Regulation

wheat field

Riparian buffer taskforce report released

By Trista Crossley
Editor

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee’s riparian taskforce’s final report was released in December and contains a number of recommendations developed through discussions by a wide variety of stakeholders, including wheat industry representatives. Michelle Hennings, executive director of the Washington Association of Wheat Growers (WAWG); Ben Adams, past president of WAWG and…

Watershed work update

By Trista Crossley
Editor

This year, water quality work in the Hangman Creek Watershed was marked by two reports released by the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology): the “Nutrients and Sediment Pollutant Source Assessment, 2018,” that was released in May, and the “Hangman Settlement Agreement 2021 Annual Report,” released in August. Both documents…

DNR mapping potential solar farm sites

By Trista Crossley
Editor

The Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is in the final stages of mapping their Eastern Washington properties for potential solar farm development. Lessees who might be impacted have been notified by postcard. According to Dever Haffner-Ratliffe, DNR’s Clean Energy Program manager, the goal of the mapping project is…

wheat field

Ag overtime rules: Is there a workable solution?

By Jared King
CPA, Leffel, Otis & Warwick, P.S.

For many farmers in Washington state, paying their employees overtime pay has not been required in the past. No matter how long the day, employees earned their hourly pay rate. It was simple, convenient and predictable for the farmer and the employee. However, a November 2020 Washington Supreme Court case…

Chad Kruger, director at the Washington State University Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources, gave a break-out presentation on carbon offset markets at the 2021 Tri-State Grain Growers Convention in December.

Coolish on carbon

By Trista Crossley
Editor

At December’s 2021 Tri-State Grain Growers Convention, two break-out sessions tried to clear the air concerning carbon markets. Shelby Swain Myers, an economist from the American Farm Bureau, looked at the developing national carbon market programs, while Chad Kruger, director at the Washington State University (WSU) Center for Sustaining Agriculture…

woman speaking

Costing out carbon markets

By Trista Crossley
Editor

At December’s 2021 Tri-State Grain Growers Convention, Shelby Swain Myers, an economist from the American Farm Bureau Federation, looked at the developing national carbon market. Her takeaway was that while there may be a financial opportunity for agriculture, there are still more questions than answers. According to Myers, agriculture is…

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Together, on the road to Abilene
By Andy Juris
WAWG President
Power of attorney – when and why
By John Kragt
Attorney, McGuire, DeWulf, Kragt & Johnson, P.S.
A little ‘whine’ with that wheat?
By Andy Juris
WAWG President
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