."

"The Biden administration on Monday urged a federal judge to reject a state-authored agreement that could end the long-running legal battle over the waters of the Rio Grande, asserting that proposal could bankrupt a major irrigation project."

"Nearly half of workers in California say their farms are not in compliance with safety codes for extreme weather, survey finds."

"Pollution from livestock farming, pharmaceuticals and healthcare is threatening to destroy a key pillar of modern medicine, as spills of manure and other pollution into waterways are adding to the global rise of superbugs, the UN has warned."