The FedeRal MoToR Carrier Safety Administration will now accept comments on interpretations of farm trucking rules until Aug. 1. ..............................................2
The neW e15 (15 percent ethanol) pump label represents a relatively balanced compromise that will allow the market to determine demand for new blends. ..................3
R a i n s l oW e d W h e a T har vest at many locations last week, but far mers as the week began were around half done with the crop statewide. .........................7
Monday, July 4, 2011
Two sections Volume 39, No. 27
Quinn trims state budget for new fiscal year BY KAY SHIPMAN FarmWeek
Gov. Pat Quinn ushered in the state’s new fiscal year by first cutting and then signing a new $32.9-billion state budget. That amount is nearly $2 billion below what the governor proposed when the budgetwriting process started. Quinn said he “carefully examined the budget ... and identified areas for improvement and reduction.” He used
his line-item veto to make $376 million in cuts. Those areas included eliminating of $11.3 million in general revenue funds, for regional superintendent of education salaries as he had proposed earlier. Quinn stated the regional superintendents may be funded with other state funds. “To fund the regional superintendents from other sources would most likely take separate legislative action,” said Kevin
Semlow, Illinois Farm Bureau director of state legislation. “In March, the governor included in his proposed budget eliminating the regional superintendents, but the General Assembly did not support that recommendation,” Semlow continued. “The ball is now in the General Assembly’s court to accept the funding change or restore the funding by overriding the governor’s veto.” The governor also reduced
Roberts: Let ag committees write the next farm bill BY MARTIN ROSS FarmWeek
Periodicals: Time Valued
Senate Ag Committee ranking Republican Pat Roberts (RKan.) can’t predict when his committee may begin drafting a new farm bill, though “we’re trying hard to figure that out.” But Roberts asks congressional appropriators to allow House and Senate ag committees to “set the policies that lead to responsible spending reductions and strike a balance between the needs of our producers and our taxpayers.”
The broader budget debate “will have more impact on the structure of the next farm bill than it has on any other (ag) Sen. Pat Roberts policy proposal in my memory,” he warned at a Washington biotech industry conference last week. The House recently defeated an Appropriations Committee move to set a new $250,000 annual adjusted gross income limit for farm program eligibility, though direct farm payments remain a key target. Roberts sees “a big bull’s-eye on our back,” given high commodity prices and mounting deficit reduction pressures. He argued high prices don’t last forever and stressed ag policy is written for five years to ensure a farm safety net “in the good times and the bad.” High prices “don’t mean much if we don’t have a crop to sell,” he said, citing drought conditions in western Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas and a wet spring that’s prevented many Midwest growers from planting a crop. Crop insurance and direct payments (“Yes, direct payments”) will help “devastat-
ed” farmers survive 2011 losses, he said. Roberts is wary of program direction being set by appropriations committees, insisting “it’s what you’re cutting that’s dramatically important, and how that policy affects the farmer and, eventually, the consumer.” “We just went through (House) ag appropriations, and you saw what happened there, with some amendments that I thought were terribly counterproductive and not wellthought-out,” Roberts told FarmWeek. “That’s always what’s happened with appropriators who think they’d like to write a farm bill, as opposed to the (farm bill) authorizers. “We think we have the expertise to do it better, or at least safer. We just don’t know until we get (an ag budget) number, and we’ll quarrel about the number, obviously, like everybody else. “Farmers and ranchers tell me they’ll certainly contribute to deficit reduction. It’s just that we’d like to have everything on the table, and I mean everything within the ag budget. And we’d not like to be singled out for something that’s very disproportionate with regards to the entire budget.” See Roberts, page 3
FarmWeek on the web: FarmWeekNow.com
school districts’ transportation funds by $89 million. He stated that would bring the funding level back to fiscal year 2011 levels of $205.8 million. “The budget is now in place. A large portion of the smaller amounts cut from the budget were included twice in appropriations,” Semlow said. The governor noted he had discovered and eliminated double appropriations during his assessment of each line item in the budget. Quinn also cut $276 million in Medicaid funding. “Implementing a budget is not a one-day event but rather a year-round process filled with robust debate and difficult deci-
sions,” Quinn said. Quinn is unable to make a decision on the General Assembly’s expansion of the state’s gaming system because that legislation is being held in the Senate via a procedural rule. The action of the Senate freezes deadlines of having the legislature forward the bill to the governor and, therefore, blocks the governor from acting on the bill. It also puts on hold the creation of expanded gaming facilities. The General Assembly will be able to address the governor’s budget veto when lawmakers return in October for the veto session.
destined to become ethanol
Paul Jeschke, left, and his wife, Donna (atop truck), of rural Mazon in Grundy County load corn destined for an ethanol plant in Indiana. The Jeschkes are in the process of cleaning out corn from last year’s har vest. They farm with Mrs. Jeschke’s brother, John Dollinger, and his wife, Noreen. Mrs. Jeschke said the condition of their corn and soybeans this year ranges from good to fair. The family had to replant 90 acres of soybeans and 60 acres of corn due to heavy rains. (Photo by Ken Kashian)
Illinois Farm Bureau®on the web: www.ilfb.org
FarmWeek Page 2 Monday, July 4, 2011
Quick Takes DIRECT PAYMENTS/DIRECT IMPACTS — Cutting far m direct payments would have important effects on federal budgets, farm income, and farmland values, while impacts on crop production and prices likely would be small, according to a new study from the University of Missouri Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI). Much of the budget savings from cutting direct payments could be offset by sharp increases in Average Crop Revenue Election program expenditures, FAPRI analysis concludes. FarmWeek will delve further into the study — as well as conclusions by other economists — in a future issue. DISASTER HELP COMES TO WABASH COUNTY — Wabash County last week joined the Southern Illinois counties previously approved for federal disaster assistance because of damage caused by recent floods and storms. The disaster declaration will allow people and businesses in the county to apply for federal disaster assistance, including grants and low-interest loans. Earlier, 14 Southern Illinois counties had been approved for federal disaster help. Tornadoes hit Wabash County in mid-April and storms and flooding caused damage in late April and early May. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) operates a toll-free number 800-621-3362 for storm victims. State information is available at {www.Ready.Illinois.gov.} SOY HONOR — Sherwin-Williams Co. has won a Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award for an innovative new paint formulation using soybean oil and recycled plastic bottles. The technology is credited with reducing volatile organic compounds (VOC) in environments where the paint is used. Oil-based “alkyd” paints have high levels of VOCs that can become pollutants as the paint dries. Sherwin-Williams’ new paint cuts VOC content by 60 percent, and it reportedly eliminated 800,000 pounds of airborne VOCs in 2010. In manufacturing the new paint formula, SherwinWilliams used 320,000 pounds of soybean oil and replaced 1,000 barrels of petroleum-based oil.
(ISSN0197-6680) Vol. 39 No. 27
July 4, 2011
Dedicated to improving the profitability of farming, and a higher quality of life for Illinois farmers. FarmWeek is produced by the Illinois Farm Bureau. FarmWeek is published each week, except the Mondays following Thanksgiving and Christmas, by the Illinois Agricultural Association, 1701 Towanda Avenue, P.O. Box 2901, Bloomington, IL 61701. Illinois Agricultural Association assumes no responsibility for statements by advertisers or for products or services advertised in FarmWeek. FarmWeek is published by the Illinois Agricultural Association for farm operator members. $3 from the individual membership fee of each of those members go toward the production of FarmWeek.
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STAFF Editor Dave McClelland (dmcclelland@ilfb.org) Legislative Affairs Editor Kay Shipman (kayship@ilfb.org) Agricultural Affairs Editor Martin Ross (mross@ilfb.org) Senior Commodities Editor Daniel Grant (dgrant@ilfb.org) Editorial Assistant Linda Goltz (Lgoltz@ilfb.org) Business Production Manager Bob Standard (bstandard@ilfb.org) Advertising Sales Manager
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GOVERNMENT
New Aug. 1 deadline
FMCSA extends comment period on trucking rules
BY KAY SHIPMAN FarmWeek
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) will accept comments on interpretations of farm trucking rules until Aug. 1, after the agency granted a 30-day extension. Illinois Farm Bureau did not oppose the extension as long as the FMCSA remained committed, and it did, to reaching a solution by fall, said Adam Nielsen, IFB director of national legislation and policy development. Recently, three interpretations that impact farm trucking were challenged by IFB. That prompted the FMCSA’s review. Those interpretations are: interstate vs. intrastate definitions that apply to hauling of farm products within a state’s boundaries, a for-hire designation for farmers with crop-share leases, and applying trucking regulations to implements of husbandry. Nielsen complimented Farm Bureau
members who have submitted comments to FMCSA and encouraged others to do likewise. He learned hundreds of comments, many from Illinois, have been submitted. Recently Anne Ferro, FMCSA administrator, addressed the state Farm Bureaus’ national legislative directors when they met in Washington, D.C. The agency is seeking details about farmers’ use of crop-share arrangements and farm equipment so they can fine tune their interpretations, Nielsen said. “The administrator also emphasized that the comment period represents an ‘honest effort to understand the impact of regulations’ on farmers,” Nielsen said. Comments submitted must be identified as pertaining to Federal Docket Management System Number FMCSA-2011-0146. Comments may be sent online to {www.regulations.gov} (follow the instructions on the website); sent by fax to 1-202-493-2251; or mailed to: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of Transportation, Room W-12-140, 1200 New Jersey Ave., SE, Washington, D.C., 20590-0001.
Quinn OKs new seat belt, rider restrictions Gov. Pat Quinn last week signed legislation requiring backseat passengers to wear seat belts. The law takes effect Jan. 1, 2012. Under the new law, all vehicle passengers — regardless of age — must wear a seatbelt. Currently, people in the front seat must use seat belts, but the law doesn’t extend to backseat
passengers who are 18 or older. Emergency vehicles, buses, and taxicabs are exempt from the new law. Quinn also signed a law that prohibits passengers from riding in trailers, semitrailers, farm wagons, and other vehicles that are being towed on a public highway. Farm-related activities and parades are exempt. That law
also will take effect Jan. 1. The governor and legislators noted Illinois experienced one of its best years for traffic safety in 2010. For the first time since 1921, Illinois had two consecutive years with fewer than 1,000 traffic fatalities. Increased use of seat belts was credited with helping to reduce traffic fatalities.
Rural Development awards economic development grant to Illinois group The Illinois Coalition for Community Services has been selected to receive $175,105 over the next three years to promote economic and community development in 13 Illinois communities, Colleen Callahan, Rural Development state director, announced last week. The Illinois recipient was one of 43 selected nationwide for $9.5 million in loans and grants. The funding is provided through the Rural Community Development Initiative Program. The Illinois Coalition will work with the towns of
Coffeen, Herrick, Johnston City, Roodhouse, Rosiclare, Rushville, Shawneetown, Vienna, and Palmyra. It also will work with Food Works in Carbondale, Hamilton County Economic Development, Pulaski County Project Hope, and The Happy Helpers Pantry, Tamms. The Illinois Coalition, the state’s largest community service provider, has offered services to rural and economically challenged communities since 1985. It plans to train representatives of the 13 towns and organizations how to
research g rants and other funding sources, develop strategic plans, recr uit and manag e volunteers, write g rants, and develop budg ets. It plans to match the Rural Development g rant with state funds. “Our goal is to help the leaders in these communities design and implement their solutions that will ultimately promote economic growth,” Callahan said. Information about Rural Development programs and Illinois offices is available online at {www.rurdev. usda.gov/ILHome.html}.
Page 3 Monday, July 4, 2011 FarmWeek
government
E15 pump label standards seen as adequate compromise BY MARTIN ROSS FarmWeek
It may not be perfect from a grower or biofuels industry viewpoint, but the new E15 (15 percent ethanol) pump label represents a relatively balanced compromise that will allow the market to determine demand for new blends. So said Illinois Corn Growers Association (ICGA) technology and business development director Dave Loos fol-
lowing culmination of a more than six-month federal process of fine-tuning labels that will alert motorists nationwide to new allowable gasoline standard blends (see accompanying label). Currently, Illinois annually produces roughly 1.6 billion gallons of ethanol per year. E15 has become a major rallying point for an industry rapidly approaching the “blend wall,” where ethanol supplies
Senator-turned-governor: Don’t ‘kill’ biofuels revenues While he no longer toils in Senate halls, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback fully grasps one of Capitol Hill’s most compelling and contentious buzzwords: revenue generation. Brownback’s not so sure some of his former colleagues share that understanding when it comes to the impact of ethanol on national, state, and individual revenues. The former Republican senator, who now chairs the multi-state Governors’ Biofuels Coalition, is concerned by the recent Senate vote Gov. Sam supporting immediate elimination of the 45Brownback cent-per-gallon volumetric ethanol excise tax credit (VEETC) and an accompanying 54-cent-per-gallon ethanol import tariff that offsets tax credits for foreign biofuels. Renewable Fuels Association spokesman Matt Hartwig last week deemed the measure “little more than theater.” But while House action is required for VEETC elimination prior to its scheduled Dec. 31 expiration, the debate has expedited talk of transitioning to a lower and/or “variable rate” credit. Brownback recognizes “we’ve got to get our deficit under control,” but is adamant about the need for continued ethanol support in some form to foster cellulosic ethanol development and sustain economic momentum across the Midwest. Without tax credits for fuel blenders, “ethanol wouldn’t be anywhere near where it is today in providing 10 percent of the fuel needs of America,” he told FarmWeek at a Washington conference. “Now, you have an industry that is up, is growing, is dynamic, is creating jobs across the United States, is consuming U.S. products, is selling a product to America that is from America instead of from overseas,” Brownback said. “Lawmakers must be careful, because we don’t want to kill that. (Biofuels) could get to be a third of our fuel needs. If we get to (15 percent ethanol blends), that will help. “If we expand cellulosic ethanol, that will help substantially, because now you have new feedstocks coming in that can make a lot of ethanol.” Spanish-based Abengoa’s Hugoton, Kan., operation will blend existing corn-based production with biomass conversion. With Abengoa close to its goal of securing an annual 315,000 tons of crop residues and energy crops, Brownback is “very optimistic” about project prospects and revenue potential. Further, he believes the “biorefinery” concept evolving with biofuels production could prove a launching pad for future “high value,” plant-based pharmaceutical products. Cellulosic ethanol enjoys a tax “carve-out” separate from the corn ethanol credit, but Brownback fears VEETC elimination would make extending the cellulosic credit “pretty tough.” However, he also notes the benefits of corn ethanol-based distiller’s dried grains, rejecting “food-vs.-fuel” concerns about grain energy use. “We feed the grain we don’t consume for ethanol — we feed the protein from it,” Brownback stressed. “(Biofuels) give us local markets: Instead of exporting the grain overseas — which we still do a great deal of — we can make the grain into ethanol, sell that in a U.S. marketplace.” — Martin Ross
Roberts Continued from page 1 Roberts noted commodity programs constitute only about 4 percent of the ag budget and less than 0.25 of a percent of the entire federal budget. He reported ongoing discussions with colleagues to arrive at “a fair number” for producers. In terms of the larger budget, he sees a Democrat push for significant defense cuts, new “revenue enhancements” (“we call those taxes in Kansas”), and a possible new economic stimulus package. “That combination,” on top of deficit reduction proposals, likely would result in a sharp and prolonged partisan divide in the Senate, Roberts said.
would exceed market demand. appeared too cautionary. ment standards appear in line The E15 label, a modified “If cost savings from E15 with state fire marshal guidelines version of a design submitted can be passed to the consumer, for safe retail E15 sales, Loos last fall by the U.S. EnvironmenI think we’ll see early adoption. said some questions may remain tal Protection Agency (EPA) and Right now, at a minimum, regarding existing pump piping. the Federal Trade Commission, ethanol is 20-25 cents cheaper Newer pumps are particualerts consumers that they are receiving blends of up to 15 percent ethanol. It notes E15 is approved for use only in 2001 and newer passenger vehicles or E85capable “flex-fuel” vehicles and prohibited from use in “other vehicles, At left is the original E15 pump label designed last year by the Federal Trade boats, or gasolineCommission for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). At right is the powered equipnew label approved by EPA for nationwide use. The new label tones down early ment.” The labeling cautionary language and emphasizes allowable E15 uses over prohibited uses. scheme is “better than what EPA originally proposed and especially than gasoline at the (wholesale larly well-suited for E15 use, better than what opponents to blending) rack. he said. Loos suggested an E15 were proposing,” Loos “Three or four weeks ago, it industry/policy push for told FarmWeek. was 80-90 cents cheaper. Coninstallation of new multiWhile ICGA challenges sumers would have a chance to blend “blender pumps” would claims by small engine manurealize savings from petroleum enable retailers now serving facturers that higher-level marketers who are early adopters.” flex-fuel motorists to “get blends could harm mowers, Industry representatives ahead of the market.” boats, or other machinery, last week suggested the first EPA’s E15 rule also includes Loos acknowledged their con- E15 blends could hit the mara requirement to track E15 cerns about addressing potenket this fall. Illinois is “probathrough the fuel supply chain tial warranty/liability issues. bly positioned” for early E15 and directs a quarterly survey “I think EPA did a nice job entry, Loos said, though some to ensure pumps dispensing of balancing things,” Loos remaining federal and state E15 are properly labeled. said. “The label doesn’t have a hurdles must be cleared. EPA is issuing guidance on ‘Warning’ or ‘Danger’ notice EPA is expected by August compatibility of underground — it’s more an informational or September to register the fuel storage tanks with gas conlabel than an alarmist label. It for consumer use, pending taining greater than 10 percent doesn’t hurt the image of results of health impact studies. ethanol or diesel with more ethanol as we were fearing it States must sign off on specifithan 20 percent biodiesel conmight end up doing if it had cations, and while fuel equiptent.
‘Trade adjustment’ controversy scuttles Senate FTA action Anticipated action on U.S. free trade agreements (FTAs) collapsed last week as Republicans boycotted a planned Senate Finance Committee “mock (FTA) markup” over plans to tie controversial “trade adjustment assistance” (TAA) to FTA legislation. Producers were disappointed by cancellation of Thursday’s trial vote on tariff reduction agreements with South Korea, Colombia, and Panama. But American Farm Bureau Federation analyst Chris Garza Friday called the standoff merely “a small hurdle” toward eventually ratifying the three accords. “There still seems to be a very strong commitment by the administration and Congress to try to get these FTAs done by August recess,” he told FarmWeek. National Pork Producers Council President Doug Wolf deemed an FTA vote imperative “before Congress takes its month-long break.”
Statements by Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and ranking Republican Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), following Senate plans to return to Capitol Hill Tuesday, raised hopes for FTA progress by mid-July, Garza said. The White House and Baucus insist on renewing expired TAA benefits for U.S. workers displaced by offshore job movement as part of FTA approval. That’s despite bipartisan consensus that FTAs would generate major U.S. export gains and a senior administration official’s recognition that Americans overall could “reap the economic benefits” of the agreements. In a White House teleconference last Tuesday, officials touted an agreement with Baucus and House Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-Mich.) to attach TAA approval to FTA approval. But many Senate Republicans remain opposed to the pair-up as a “procedural”
issue, Garza related. Hatch argued “the president knows TAA can’t stand alone.” While AFBF and many bipartisan lawmakers supports TAA in principle, Senate Republicans favor “a straight up-or-down, separate vote” on TAA, Garza said. FTA approval faces added challenges: House Ways and Means Committee ranking Democrat Sander Levin (DMich.) has stated he would oppose the Colombia FTA without further provisions to protect Colombia worker rights. The U.S. and Colombia recently agreed to “enhancements” aimed at reducing laborrelated violence, and administration officials stressed Colombian officials already have taken a number of new steps. “What’s clear is that TAA will have to be a part of the FTAs,” Garza nonetheless said. “How that gets worked out, I’m not really sure at this point.” — Martin Ross
FarmWeek Page 4 Monday, July 4, 2011
government
Senate ag leader sees support for regulatory reforms we don’t get any shenanigans holding up the bill, I think we’ll receive the same kind of biparSenate Ag Committee ranking Republican tisan support that was evident in the House.” Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) is hopeful the Senate soon The measure directs federal agencies to will act to rein in “regulatory overkill” in keepreview the justification for all existing and proing with recent House action and, by implicaposed regulations. Roberts argued it essentially tion, White House orders. “codifies” President Obama’s January executive Roberts is spearheading Senate approval of a order targeting duplicative and “counterproducmeasure that tive” Cabinetamong other level regulations ‘The regulatory cost is just hammering while expanding things would block fall U.S. at rural America and almost everything the directive to Environmental independent we do in this country.’ Protection agencies such as Agency (EPA) EPA and implementation removing what — U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts he termed of new U.S. Ranking Republican, Senate Agriculture Committee Clean Water “loopholes” in Act National the executive Pollutant Discharge Elimination System order. (NPDES) pesticide application permits. Regulatory overreach is “the No. 1 issue” While NPDES permits initially would apply raised by his home district constituents, Roberts to aquatic pesticides, ag groups fear EPA even- said. Farmers in particular are “suffocating tually could require permits for crop applicaunder a mountain of regulations coming out of tions already regulated under the Federal Washington,” he added. Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act. He noted Federal Register publication of Roberts argues legislation approved by his proposed and final rules has reached “an allcommittee earlier this month would head off time high,” posting 3,573 final and 2,439 pro“a double layer of red tape that ultimately posed rules in 2010. The latter represents a 20 costs producers and consumers.” percent increase over 2009, and Roberts projThe House already has approved the measects 224 of those regulatory proposals would ure, but Senate Environment Committee carry $100 million in economic impact. Chairman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) has The current NPDES permit plan could have opposed it. a serious public health impact on communities “I think we have an understanding with Sen- battling potentially disease-carrying mosquitoes ator Boxer — I hope we do — that we will con- following heavy spring rains, Roberts added. sider it,” Roberts told FarmWeek last week “The regulatory cost is just hammering at during an international biotechnology conferrural America and almost everything we do in ence in Washington. “If that can take place and this country,” he advised.
BY MARTIN ROSS FarmWeek
Pesticide labeling plan increases producer risk Farm Bureau argues a proposed change in the way federal pesticide guidelines are communicated ignores rural technical challenges and poses producer privacy and liability concerns. The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) addressed concerns about proposed “web-distributed” pesticide labeling in recent comments to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Removing detailed instructions and requirements from chemical labels for exclusively online publication is a “huge issue,” warns AFBF regulatory specialist Tyler Wegmeyer. Wegmeyer reported the agency may issue a final plan some time later this year. EPA is “clearly gung ho” about the plan, arguing it would improve individual compliance with often lengthy, finely printed labels, he told FarmWeek. Under the proposal, producers could search online “labels” for information specifically relevant to their needs, EPA maintains. But Wegmeyer notes many rural areas still lack or have limited high-speed Internet access — “Maybe in 20 years, this would be OK, but not now.” Even for those with broadband access, printing instructions — and reprinting them if additional information is needed — would be a “cumbersome” process, he said. “You’d put in your information as Joe Farmer — you’re going to apply X pesticide on X date on X field — and it would spit out exactly what endangered species are in your area, what the (application) rate is,” he related. “That causes huge concerns from a private information standpoint. “This also would give EPA the excuse to change the ‘label’ more frequently. As farmers, we buy stuff and put it in our barn so we have it available. “In the meantime, EPA could change the label. If it took corn off the label of a pesticide and you still have it, what are you going to do with it? You can’t legally apply it; you can’t legally resell it. You have a product in your inventory and can’t use it.” AFBF submitted its concerns to EPA jointly with national corn, wheat, cotton, rice, sorghum, and produce groups. Under the current system, growers generally can continue to use a product according to container label as long as they possess the product. Use is prohibited when EPA issues a use cancellation date or a product’s no longer registered in a state that prohibits use of unregistered pesticides. Product labels currently are available on various private websites for growers who’d prefer online access, Wegmeyer noted. Chemical manufacturers have joined farm groups in opposing EPA’s proposal. In comments to EPA, AFBF and others recognized that eventually, “some improved means of communicating label information might be needed.” “Should that need arise, we will work cooperatively with EPA on the issue to assure that the needs of the agency and producers are taken into account,” they stated. — Martin Ross
Equipment manufacturers oppose plan The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) called on Congress, Transportation Secretary LaHood, and the Federal Communications Commission to stop the threat in the U.S. to global positioning systems (GPS) posed by LightSquared, the company planning to deploy a nationwide broadband Internet infrastructure of 40,000 ground stations. AEM, a founding member of the Coalition to Save Our GPS, warned the planned ground stations likely would render commercial and private GPS signals unreliable and in some cases “useless” and that implementing LightSquared’s plan would add unnecessary burdens to the U.S. economy. A study just released by the Coalition to Save Our GPS indicates more than 3.3 million jobs depend on GPS technology and the plan’s direct economic cost to U.S. commercial GPS users and manufacturers could be $96 billion. Allowing LightSquared to move forward with its plan would heighten uncertainty at a time when the U.S. already is economically challenged, the association maintained. Implementation reportedly would hurt two key machinery manufacturing areas represented by AEM — agriculture, and construction. According to one AEM member company, the LightSquared plan could degrade most if not all GPS receivers as far as 22 miles from one of the 40,000 transmitters. Farmer business plans depend on GPS information such as yield data, harvest weights, moisture data, and other precision ag data, AEM noted.
Page 5 Monday, July 4, 2011 FarmWeek
productioN
Large stocks, acreage estimates sink crop markets acreage estimate of 92.3 million acres, up 5 percent from The nation on Monday cele- last year. The estimate is higher brated Independence Day, but than the March estimate (92.2 it appears there will be no fire- million acres) and not lower, as works in the crop markets this the trade expected. week or any time Corn plantings soon. increased in FarmWeekNow.com USDA last some parts of For details on the USDA reports week shocked and traders’ comments, go to the western the trade with Corn Belt FarmWeekNow.com. higher-than(including Iowa anticipated quarand Nebraska) terly grain stocks estimates. Its that more than offset acres lost acreage estimate for corn also to flooding or that were was well above trade expectaswitched to other crops due to tions. planting delays. “Overall, the quarterly “There are some extremes stocks report is pretty negain the report compared to tive,” said Jerrod Kitt, market what the trade thought,” said analyst with the Linn Group, Jim Bower, analyst with Bower during a teleconference hosted Trading, during a teleconferby the CME Group in Chicago. ence hosted by the MinneapoQuarterly stocks last week lis Grain Exchange. “Even were estimated at 3.67 billion with significant (planting) bushels for corn (down 15 per- delays, (the corn acreage procent from last year but well jection) is above the high end above the average trade guess of trade estimates.” of 3.3 billion bushels), 619 Meanwhile, planted soybean million bushels for soybeans acreage was projected at 75.2 (up 8 percent from a year ago million acres, down 3 percent and above the average trade from a year ago. All wheat guess of 596 million bushels), acres totaled 56.4 million, up 5 and 861 million bushels for percent from last year. wheat (down 12 percent from In Illinois, planted acres a year ago but well above the were estimated at 12.5 million average trade guess of 826 mil- for corn and 8.9 million acres lion bushels). of beans, slightly below year“Corn opened limit-down ago levels, while wheat acres (Thursday) after the shockingly totaled 760,000 compared to a high number in the stocks record-low 330,000 last year. report,” said Terry Roggen“Producers (with recordsack, market analyst with the high corn prices) had every Hightower Report. incentive to plant as many corn USDA last week also suracres as possible,” Roggensack prised the trade with a corn said. “Now we’re looking at BY DANIEL GRANT FarmWeek
IPPA to host visioning session The Illinois Pork Producers Association (IPPA) on July 19 will host a visioning session for pork producers at the Illinois Corn Growers Association office in Bloomington. IPPA staff at the event will provide updates on programs and activities. Attendees will receive an opportunity to review current IPPA programs and discuss new goals and priorities. The input will help shape IPPA’s 2012 budget in checkoff and non-checkoff program areas. The visioning session also will feature two speakers: Tom Hebert, an environmental consultant with the National Pork Producers Council and former USDA undersecretary; and Chad Hart, Iowa State University Extension economist. Hebert will discuss rules for operations defined as concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFO). Hart will present a seminar about livestock gross margin insurance and what producers need to know to use this risk management tool. “I will discuss how I see EPA’s (Environmental Protection Agency) implementation of the CAFO rule unfolding and evolving, specifics for what will be expected of producers as a result, and how CAFO rule enforcement will come into play,” Hebert said. “I also will discuss how EPA’s broader effort to focus on states having and using Clean Water Act numeric nutrient criteria could define pork producers’ success or failure.” Pork Producers may register for the visioning session online at {www.ilpork.com} or obtain more information by contacting the IPPA office at 217-529-3100. All attendees will receive food, beverages, and tickets for the Normal Cornbelters’ minor league baseball game, which will follow the session. A special “Salute to Pork” night will be held July 19 at the CornBelters game, which begins at 6 p.m. at The Corn Crib stadium located on the northwest side of Normal.
‘Corn opened limit-down (Thursday) after the shockingly high number in the stocks report.’ — Terry Roggensack The Hightower Report
reasonably comfortable supplies of old and new crop.” Not everybody associated with the crop market was dis-
appointed to see last week’s break in prices. “Livestock producers really needed this break,” Kitt said.
“There’s been a dramatic decrease in forage” due to the drought in the southern U.S. Roggensack said lower grain prices will help improve ethanol margins, allow China to restock its grain reserves, and possibly allow pork producers to expand while beef producers eventually may boost the number of cattle in feedlots. “There is plenty of demand if prices come down,” the analyst added.
USDA report leaked for second week in a row Some people who follow the ag commodity markets will go to great lengths to get their hands on USDA reports prior to their official release (see the movie “Trading Places” as a comedic example). But anyone who was watching the last two weeks was treated to sneak peeks at two key USDA reports without lifting a finger. Wire service reports containing information about the June 30 acreage/grain stocks report and the June 24 quarterly hogs and pigs report were inadvertently released early to the public. Information about the acreage/grain stocks report slipped out 2 minutes early while the hogs and pigs report got loose 15 minutes prior to its scheduled release.
Both incidents were being investigated by USDA’s Agricultural Statistics Board. “We’ve obviously got a problem,” Hubert Hamer, chairman of the Ag Statistics Board, told Reuters news service. “We think we have a telecommunication problem, but we can’t validate that.” USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service in a news release stated the mishap prior to the acreage/stocks report was caused by a failure of the Ag Statistics Board’s telecommunications control switch, which is being replaced. Hamer said USDA expects to have the problem fixed prior to the crop supply and demand report on July 12.
FarmWeek Page 6 Monday, July 4, 2011
CROPWATCHERS Bernie Walsh, Durand, Winnebago County: The temperatures are going up and the markets are going down. That’s enough to give anyone a headache. The corn and beans still look good in our area. We have missed all the rains for two weeks now and with the hot weather that is forecast, the heat is bound to have an effect sooner or later. The wheat is turning color fast, but is still 10 days to two weeks from being ready to harvest. Lots of second-cutting hay was made this past week and most of the beans were sprayed the second time. We will have to see if July brings more fireworks to the markets. Pete Tekampe, Grayslake, Lake County: A hot, dry week in Lake County. No measurable rain for the week. Most of the corn is looking good with some more than waist high and having a dark green color. It’s growing fast. Beans are also looking good. Spring grains are looking better. Quality hay was baled last week. Hope everyone had a safe holiday. Leroy Getz, Savanna, Carroll County: Sunny, windy, and warm weather has really dried things up. A little rain would be appreciated. I had 3.7 inches of rain for the month of June, but only 0.15 of that came in the last two weeks. But listen, you can hear the corn grow, and it’s well above my head now. Great hay weather. Second crop is excellent quality, but quantity is a little down. We can always buy poor hay, but can’t always make excellent alfalfa. Growing degree units totaled 995. Ryan Frieders, Waterman, DeKalb County: It was a productive week here. We finished spraying herbicides on all the corn and the soybeans. We had some windless, sun-filled days that were perfect for spraying. The wheat is changing colors and should be ready to harvest soon. There also has been a lot of hay cut and baled. Larry Hummel, Dixon, Lee County: Last week’s weather was just what the crops needed. Plenty of sunshine and warm days have really improved the looks of both the corn and soybeans. Even the field of corn that I was complaining about last week is starting to turn the corner. It definitely couldn’t win a beauty contest, but it’s looking better and I will sleep easier. Corn prices have taken one on the chin and its knees are buckling. Funny how just a couple of weeks ago, I was worried that I was a little too aggressive with my sales. Ken Reinhardt, Seaton, Mercer County: A dry week, finally. Soybeans got sprayed easily, compared to the trials of spraying corn. There was hay finally made rain-free. There are a couple of patches of wheat that are getting close to ripe. Corn is still a week or so behind normal development. Ron Haase, Gilman, Iroquois County: Major farmer activities last week included post-emergence herbicide ap plication in corn and soybean fields, row cultivating in soybean fields, sidedressing nitrogen in corn, mowing roadsides, hauling grain and the beginning of wheat harvest. These activities all occurred after the 0.4 to 0.6 of an inch of rain that we received on June 27. Right now, as I write this report Friday, it is beginning to rain. Storms that passed to the east and west of us Friday morning included hail. Area cornfields range from the V-6 to V-11 growth stage. Most corn is V-8 to V-10. Area soybean fields range from the V-2 growth stage to the R-2 or full bloom growth stage. After the release of the USDA report, the local closing bids for June 30 were: nearby corn, $6.63; new-crop corn, $5.90; nearby soybeans, $13.10; new-crop soybeans, $12.62.
Mark Kerber, Chatsworth, Livingston County: It’s July and we finally are caught up after having a dry week to work. Roads and waterways are mowed, corn is sprayed, and half the beans are sprayed. Now it is time to clean up machinery. Corn looks pretty good in general with a few yellow spots and holes where water saturated the soils. Soybeans are starting to grow with warm temperatures and drier soils. Wheat harvest is just beginning as it will be followed up with double-crop soybeans for some. A five-tract land sale last week had the attention of area farmers and investors. Prices ranged from $6,500 to $10,000 per acre, depending on soil type. The corn market crashed after release of the acre and stocks reports. Will it come roaring back again? Soybean report was friendly. Brian Schaumburg, Chenoa, McLean County: Another great week for crop development. GDUs are about average with 1,175 to date. June rainfall at about 4 inches inches is about average as well. Post-spraying is wrapping up. Some tried aerial applications of ammonium nitrate Wheat is nearing maturity. Seed growers project their harvest to be two weeks later than normal. Corn, $6.17; $5.40 fall; soybeans, $13.17; $12.55 fall; wheat, $5.53. Steve Ayers, Champaign, Champaign County: The week started with 1.5 inches of rain, and the temperatures warmed as we moved through the week. Ideal growing conditions continue as farmers are busy spraying, mowing, scouting, and baling. Farmers are beginning to cut wheat. Last week, I read numerous Cropwatcher reports that had torrential rains in the 6plus inch range that we are blessed to have missed so far. Fair season is beginning. See you at Penfield at Historic Farm Days on July 7-10. Wilfred Dittmer, Quincy, Adams County: A clear Friday morning after all the stormy weather of the past weekend (June 25-26) and all the related clean-up afterward. What a blow! I’m surprised that there is any corn left standing the way the storm took down so many tree limbs and entire trees and utility poles. Rainfall for the month comes to 13.2 inches, which I think is a record. Fields have not dried out much since last report, and consequently, sprayers have not had much opportunity to roll. I have noticed some small hoppers while mowing field roadways and a few Japanese beetles on some ornamentals in the yard. Wheat fields look ready to harvest and some are working at their hay crop. Hope you had a safe holiday weekend.
Tom Ritter, Blue Mound, Macon County: After 1 inch of rain over the previous weekend (June 25-26) we had a dry week and were able to get in the field to catch up on some much-needed spraying. Much of the corn is too tall to be sprayed by a regular sprayer, and that is putting a little extra pressure on the crop service companies. Soybeans also are much in need of spraying and we’re having to use a little higher rate of crop protectants to control the weeds. Started to see the first tassels pop out last week on early-planted corn, but those fields are few and far between. Overall, the last two weeks have taken a major toll on corn in the lower ground. Many of those acres are a complete loss or are stunted with a severe yield reduction in those areas. It will be hard for the higher ground to make up the much-needed difference in yield. A good corn crop is still possible. We are seeing a lot of aerial application of corn fungicides being applied. Soybeans have definitely suffered with the major rains. During this past month, we had more than three times our normal amount of rainfall. Wheat is finally getting harvested. I have heard of no reports of yields yet. Jimmy Ayers, Rochester, Sangamon County: Another rainy week. We received 6.5 inches last weekend (June 2526). It’s been extremely wet. In the Waverly area, there was a report of 17 inches of rain in a three-week period. Corn in the low areas is really struggling and has a yellow cast to it. A lot of those areas are hidden from the road now by the taller corn. The beans also have struggled with the excess moisture. There wasn’t a lot of spraying done last week. Some of the earliest beans I checked on were V-5 and V-6. The earliest corn is tasseling, but there is still corn that is not yet a foot tall. There is quite a range with the different planting dates of the crop. Wheat harvest got started last week. I think it is doing pretty well. The ground is very wet, though. We’re having trouble just driving through the fields and have to back out of different places. Seems like the fall of 2009 when we had so much water and mud. The crop report took away quite a bit of our incentive to sell. This week’s weather should be pretty decent week for making hay.
Carrie Winkelmann, Tallula, Menard County: We saw 0.4 of an inch of rain last week on our farm. The dry weather led many farmers in the area to begin wheat harvest June 30, although I haven’t heard much about yields. Several farmers have been cutting hay. We have some on the ground and should be baling it soon. Corn in the area is throwing tassels. The dry weather has been an aid to the soybeans, which were showing signs of septoria in the wettest areas.
Doug Uphoff, Shelbyville, Shelby County: We received 1.5 inches of rain last weekend (June 25-26). North of Findlay only had 0.5 of an inch and south of us had 2-plus inches in places. Wednesday, we were able to get in and cut wheat that tested 13.3 percent and made 83 bushels an acre. Luckily, I delivered some of it before the blow up in the market Thursday. Wheat was worth 77 cents less Thursday after the close because of limit-down protection. It’s unbelievable that nearby corn was down 80 cents. I think we need to fix the USDA reporting system. I think it’s broken. But, maybe not. Sometimes I think they just grab numbers out of the air. We baled about 1,200 small square bales of wheat Thursday. We also rolled some of it up. Bean spraying is being finished up and roadsides are being mowed. Some corn is tasseling and others are at V-7 to V-8 and determining ear size. Hope everyone had a happy and safe Fourth of July. Thank a veteran for our freedom we often take for granted, and God bless the USA.
David Schaal, St. Peter, Fayette County: On Saturday afternoon (June 25), rain came through the area. Later that night storms dumped up to 5 inches in the area. Along with that came wind and some hail. Creeks in the area were as high as they have been for awhile, or maybe as high as ever. Water again has taken a toll on river and creek bottom ground, along with low-lying areas in fields. The bigger corn on drained fields looks really good, but corn in low areas or smaller corn is struggling. Wheat harvest is drawing to a close around here. Since the rain, the test weight has fallen off some. USDA enlightened us on how everything is, which drove markets limit-down after the report.
Ted Kuebrich, Jerseyville, Jersey County: Another week of rain in Jersey County. We received 2.5 inches and a lot of wind. The wind bent some of the corn over, but it does not look like any broke off. The service company is still spraying beans with Roundup. Corn that was planted the first week of April has started to tassel. The early-planted beans in narrow rows are starting to close up the row. Wheat harvest is still under way in between rainstorms. The wheat has a test weight running between 57 to 60. Growing degree days are at 1,610. Prices at Jersey County Grain, Hardin: Cash corn, $6.26; fall corn, $5.84; cash beans, $13.10; fall beans, $12.49; June/July wheat, $5.91.
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CROPWATCHERS Dan Meinhart, Montrose, Jasper County: Heavy rains hit the area the weekend of June 25 and 26. Amounts varied from 2 to 7 inches. Reports of total rainfall for the month of June are in the midteens. On Friday, showers began falling in the area. The only field activity last week was combining wheat and baling straw. Several bean fields need to be planted and replanted, as well as the double-crops. Fields are showing extreme stress due to excessive moisture. Showers were in the forecast for the weekend with hot, humid temperatures. Dave Hankammer, Millstadt, St. Clair County: We had thunderstorms move through the area during the evening of June 25. I received 4 inches of rain at my home in Millstadt. However, there was a report of 5-plus inches at a site approximately 6 miles north of town. High winds accompanied the storm, causing some green snap in shoulder-high corn. Flooding occurred in low-lying fields going over knee-high corn in some areas. The creek bottom field we still need to plant was flooded for the second time in June. Wheat harvest was stalled due to the storm. A local elevator manager estimated 50 percent of the wheat has been harvested. Yields ranged from 60 to 80 bushels per acre with test weights of 52 to 61 pounds. Some straw and hay was being made by the end of last week. Some of the early-planted corn is starting to tassel. Average height of the corn crop is waist-high with the latest corn only 6 to 8 inches in height. Wet areas in corn and soybean fields are obvious by the ever-increasing yellow spots in the fields. Have a safe week. Reports received Friday morning. Expanded crop and weather information available at {www.farmweeknow.com}.
Rick Corners, Centralia, Jefferson County: Breathtaking! We actually went four days without rain after 3-4 inches last weekend (June 25-26). I don’t believe I have seen such sick corn and beans as some of them look. Some of the beans are 4 inches tall with only three leaves on the very top. Most of the low spots in the fields this year are going to be bare. By the time you read this, wheat harvest will finally be about done. Planting beans in those ruts should be very interesting. Kevin Raber, Browns, Wabash County: Another month has gone by. Hard to believe it’s July. I hoped to finish wheat harvest Friday. It’s too wet to plant double-crop beans or to replant the drowned out spots of the firstcrop soybeans. Some fields I’m leaving a track when I spray. Hope everyone had an enjoyable and safe Fourth of July. Randy Anderson, Galatia, Saline County: Since my last report, we have received somewhere around 11 inches of rain. We have seen significant field flooding and the corn crop is going backward. There are some acres that are going to be a total loss because of the significant amount of rainfall, especially in the river bottom area. I would rate the corn crop at somewhere between 25 percent good to excellent and the remaining 75 percent fair to good. I would rate the bean crop at somewhere around 60 percent fair to good and 40 percent kind of mediocre. Excessive rains are the main problem. Wheat was surprisingly good — better than I anticipated after all of the rain we received. I have yet to finish planting double-crops on my wheat ground because of all of the excess rain.
Dean Shields, Murphysboro, Jackson County: After making my report last week, the weekend (June 25-26) turned out to be a very wet one with several inches of rain. Some parts of Southern Illinois got up to 6 inches. There was some localized flooding through the creek bottoms, etc. There was no fieldwork last week. Some of the earlier corn is tasseling and pollinating. Beans seem to be growing pretty decent and a lot of guys are spraying them. The wheat is pretty well finished in Jackson County. Word is that it was a pretty decent crop with good test weight. The quality was fairly decent also, so everyone was happy about that. Jackson County still has a problem with the Big Muddy and Mississippi Rivers. My river bottom area is still flooded. We have not been able to open the flood gates to let the water out into the Mississippi, and it looks like my planting season is over because of lack of time to get everything dried out. We will try again next year to get a little bit of crop in. Hope everybody had a happy Fourth of July. Ken Taake, Ullin, Pulaski County: We had some heavy rains on Sunday, June 26. Here on our farm, we received about 3.25 inches on Sunday and another 0.3 of an inch on Monday. Many people had more than 7 inches. That put quite a bit of crop under water in the creek bottoms. We were fortunate in that we had a little that went under, and the water came off pretty fast. There are some people talking about still trying to replant even at this late date. We managed to get back in the field on Thursday spraying some soybeans. Things that didn’t get too much water or go under water are growing well. Beans still look kind of spotty, but things are looking better. It continues to be an eventful and frustrating crop year. Please remember to take time and be careful.
Illinois wheat harvest nearly half done despite rain BY DANIEL GRANT FarmWeek
Rain slowed wheat harvest at many locations last week, but farmers as the week began had managed to harvest nearly half (43 percent) of the crop statewide. The amount of wheat harvested last week was up dramatically from the previous week when just 4 percent of the crop was in the bin, but harvest was 8 percent behind the five-year average pace, according to the National Agricultural Statistics Service Illi-
nois field office. “We’ve had six to seven inches of rain, so harvest has been at a halt,” Ken Cripe of Cripe Grain Co. near Vandalia and a Fayette County wheat grower, said at the middle of last week as he prepared to return to the field. “If we get three to five more good days, we’ll get it done.” Cripe estimated wheat harvest in his area the middle of last week was 50 to 60 percent complete. Farther south, Jim Anderson, a farmer in Williamson
County and Illinois Farm Bureau District 18 director from Thompsonville, last week estimated close to three-quarters of the wheat crop was harvested in his area. “It’s a good wheat crop,” Anderson said. “Yields seem to be high, even for a good year and even with all the rain and disease pressure.” Anderson and Cripe pegged wheat yields so far this harvest in the 60- to 75-plus-bushelsper-acre range. “Yields are a whole lot better than we first anticipated,” said
Cripe, who last fall planted about twice as much wheat on his farm as normal due to good planting conditions and strong wheat prices. “Quality and test weights (about 58 to 62 pounds) really have been pretty good.” It’s been a different story, though, for some farmers who would like to plant double-crop soybeans. “(Farmers) are having a tussle getting it in,” Anderson said. “In the last two weeks (June 14 to 27) we received just over 10 inches of rain.”
Anderson said some farmers in his area already gave up on baling wheat straw due to extremely wet conditions. Topsoil moisture in the state last week was rated 60 percent surplus, 38 percent adequate, and 2 percent short. Overall, though, soybean planting as of the first of last week was nearly complete (97 percent compared to the average of 94 percent) while the growth of the corn crop (average height of 34 inches) was behind the average pace for the last week of June (42 inches).
Analysts: Weather concerns will hang over markets USDA last week eased a lot of fears about tight crop supplies as it projected quarterly stocks of corn, soybeans, and wheat are above trade expectations. USDA also projected U.S. farmers, despite a wet spring, managed to plant the secondlargest corn crop (92.3 million acres) since 1944. However, USDA’s projections are subject to change depending on how the weather shapes up the next several months, according to market analysts Jerrod Kitt of the Linn Group, and Terry Roggensack of the Hightower Report. “Right now, crop conditions are looking pretty good,” Roggensack said during a teleconference hosted by the CME Group. “But if heat moves
back into the Midwest,” it could create issues. Corn typically is susceptible to weather-related losses the second half of July during pollination and soybeans generally are vulnerable to dry weather in August during pod fill. Meanwhile, the analysts questioned whether planted corn acres will remain as high this season as USDA projected last week. USDA reportedly didn’t have all the prevent-plant data for its report. For example, USDA lowered crop acres in North Dakota by less than 2 million but a separate analysis estimated acreage there is down by about 6 million acres, mostly due to flooding. Flooding along the Mississippi River alone, from Illinois to Louisiana, caused between $850
million and $2 billion in damage, according to John Michael Riley, ag economist at Mississippi State University. Elsewhere, more than 70 percent of Texas as of a last week was experiencing excep-
tional drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor (see graphic). More than half the corn crop (51 percent) last week was rated poor or very poor in the Lone Star State. “Certainly, there’s going to
be no dryland corn, sorghum is going to be questionable, and if it continues like this, there will be no dryland cotton to speak of,” said Nicholas Kenny, Texas AgriLife Extension Service irrigation specialist. Soybean yields also could be dragged down by the drought in the South. About 20 percent of the U.S. soy crop is grown outside the Midwest, Roggensack noted. On the flipside, drowned out areas of fields in the North didn’t show up in the latest USDA report. “Wet spots are not counted in acres, they’ll show up in yields,” Kitt said. “So there is a strong possibility of a downward revision (to crop production) after August.” — Daniel Grant
FarmWeek Page 8 Monday, July 4, 2011
Economic DEvElopmEnt
Central Illinois group throws cap into BCAP ring BY KAY SHIPMAN FarmWeek
A group of Central Illinois farmers and potential biomass buyers has applied to the Farm Service Agency (FSA) as a biomass crop assistance program (BCAP) project area this year. But the group also is taking a long-range view of growing, selling, and using biomass crops. The Prairie State Biomass BCAP area covers 29 Central Illinois counties from the Illinois-Indiana border to the Mississippi River. A decision on whether the project would be selected for funding was imminent. “We’re hopeful we’re not done with it yet. If not this year, then next. “We’re going to move forward in one form or another,” said Eric Rund, a Pesotum farmer and driving force behind Prairie State Biomass. A BCAP project area is a geographic area in which one or more farmers have agreed to grow and sell eligible bio-
mass crops to one or more biomass conversion facilities. Farmers and conversion facilities must apply jointly to the FSA. If Prairie State receives federal approval, all farmers within the 29 counties may apply to FSA for payments up to 75 percent of the cost to establish perennial biomass crops as well as receive land
payments for five years. Rund encouraged interested farmers within the 29 counties to e-mail erund@GreenFlameEnergy.com or call 217867-2511 for information. FSA has asked Prairie State to submit an environmental assessment of its proposed project, Rund said. He is looking on the positive side of a request for more information to add to an already extensive application. “It’s not a loss because we’d probably need an environmental assessment . . . no matter what,” he said. Biomass buyers are an important project component, and Prairie State received a commitment and support from several within the 29-county area. Prairie Power Inc., an electrical cooperative in Pike County, committed to buy the biomass. The co-op completed an engineering study to convert from coal to biomass as its principal fuel. It also initiated a
biomass test burn at its generating plant on the Illinois River. The co-op could burn up to 120,000 dry tons of biomass annually. Other potential buyers include: Eastern Illinois University, which has converted its Charleston power plant to biomass; Parkland College, which is planning to use biomass to heat new Champaign campus buildings; and the University of Illinois, which is planning to
reduce its coal use. Even with the potential buyers, a biomass industry, especially growers, needs support to get started, according to Rund. BCAP remains the only farm program to support “actual growing of biomass crops,” compared to the millions the government is spending to convert those crops, Rund noted. “There’s an imbalance, and we need to be looking at it.”
Central Illinois groups eyeing economic impact of local food Several Central Illinois entities have put a potential process-distribution center for locally grown foods on their plates. “This project is much about farmers and agriculture. It’s also about sustaining and supporting your local community. The whole idea of a local food hub is that we should rely on each other for the local economy,” said Marty Vanags, chief executive officer of the Economic Development Council (EDC) of Bloomington-Normal. Last week, representatives of several community colleges and universities, government agencies, economic development, local governments, and other groups ‘The whole idea of a local discussed the project and food hub is that we should the possible rely on each other for the economic impact during local economy.’ a meeting at Heartland — Marty Vanags Community Bloomington-Normal Economic Development College, NorCouncil mal. USDA defines a food hub as a centrally located business facility for aggregation, storage, processing, distribution, and marketing of food grown within a local or regional area. The proposed project area covers 32 Central Illinois counties. The hub would be located in the Bloomington-Normal area, which has a central location from several major urban markets. The Illinois State University dining services has committed to buy local foods for its Normal campus. Bloomington-Normal’s EDC will continue to be part of the project’s local steering committee, according to Vanags. Ken Meter, president of Minneapolis-based Crossroads Resource Center, discussed economic information about agriculture production in the 32-county region and support for the proposed food hub project. Meter estimated a small shift in production and marketing could make a difference in the local economy. He pointed out many sectors were represented at last week’s meeting: “You have a rare mix of people from different walks of life.” — Kay Shipman
Founding SIU ag dean dies Wendell E. Keepper, the first dean of what would become the College of Agricultural Sciences at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, has died at age 100. Mr. Keepper arrived at Carbondale in 1950 to take over an agriculture department with five faculty members and a budget of a little more than $70,000. When he retired in 1974, the School of Agriculture had grown to 59 faculty and staff, more than 850 graduate and undergraduate students, and an annual budget of more than $1.5 million. His funeral was last week in Carbondale. He is survived by two brothers and a daughter.
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From the couNties
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ARROLL — The Young Leaders Committee will sponsor its annual Harvest for All activity Saturday. If you have corn to donate, call the Farm Bureau office at 815-2443001. • The annual membership appreciation breakfast will be from 6:30 to 10:30 a.m. Friday, July 15, at the Naaman Diehl auditorium. ASS-MORGAN — The date indicated in the current edition of News & Notes for the annual member appreciation dinner/meet your legislators program is incorrect. The correct date is Thursday, Aug. 4. HAMPAIGN — Farm Bureau will sponsor toolshed meetings Wednesday, July 13, at the following times and locations: 8 a.m. Gifford; noon, Champaign; and 3 p.m. Villa Grove. Mark Gebhards, Illinois Farm Bureau director of governmental affairs and commodities, will be the speaker. Call the Farm Bureau office at 352-5235, see the July newsletter, or visit the website
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{www.ccfarmbureau.com} for specific locations or more information. • The Tractor Safety School will be Aug. 5-6 and Aug. 19-20 with classes from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. Fridays and from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays. Cost is $40 for Champaign County residents and $80 for out-of-county residents. Deadline to register is July 15. Call the Farm Bureau office at 217-3525235 or visit the website {www.ccfarmbureau.com} for more information. ORD-IROQUOIS — The Young Ag Leaders will sponsor a farm value breakfast from 6:30 to 8:30 a.m. Friday at the south food stand at the Ford County Fair, Melvin. ASALLE — The Marketing Committee will sponsor a bus trip Wednesday, July 20, to the Fair Oaks Dairy Farm, the Albanese Gummi Factory, and the Chicago Speedway. Cost is $75 for members and $85 for non-members if paid by Friday. After Friday, the cost is $85 for members and $95 for non-members. Call the Farm Bureau office at
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Calling all candidates: IFB to offer campaigning seminar BY KAY SHIPMAN FarmWeek
Candidates for any office share a common denominator — the election campaign. Illinois Farm Bureau will offer a workshop Aug. 11 through 12 at the IFB office in Bloomington to help potential candidates prepare for a campaign. The registration deadline is July 25. “This course is applicable to any campaign — whether it’s for a school board or a governor’s office. It’s for anyone who wants to get involved in public service and make a difference,” said Kevin Semlow, IFB director of state legislation. “This year is a unique opportunity in light of the redistricting for county boards and other offices.” Workshop participants will FarmWeekNow.com work as teams to run a campaign Visit FarmWeekNow.com or for a mock candidate and comyour county Farm Bureau to pete with other teams in an register for the campaign effort to get their candidate elected. school. Each team’s campaign information will be assessed based on real campaign situations. Teams will learn why different messages and answers resonate more with voters than others. Workshop topics will include: selecting issues, building an organization, raising and managing funds, managing a campaign, and getting voters to the polls. The program is open to anyone who is considering running for office, is wanting to work for a candidate, or is married to a potential candidate. A $100 registration fee includes meals and materials. Accommodations are extra. For more information or to register, contact your county Farm Bureau or call Kayla Arnolts of the IFB governmental affairs and commodities division at 309-557-3554 or e-mail her at karnolts@ilfb.org.
815-433-0371 for more information. • Season passes for the LaSalle County Junior and 4H Fair are available at the Farm Bureau office. Cost is $15. The fair dates are July 12-17. EE — Lee and Bureau County Farm Bureaus will sponsor their annual golf outing at 9 a.m. Friday at Hunter’s Ridge Golf Course, Princeton. Proceeds will benefit their Agriculture in the Classroom programs. Cost is $35 for Farm Bureau members and $55 for non-members. Registration includes golf, cart, and lunch. Call the Farm Bureau office at 815-857-3531 or e-mail leecfb@comcast.net for more information. • The Young Leaders Committee will sponsor its annual cookout at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, July 16, at Brad and Erin Shippert’s farm. The event is open to Farm Bureau members between the ages of 18 and 35. Bring a dish to pass and lawn chair. Call the Farm Bureau office at 815-857-3531 or e-mail leecfb@comcast.net for directions.
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• Lee and Whiteside County Farm Bureaus will sponsor a bus trip Wednesday, July 20, to see the Chicago Cubs vs. the Philadelphia Phillies game at Wrigley Field. Cost is $60 for members and $65 for non-members. Registration is on a first-come, first served basis. Call the Farm Bureau office at 815-8573531 for more information. • Farm Bureau and the Lee County Fair Association will sponsor an American Red Cross blood drive from noon to 6 p.m. Thursday, July 28, during the Lee County 4-H Fair and Junior Show, Lee County Fairgrounds. Call the Farm Bureau office at 815857-3531 or e-mail leecfb@comcast.net if you can volunteer or donate. Walk-ins are welcome. ONTGOMERY — The Prime Timers will meet at noon Wednesday, July 20, for a barbeque pork luncheon and meeting at the Farm Bureau office. Cost is $8. Jerry Dowding will provide the entertainment with flute music. Call the Farm Bureau office at 217-532-6171 by Fri-
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day, July 15, for reservations or more information. • The Prime Timers will sponsor a bus trip Tuesday, Aug. 2, to Fairmount Park, Collinsville. Cost is $32, which includes bus and buffet meal. Betting and cocktails are extra. Call the Farm Bureau office at 217-532-6171 by Friday, July 15, for reservations or more information. EORIA — Deadline to order blueberries is Friday, July 15. Cost is $10 for a five-pound container and $20 for a 10-pound container. Delivery to the Farm Bureau office will be Thursday, July 21. ERMILION — The Vermilion County Farm Bureau member appreciation night will be Friday, July 15, to see the Danville Dans vs. the Nashville Outlaws baseball game. Free tickets for Farm Bureau members are available at the Farm Bureau office.
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“From the counties” items are submitted by county Farm Bureau managers. If you have an event or activity open to all members, contact your county Farm Bureau manager.
FarmWeek Page 10 Monday, July 4, 2011
proFitability
Where has all the propane gone? Stocks below average BY RANDY MILLER
If your Father’s Day included a new grill, the only propane tank you probably are worried about today is the attached 20pound cylinder. However, summer is the time to make grain drying and home heating Randy Miller plans for the upcoming season. Propane is produced from both crude oil and natural gas, but normally follows crude oil prices. Propane markets throughout 2011 have moved
in tandem with crude oil until recently. Lack of inventory builds this summer have maintained propane prices even with falling crude oil prices. Currently, propane prices are nearly 70 percent of crude oil values. Let’s look at some of the factors which likely will guide propane through the remainder of this summer: Propane stocks: Propane production from natural gas continues to grow, which might make one believe builds this year are stronger than ever, but that is not the case. Currently, propane stocks are below the five-year average, and it is unlikely that propane
prices will fall without a sizable increase in inventory. Crude oil: While crude oil prices remain the biggest factor in propane prices, propane has not followed crude prices lower. In fact, due to inventory concerns, propane values have remained fairly constant. World news events are bullish for crude oil prices, so we are more likely to see a rebound in crude prices somewhere down the road. Natural gas shale plays: Natural gas produced from shale continues to grow within the United States. Along with the natural gas, liquids such as ethane, propane, and butane are produced. However, addi-
tional propane production from these shale plays has been more than offset by exports and petrochemical demand. The Bakken production, which will feed into the Midwest, is expected to be expanded before winter, but is unlikely to help much with summer builds. Demand: Later-thannormal corn planting this spring, coupled with cool and wet conditions, have the Midwest grain-drying picture looking more like 2009 than 2010. Prudent expectations would suggest grain-drying demand to be higher than last year, but not likely to reach 2009 levels. Currently,
Randy Miller is GROWMARK’s director of propane operations. His e-mail address is rmiller@growmark.com.
prices the rest of summer could trade in a range of $106 to $112 per hundredweight and possibly move up to the mid- to upper teens by fall. Prices this past spring reached a record $125 compared to the average trading range from 2004 to 2010 of $80 to $100 per hundredweight. “We’re trading in a new and higher range,” Murphy said. “And we’re not looking at much growth of the beef cow herd the next couple years” which should continue to support prices. But the bullish price out-
look doesn’t necessarily guarantee success for beef producers. Murphy predicted corn prices will continue to be strong, due in part to tight supplies, and forage costs could increase due to a lack of production in the drought-ravaged southern U.S. Mike Murphy “We could start to see forage costs go up as we ship more (hay) from the north to the south,” Murphy told IBA members. “Even though things may look good in your backyard right now, these types of things can influence us.” Higher feed and production costs could leave beef producers in a predicament in which they’re scratching to turn a profit despite historically high cattle prices. “We’re very bullish the market because of the supply situation,” Murphy said. “But that doesn’t mean we’re bullish margins.” Jeff Beasley, IBA president and a beef producer from Creal Springs, said some producers who buy feeder cattle at current prices could face losses. “We’ve held feed prices in check (so far this year) but we’re running out of cheaperpriced corn,” Beasley said. “We’re going from positive margins maybe even to red.” Cattle prices, however, are expected to remain at historically high levels due to a shrinking supply of beef and strong world demand. The size of the beef cow herd since 1996 has declined by 12 percent nationwide and by 23 percent in Illinois, according to Murphy. And the herd is getting
even smaller as there is “major liquidation” of herds taking place in the South due to drought. “It’s a challenge to stabilize the herd when one of the biggest regions (for beef production) is in severe drought,” said Murphy, who noted one-sixth of the nation’s 30 million beef cows are in Texas. Meanwhile, demand for U.S. beef in other countries has sizzled so far this year as exports are up 31 percent.
“Our (future) growth is not domestic as long as the trend (of cheaper-priced chicken compared to beef) holds,” Murphy said. “Our growth is global.” The analyst cautioned, however, that as U.S. beef prices become more reliant on exports, the markets likely will be more volatile. He advised producers to know their breakeven cost of production and focus on risk management strategies to survive and even thrive in the
the National Weather Service suggests more normal temperatures for the remainder of the year. Without propane inventories building this summer, it is unlikely that prices will retreat from current levels. Strong crude oil prices likely will mean stronger propane prices as our demand season approaches. Take time to visit your local FS member cooperative for contracting and evenpayment programs.
Analyst: Strong cattle prices don’t guarantee profit for producers BY DANIEL GRANT FarmWeek
Cattle prices likely will remain strong for the foreseeable future due in part to shrinking beef supplies and strong world demand.
FarmWeekNow.com Learn more about the cattle market outlook from CattleFax at FarmWeekNow.com.
Mike Murphy, market analyst with CattleFax, at the recent Illinois Beef Association (IBA) summer conference in Macomb projected fed steer
M A R K E T FA C T S Feeder pig prices reported to USDA* Weight 10 lbs. 40 lbs. 50 lbs. Receipts
Range Per Head Weighted Ave. Price $14.00-$46.51 $34.64 $37.00-$66.65 $59.24 n/a n/a This Week Last Week 29,773 25,138 *Eastern Corn Belt prices picked up at seller’s farm
Eastern Corn Belt direct hogs (plant delivered) Carcass Live
(Prices $ per hundredweight) This week Prev. week $94.65 $100.42 $70.04 $74.31
Change -5.77 -4.27
USDA five-state area slaughter cattle price Steers Heifers
This week 110.50 110.47
(Thursday’s price) Prev. week Change 111.00 -0.50 112.01 -1.54
CME feeder cattle index — 600-800 Lbs. This is a composite price of feeder cattle transactions in 27 states. (Prices $ per hundredweight) Prev. week Change 130.08 3.94
This week 134.02
Lamb prices Slaughter Prices - Negotiated, Live, wooled and shorn 120-155 lbs. for 188.47-212 $/cwt. (wtd. ave. 199.70); dressed, no sales reported.
Export inspections (Million bushels)
Week ending Soybeans Wheat Corn 6-23-11 8.7 20.6 28.9 6-17-11 4.3 21.0 43.4 Last year 4.6 18.3 39.7 Season total 1418.3 74.6 1447.4 Previous season total 1367.0 54.7 1492.0 USDA projected total 1540 1295 1900 Crop marketing year began June 1 for wheat and Sept. 1 for corn and soybeans.
Dairy month sees price spike
The Class III price for milk adjusted to 3.5 percent butterfat for the month of June was $19.11 per hundredweight. This is a $2.59 per hundredweight increase from the previous month. The higher prices were a result of hot, humid weather curtailing milk production. The continued rainy weather has made hay-making a real chore, and the lower-quality forage is taking the edge off of production. Only in March 2011 have producers seen prices this high since June 2008.
Page 11 Monday, July 4, 2011 FarmWeek
PROFITABILITY Corn Strategy
C AS H ST RAT E GI S T
Acreage larger than expected Total crop plantings in last week’s USDA report exceeded everyone’s expectations just like in 2008. This year’s numbers may have been more of a surprise given the flooding issues we’ve had in the U.S. and the extreme delays in the eastern Corn Belt, and the Northern Plains. But it always pays to put the situation in a longer-term perspective. Total plantings still fell far short of 2008’s plantings. In primary corn states, only 283.7 million acres were planted to all crops, well short of the 290.3 million planted in 2008. Even adding in the land in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), you can see total acreage planted to all crops in primary corn states is below what was planted in 2008. Since 2008, another 2.5 million acres have come out of the CRP program. Clearly, even though planting issues were extensive, acreage being cropped is still well short of what might have been cropped had planting weather been good. You can see from the accompanying graphic the biggest change has been in the western Corn Belt, including the Dakotas. Plantings and CRP land in that area dropped a half million acres from last year, while
plantings dropped 600,000. In North Dakota alone, plantings of all crops dropped 1.6 million acres. Crop plantings alone are off nearly 4 million from their 2008 high. They are about 1 million below what one might call a long-term base. South Dakota plantings are expected to rise a half million acres this year, but will still be 1 million below the 2008 peak. Amid this, USDA already has indicated it will resurvey four states in the Northern Plains — the Dakotas, Minnesota, and Montana. Results will be released on the August crop report. We expect to see harvested acreage numbers decline because of the flooding along the Missouri River. But as we have indicated before, the best current estimates still are somewhat less than a half million each for corn and soybeans. There could be some additional adjustments because of flooding in the Midsouth, but we see those as being limited. There’s still a possibility double-crop soybean plantings could increase somewhat considering recent rains improved moisture conditions in the Midsouth/southern Corn Belt. But those are unlikely to show until the October revisions USDA makes using Farm Service Agency data. Adjustments will be made, but the acreages still will be larger than assumed before the June 30 report.
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Cents per bu.
ü2010 crop: If you still have old crop, lock up the basis now. Use a rally to $6.20 on December to finish pricing. ü2011 crop: The collapse confirmed a major top has been seen. December should drop to $5.50 this summer, unless weather dictates otherwise. And there’s a chance it will drop lower this fall unless yields prove disappointing. Use a rebound to $6.15 for catch-up sales. We might even recommend adding a small sale; check the Hotline frequently. vFundamentals: The USDA June acreage and grain stocks numbers were a shock to the industry. Doubt about harvested acreage will remain until the USDA August crop report is released. The June 1 stocks were 360 million bushels more than the trade expected. That’s the equivalent of adding 2.2 million acres to the new crop at a trend yield. Even with a reduction in harvested acreage, the trade already is painting a more comfortable supply scenario.
Soybean Strategy
ü2010 crop: The larger June 1 stocks put the burden of seeing higher prices on the new crop. With the end of the crop year approaching, use rallies to $13.30 on August futures to complete sales. ü2011 crop: Smaller acreage keeps production risk in the picture, but unless there’s an extended weather problem, prices will struggle to maintain gains. Use rallies to $13.30 on November futures to make catch-up sales. vFundamentals: The trade already is gearing up for harvested acreage to decline with the August crop report. However, losses in the western/northern parts of the Corn Belt could be offset by more double-crop plantings. Good weather and trend yields still leave the U.S. with adequate supplies. And there’s already talk about larger plantings in Brazil again this year. Export demand is picking up a little, but it start-
ed to become brisk at this time last year. Processing margins remain dismal.
Wheat Strategy
ü2011 crop: Wheat prices plummeted on a bearish USDA acreage report and spillover pressure from corn. The Chicago September contract traded below $6 support, opening the door for a test of the $5.92 low. Once this liquidation ends, there should be a rebound. Plan to increase sales up to 65 percent on the next major rally. We prefer hedge-to-arrive contracts for winter delivery if you have
the capability to store wheat because the large carry. vFundamentals: USDA pegged spring wheat plantings at 13.6 million acres, 250,000 more than expected. Spring wheat planting conditions have been less than desirable because of extreme moisture in the Northern Plains. Prices are feeling some pressure from the rapid harvest progress in the Southern Plains and southern Corn Belt. Yield reports continue to be widely variable, but we generally hear of more good ones than poor ones.
FarmWeek Page 12 Monday, July 4, 2011
pERspEcTIvEs
Delegation delivers support for cooperatives’ issues Recently a delegation of directors, chief executive officers, and staff from Illinois electric cooperatives made a trek to Washington, D.C. As part of that delegation, it gave me pause to think of the many times I’ve been there and the benefits from each trip. My initial voyage was in 1972 when my sister was a foreign exchange student. We drove her to New York City to the airport, but before we sent her on her way, our family toured the U.S. Capitol. Since the mid-1980s, I’ve been going to Washington, D.C., two or three times a year. As a young farmer, I went as an Illinois Farm Bureau leader. Later, as a state legislator, I went to meet with members of Congress on issues related to Illinois. In the last five years, I’ve been going as staff of the Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives to discuss cooperative issues. No matter how many times I’ve gone, I’ve flown into Reagan National Airport and gazed down upon the U.S. Capitol and the Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln monuments and realized just how special that city really is. As a representative for electric co-op members, the Illinois delegation was a part of a national legislative conference organized by the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA). Joining us were representatives from 42 other states for a total of DUANE 3,000 people converging on WashNOLAND ington to talk about rural electric cooperative issues. Highlights this year included meeting with 12 members of Congress to express our concerns. We also met with the staff members who oversee energy issues in nine other Illinois congressional offices. There are several key legislative issues, including the Rural Utility Service (RUS) loan program that provides low-interest financing to cooperatives to improve their services for members. The loan level has been at $6 billion for a very long time. Our focus was to ask Congress to maintain that funding level. Again this year, one of the biggest concerns on Capitol Hill is the deficit and whether to raise the debt ceiling. Anything that puts pressure on the federal budget is scrutinized closely. One of those targeted is the RUS loan program. Every year — literally since the Nixon administration — there is pressure to cut or eliminate the program’s funding. That requires us to be persistent and make a very strong case for its benefits to our members. These low-interest rates allow our cooperatives to
Eminent domain bills concern FutureGen foes
Editor: While continuing to oppose the FutureGen 2 carbon capture and sequestrian (CCS) project in northeast Morgan County where we farm, we’d like to share our concerns on recent legislation favorable for FutureGen and other companies planning to implement this technology. There are three CO2 pipeline eminent domain bills that have been passed by the Illinois legislature but have not yet been signed by Governor Quinn. Senate Bill 1821 sponsored
build electric lines and infrastructure more economically. With those rates, we don’t have to raise electric bills as much and or as often because of favorable financing. We go to Washington, D.C., to remind Congress that the RUS loan program — because it’s a loan — actually returns interest to the government. We are not coming to them asking for a handout. We are asking Congress to continue to fund a program that actually earns a $100 million surplus. That always gets a smile or the nod of a head and bi-partisan support. The other big issue this year is coal combustion residuals, commonly known as coal ash. We delivered a message in Washington to help members of Congress understand its benefits. Southern Illinois Power Cooperative (SIPC), a generation and transmission cooperative on Lake of Egypt in Marion, has installed $15 million of equipment, which allows it to recycle this ash. Instead of sending the ash to the landfills, we are able to convert that into a recyclable product, such as roof shingle sand, sand-blasting abrasive, concrete manufacturing, fertilizers, and a number of other products. In our case, SIPC is recycling a large percent of that coal ash. In essence, if the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) would determine that coal ash is a hazardous material and couldn’t be recycled, the ash would have to be handled in a hazardous fashion, increasing SIPC’s cost of disposal by $11 million. That is 25 percent of its fuel bill. Our argument to elected officials is that there are
27 state EPAs, including the Illinois EPA, that have determined that coal ash is not a hazardous material. There is a beneficial reuse. The argument to recycle coal ash is supported and received well and we are asking our congressional members to co-sponsor HR 1391. The argument makes sense. Why would we put ash in landfills when it can go into building materials? The message is fairly clear, it’s just important that members of Congress hear this side of the story. And that’s why we keep going to Washington. It’s so important for us to be there, championing our cause. Duane Noland, president and chief executive officer of the Association of Illinois Cooperatives, is a former state senator and active on his family farm near Blue Mound. He is a member of Shelby Electric Cooperative.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR as it requires much more coal
by Sen. John Sullivan is the most broad-based, while SB 1533 and SB 2169 are site-specific for the Lecadia power plant in Chicago and the Power Holdings pipeline in Southern Illinois, respectively. The bill posing the most widespread use of eminent domain was House Bill 680 which failed in the spring session but likely will resurface this summer. It provides eminent domain for entire subsurface saline geologic formations like the Mount Simon sandstone formation underlying much of Illinois and contains the spore space preferred by FutureGen 2 for CO2 storage.
Huge tracts of farmland will be impacted under this bill. Illinois legislators are moving way too fast by granting broad-based powers to implement CCS technology which pumps liquid CO2 deep underground at very high pressures over long periods of time without considering the long-term environmental risks involved. We are simply trading an environmental risk above ground for perhaps a greater risk below the most productive farmland in the world. Illinois coal companies would profit immensely by the adoption of CCS technology
to produce the same amount of energy. Accelerated use of techniques like long wall coal mining would be devastating to Illinois farms. We urge all Illinois Farm Bureau members to contact
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your legislators and Governor Quinn immediately to oppose legislation favorable to companies like FutureGen 2 planning on using CCS technology. DAVID, ANDY DAVENPORT, Cass-Morgan County Farm Bureau members will be accepted. A daytime telephone number is required for verification, but will not be published. Only one letter per writer will be accepted in a 60-day period. Typed letters are preferred. Send letters to: FarmWeek Letters 1701 Towanda Ave. Bloomington, Ill., 61701